Yachi Shian-Yuan Yang

A painter who works in the traditional East Asian ink painting technique. Her works are in the collections of Taiwan Art Bank and several private institutions. After moving to Norway, she presented her works at the opening exhibition of the Norwegian National Museum (2022) and at the fall exhibition at Kunstnernes Hus (2012). She also participated in Art-Citizen Art Shanghai, Asia Contemporary Art Show, Singapore Contemporary Art Show and Christie’s Chinese Contemporary Ink- Hong Kong. She was a lecturer at the Tainan State University of Arts in Taiwan and a freelance reporter. She has also written for a magazine about contemporary art in Taiwan, “Artco.”

She recently worked in Oslo with support from BKV on a series of male portraits called “Pen Gutt,” which have become another form of expression of feminism for her. Her work refers to metaphysical themes, the lines and brushstrokes in her paintings are inspired by nature. She creates with a concern for the beauty of humanity, with a contemplative attitude towards both the chaos and grandeur of the modern world.

Summary of the residency

Yachi arrived in Wrocław with a well-defined project that she planned to carry out during her residency. Her idea was inspired by the fear associated with the increase in electricity prices, familiar to the artist herself. This quickly materialised into a series of watercolours with an aesthetic reminiscent of storyboards, i.e. images and sketches used as guidelines for creating films. They contained humorous texts expressing criticism about the policy of the Norwegian government and its helplessness towards the citizens confronting the crisis. Yachi’s idea was not only to address the situation she and her friends found themselves in last winter but also to disenchant Norway as a very progressive and wealthy country that can effectively solve all problems.

The artist began her visit by settling comfortably into her residence flat which she had redecorated for the duration of her stay. This was important for her, as she spent a lot of time there, not only relaxing or cooking (for herself and people she met in Wrocław) but also working. The entire residency proved to be extremely productive for Yachi. Above all, it allowed her to devote herself completely to her artistic practice, something she does not experience on a daily basis, working outside the art world. The artist felt motivated to experiment with techniques she had not used for a long time, such as copperplate. With the support of Prof. Marek Stankiewicz, the curator of the Copper House, and thanks to the courtesy of Galeria Miejska, which lent her a printmaking studio, the artist was able to carry out her idea for a print inspired by leaflets once used as tools in political struggle.

On the one hand, Yachi’s working space was her apartment and printmaking studio, and on the other, the pages of the sketchbook she always carried with her. This allowed her to draw wherever she happened to be, to immediately capture moments and impressions – in a cafe, at the swimming pool, in the park, in the sauna. Almost 50 drawings were created in this way. They form a visual diary of her residency in Wrocław and will be on display, along with the other works, at an exhibition at BWA Studio in November.