Jian Yi-Hong SolitudePost date：2026-03-31
Updates：2026-04-28
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- Event Time
- 2026-04-11~2026-06-2011:00-19:00
- Phone Number
- 02-25775601
- Event Location
- (Michael Ku Gallery)4F.-2, No. 21, Sec. 1, Dunhua S. Rd., Songshan Dist., Taipei City Taiwan, R.O.C
Michael Ku Gallery is pleased to present Jian Yi-Hong's latest solo exhibition Solitude. This marks the artist's fourth solo exhibition with the gallery and the tenth year of their collaboration. The exhibition is presented in two parts: the first, Solitude, features sixteen new works; the second, Solitude II, brings together selected works from different stages of the artist's career.
The exhibition encompasses landscapes, still lifes, and figures. The artist has a particular affinity for depicting waterscapes, including Qixingtan in Hualien, Tamsui in Taipei, Waimushan in Keelung, and the coastline of Green Island. The sea is both fluid and enveloping; in the act of gazing at it, one seems also to encounter oneself. A trip to Suzhou introduced another mode of seeing: works such as Tender Solitude, Half-Side of Suzhou, and Rowing draw from the constructed scenery of classical gardens, inspiring the artist's approach to spatial composition.
Some works originate from scattered sketches and memories accumulated over time. A draft of Rainfall, made during an artist residency in Chishang, depicts ants outside the door during a typhoon attempting to enter the house—moving from initial resistance to gradual acceptance, allowing all living beings to take shelter together. A draft of Fallen Blossoms, completed during a residency in Thailand, captures frangipani flowers scattered across the grass after an afternoon downpour, where life exists simultaneously in states of blooming and decay. These images do not form explicit narratives but retain a sense of feeling, shaping the everyday texture of Solitude.
In this exhibition, the artist begins from color, marking a shift from earlier works characterized by ink outlines with light washes. The new series gradually incorporates richer and denser hues. Life, Like the Sea emerged while accompanying the artist's father: layers of blue waves accumulate, resembling both the flow of present emotions and an awareness of life’s continual transformation. Still Life with Bananas stems from a quotidian moment—while working and staving off hunger, the artist observed bananas slowly oxidizing and darkening, akin to the subtle interplay between gamboge yellow and ink within the painted surface. Through experimentation with materials, the paintings move beyond contour, allowing planes of color to carry emotional projection.
The title Solitude originates from the artist's experience during a 2021 residency in Thailand. Between city and countryside, signals were intermittent during the day, while at night the artist often dreamed of being unable to find the way home. Solitude in isolation becomes an opportunity to see oneself. ''Solitude'' thus becomes the core condition of the exhibition: dwelling with the canvas, with paint, with time, and with inexpressible emotions. In an era that emphasizes constant connectivity and continuous expression, the ability to quietly devote oneself to a single act becomes something rare and precious.
The works preserve the most authentic state of their making: some brushstrokes still carry a trace of hesitation, and some colors remain unresolved. Yet these imperfections lead back to the original spirit of creation. As the artist notes, ''solitude'' is not grand—it is modest, everyday, even fragile. It is precisely within this state that one comes closer to oneself, and, in time, reconsiders the meaning of encountering others.
The exhibition encompasses landscapes, still lifes, and figures. The artist has a particular affinity for depicting waterscapes, including Qixingtan in Hualien, Tamsui in Taipei, Waimushan in Keelung, and the coastline of Green Island. The sea is both fluid and enveloping; in the act of gazing at it, one seems also to encounter oneself. A trip to Suzhou introduced another mode of seeing: works such as Tender Solitude, Half-Side of Suzhou, and Rowing draw from the constructed scenery of classical gardens, inspiring the artist's approach to spatial composition.
Some works originate from scattered sketches and memories accumulated over time. A draft of Rainfall, made during an artist residency in Chishang, depicts ants outside the door during a typhoon attempting to enter the house—moving from initial resistance to gradual acceptance, allowing all living beings to take shelter together. A draft of Fallen Blossoms, completed during a residency in Thailand, captures frangipani flowers scattered across the grass after an afternoon downpour, where life exists simultaneously in states of blooming and decay. These images do not form explicit narratives but retain a sense of feeling, shaping the everyday texture of Solitude.
In this exhibition, the artist begins from color, marking a shift from earlier works characterized by ink outlines with light washes. The new series gradually incorporates richer and denser hues. Life, Like the Sea emerged while accompanying the artist's father: layers of blue waves accumulate, resembling both the flow of present emotions and an awareness of life’s continual transformation. Still Life with Bananas stems from a quotidian moment—while working and staving off hunger, the artist observed bananas slowly oxidizing and darkening, akin to the subtle interplay between gamboge yellow and ink within the painted surface. Through experimentation with materials, the paintings move beyond contour, allowing planes of color to carry emotional projection.
The title Solitude originates from the artist's experience during a 2021 residency in Thailand. Between city and countryside, signals were intermittent during the day, while at night the artist often dreamed of being unable to find the way home. Solitude in isolation becomes an opportunity to see oneself. ''Solitude'' thus becomes the core condition of the exhibition: dwelling with the canvas, with paint, with time, and with inexpressible emotions. In an era that emphasizes constant connectivity and continuous expression, the ability to quietly devote oneself to a single act becomes something rare and precious.
The works preserve the most authentic state of their making: some brushstrokes still carry a trace of hesitation, and some colors remain unresolved. Yet these imperfections lead back to the original spirit of creation. As the artist notes, ''solitude'' is not grand—it is modest, everyday, even fragile. It is precisely within this state that one comes closer to oneself, and, in time, reconsiders the meaning of encountering others.
