Artwork Appreciation
WU Chien-Hsing’s photographic piece Family Memories starts with a family wedding portrait, and with one picture the artist sketches out the history of three generations.
Wu takes the shot at a 45-degree angle with family members all gathered in the parlor. Moving with the angle from image to image, it’s as if the artist has us paging through a picture album reviewing individual photos.
Wu’s starting point is human experience. By recounting the passage of time, the artist conveys to us the mind-set of parents keeping guard at home as they wait for their children to return from their jobs abroad.
Through the creation of images the artist rebuilds the memories of family photos and thereby conveys to us the idea that every cent spent, is spent to improve the family’s fortunes.