Tsai Yi-Ting

Biography

The background in fine arts training has endowed Tsai Yi-Ting with proficient hand-drawing skills. Despite majoring in oil painting during university and focusing on video art while studying abroad in the UK, Tsai has consistently insisted on using pastels and acrylics. The expressiveness and blendable features of pastels allow them to easily penetrate the fibers of paper, intertwining with acrylic paints to create multi-layered depth. This process shapes her preferred "everyday landscapes"—scenes that depict people in their natural state in life, where beneath the simple, unpretentious appearances lies a profound unknown. In this way, experiments with different types of paper are essential to her hand-drawing process. Tsai personally searches for acid-free paper in Taiwan and Japan or orders large sizes of paper from China, exploring how the layering and translucent qualities of color, along with smooth brushstrokes, can merge with the "breathing" nature of the paper to vividly embody the rich elements of her painting.

Tsai continually experiments with various materials and papers, reflecting her preferences and status at different periods. In recent years, she has attempted to disrupt the paper's surface fibers by applying pastels and repeatedly rubbing and refining the paper, which allows the color pigments to seep into the fibers and form a rough, fuzzy texture. The fusion of these elements creates rich and profound imagery. Additionally, "fur texture", "daily objects", and "human figures" have become the themes that the artist focuses on. In terms of the expression of the paintings, abstract shapes are blended with vibrant colors, and through repeated rubbing, evoke the visual sensation of "fur texture". Dramatic lines and the blending of different color blocks shape various personalities and tensions within her figures, fully demonstrating her mastery and use of materials. 

The use of "vivid colors" and "repetitive smearing" showcases a strong style and technique in this collection. By repeatedly rubbing the paper's fibers and experimenting with the texture of pastels, she generates varied traces resembling cotton tufts, creating rich textures against bright colors. This interplay between colors results in layers of textures that are uneven and varied. From portraying human figures to experimenting with pencil on various papers, the artist immerses herself in the properties of paper. Through continuous deconstruction and reassembly, the traces of application and destruction on the paper respond to the works, culminating in pieces that remain true to her artistic self.

Tsai Yi-Ting, born in Hsinchu in 1981, graduated from Taipei National University of the Arts and Central Saint Martins master class in the UK. She has participated in exhibitions in Taiwan, Japan, the UK and other places. Important personal exhibitions include: Dinner, Lin & Lin Gallery, Taipei, Taiwan, 2024; Newborn. Confinement, Beyond Gallery, Taipei, Taiwan, 2018; Tsai Yi-Ting Solo Exhibition, Espace devenir, Hsinchu, Taiwan, 2013; Nanliao, A Gallery, Taipei, Taiwan, 2012, etc. Important joint exhibitions include DIX AND THE PRESENT, Deichtorhallen Hamburg, Hall of Contemporary Art, Hamburg, Germany, 2023; L'Invitation au voyage, Esther Schippe, Berlin, Germany, 2021; Jōseki : The Contemporary elaboration of Classic formations of Art , Lin & Lin Gallery, Taipei, Taiwan, 2019; A Room of One’s Own, Lin & Lin Gallery, Taipei, Taiwan, 2013; Manifestation of Homunculi, Kuandu Museum of Fine Arts, Taipei, Taiwan, 2012; Drawing Now, Hong-gah Museum, Taipei, Taiwan, 2011; ULTRA, Emerging directors' art fair SPIRAL, Tokyo, Japan, 2010; Weak Painting, Kuandu Museum of Fine Arts, Taipei/ Da Xiang Art Space, Taichung, Taiwan, 2009; Taipei Art Awards, Taipei Fine Arts Museum, Taipei, Taiwan, 2004, etc. In additional, her works are also in the collections of museums such as Kuandu Museum of Fine Arts, etc.