葡萄牙陶瓷展覽 2024 IAC Members’ Exhibition "Mediterranean Ceramics and their Global Influence”
2024 IAC （International Academy of Ceramics) Members’ Exhibition "Mediterranean Ceramics and their Global Influence”
Thank you for selecting my work: Moonlight in the water. (Handmade. Porcelain. Stoneware. Gold lustre. Japanese print paper.Aluminium plate. 36.5 x 50 x 14 cm. 2022.www.wenhsichenceramics.com/2022.html) for the 2024 IAC Members’ Exhibition "Mediterranean Ceramics and their Global Influence”
The exhibition - jointly curated by Alberto Guerreiro and José Antunes
lower ground floor, of the Armazém das Artes Art Centre in Alcobaça. Portugal
The opening of the exhibition： Monday 16 September 2024.
The exhibition from 16 September to 2 March 2025.
Artwork Title: Moonlight in the Water
This artwork was created during my artist residency at the Faenza Art Ceramic Center in Italy in 2022 (https://www.wenhsichenceramics.com/2022-faenza-art-ceramic-center-italy.html).
This opportunity was delayed by three years due to COVID-19. During the residency, I continued to explore my research based on the concept of "in-betweenness": the space between life and death, between the East and the West, between my homeland Taiwan and my second home, Britain, and the various cultural shocks I experienced. I investigated cross-cultural identity through clay, allowing myself to address cross-cultural questions and issues.
Using the tips of my thumbs and forefingers, I created tiny, careful actions to represent my own small voice. This meditative movement, which balances pressing and pushing, inhaling and exhaling, reflects my cultural identity. Each small individual porcelain fingerprint is a reconstruction of who I am.
During the three years of COVID-19, I experienced many "real" and "unreal" events. I grappled with feelings of loss, as many people passed away, and I hadn't been home to Taiwan for four years to see my family. So many emotions were forced to hide, becoming an invisible language between the real and the unreal—like moonlight on water, which looks real but is actually an illusion. This reflects a philosophy of life, experiencing the many nuances between reality and illusion. The only tangible aspect for me is that clay offers me a space to express my emotions, and I am grateful to remain connected to this material. No matter what happens in this world, I strive to be resilient and respectful to myself and others.
During my residency, I was fortunate to meet sincerely kind people, such as David, the person in charge at the Faenza Art Ceramic Center, and his family. The artist Mirco Denicolò also kindly discussed my project with me. I initially wanted to use a mirror under my work, but he suggested using an aluminum plate to reflect the space between the real and the unreal, creating a surreal feeling.
In terms of materials, I used porcelain, stoneware, gold luster, and Japanese print paper (which I purchased during my residency at the Shigaraki Ceramic Cultural Park in Japan in 2018, https://www.wenhsichenceramics.com/2018-shigaraki-ceramic-cultural-park.html). This piece combines Taiwanese soul , Japanese elements, Italian materials, and British influences to explore cross-cultural identity—sometimes resembling the moonlight on water.
Moonlight in the Water
Handmade. Porcelain, stoneware, gold luster, Japanese print paper, aluminum plate.
Dimensions: 36.5 x 50 x 14 cm.
Year: 2022.
Happy to meet Curator: Alberto Guerreiro on the 12th December 2024. Also, I visited the Monastery of Alcobaca.
Thank you for selecting my work: Moonlight in the water. (Handmade. Porcelain. Stoneware. Gold lustre. Japanese print paper.Aluminium plate. 36.5 x 50 x 14 cm. 2022.www.wenhsichenceramics.com/2022.html) for the 2024 IAC Members’ Exhibition "Mediterranean Ceramics and their Global Influence”
The exhibition - jointly curated by Alberto Guerreiro and José Antunes
lower ground floor, of the Armazém das Artes Art Centre in Alcobaça. Portugal
The opening of the exhibition： Monday 16 September 2024.
The exhibition from 16 September to 2 March 2025.
Artwork Title: Moonlight in the Water
This artwork was created during my artist residency at the Faenza Art Ceramic Center in Italy in 2022 (https://www.wenhsichenceramics.com/2022-faenza-art-ceramic-center-italy.html).
This opportunity was delayed by three years due to COVID-19. During the residency, I continued to explore my research based on the concept of "in-betweenness": the space between life and death, between the East and the West, between my homeland Taiwan and my second home, Britain, and the various cultural shocks I experienced. I investigated cross-cultural identity through clay, allowing myself to address cross-cultural questions and issues.
Using the tips of my thumbs and forefingers, I created tiny, careful actions to represent my own small voice. This meditative movement, which balances pressing and pushing, inhaling and exhaling, reflects my cultural identity. Each small individual porcelain fingerprint is a reconstruction of who I am.
During the three years of COVID-19, I experienced many "real" and "unreal" events. I grappled with feelings of loss, as many people passed away, and I hadn't been home to Taiwan for four years to see my family. So many emotions were forced to hide, becoming an invisible language between the real and the unreal—like moonlight on water, which looks real but is actually an illusion. This reflects a philosophy of life, experiencing the many nuances between reality and illusion. The only tangible aspect for me is that clay offers me a space to express my emotions, and I am grateful to remain connected to this material. No matter what happens in this world, I strive to be resilient and respectful to myself and others.
During my residency, I was fortunate to meet sincerely kind people, such as David, the person in charge at the Faenza Art Ceramic Center, and his family. The artist Mirco Denicolò also kindly discussed my project with me. I initially wanted to use a mirror under my work, but he suggested using an aluminum plate to reflect the space between the real and the unreal, creating a surreal feeling.
In terms of materials, I used porcelain, stoneware, gold luster, and Japanese print paper (which I purchased during my residency at the Shigaraki Ceramic Cultural Park in Japan in 2018, https://www.wenhsichenceramics.com/2018-shigaraki-ceramic-cultural-park.html). This piece combines Taiwanese soul , Japanese elements, Italian materials, and British influences to explore cross-cultural identity—sometimes resembling the moonlight on water.
Moonlight in the Water
Handmade. Porcelain, stoneware, gold luster, Japanese print paper, aluminum plate.
Dimensions: 36.5 x 50 x 14 cm.
Year: 2022.
Happy to meet Curator: Alberto Guerreiro on the 12th December 2024. Also, I visited the Monastery of Alcobaca.
