Artwork Appreciation
Eddy Lin uses a meticulous realism to combine illusion with people and things of the real world to convey his creative frame of mind.
In his oil paintings Lin excels at “magical realism,” incorporating into his work unforgettable things from childhood as well as his very own image.
In The Adventures of Tom Sawyer a bonsai pot stands in the middle of the picture. A close look reveals insects and animals as well as the characters from the cartoon The Adventures of Tom Sawyer.
Lin yearns for the free and easy, exciting adventurous life of the cartoon. And so it is that he puts himself on the canvass, shirtless, a book in one hand, a fan in the other, using a comic dialog box to give the impression he is absorbed in thought about the creative life he is engaged in. Lin uses a poison snake next to the bonsai pot and a playing card not showing its face to suggest the difficulty of the creative path.