The one reading in a tent

作品賞析

Artist Shih Yung-Chun’s paintings are often created on the basis of his writings. This work, The One Reading in a Tent, comes from the novel he wrote for his solo exhibition in 2019. One of the chapter headings is “Library,” and it describes a tent hotel that provides free stays, but guests must leave an item for the tent as an accommodation fee, so the story of the tent unfolds in relay fashion. In the picture, there is a person lying in a tent reading a picture album, with some white plastic birds scattered around him. Although it is from a scene of the novel, it offers only a glimpse. The artist uses techniques such as wiping, collage, blending, and abrasion to create a mental association with the fourth dimension, just like the interpretation of dreams in twentieth-century surrealist works, and a bit like the mysteries in mystery dramas. Shih Yung-Chun hopes that through his works, he can interact with viewers’ “private experiences” and stimulate their imagination.