Wu Hsichi

Wu Hsichi was born in New Taipei City, Taiwan in 1965. Wu was inspired by his father who loves art. At the age of five, he aspired to become an artist. He has been acquainted with abstract art since he was ten years old. Wu immigrated to the Dominican Republic when he was in his early 20s and subsequently returned to Taiwan. Wu had worked as a director of a design company and an art teacher. At the age of 33, he resigned from his position as director and concentrated on painting. At the age of 35, Wu moved to Puli and lived in seclusion in the mountains. He took charge of the recovery of ancient artifacts such as Buddha statues, which include pieces from the Tang and Song dynasties. The artist gained the skills of realistic painting during that period. At the age of 42-43 (2007-2008), his life hit rock bottom and committed suicide twice. Both attempts failed as he was rescued and resuscitated in time. Wu eventually gained a new perspective of life. His life got back on track after having been acquainted with the teachings of Zen. In the second half of 2011, the artist started to paint with oil pastels. The concept of his creation is to challenge the limits of what he can discover. Wu currently lives and works near a coast in Yilan County, Taiwan.

Long before “the Cage of the Human World” painted with oil pastels, artist Wu Hsichi had spent 15 years developing a series of brilliant abstract oil on canvas works. However, in one occasional opportunity, the artist started to use crayons which connect to his painting memories in childhood, letting him find purer and more innocent creation experience. On the one hand, this shows that the artist started to examine himself at the age of 50, and on the other hand, this is the brand-new development of painting language.

Submitted by Powen Gallery