American Cowgirl

Fiction Love

From the magazine Schnappschuss No. 56

"Photography is my way of communicating with the world". With these words, the artist Wang Chienyang describes his award-winning works, which he has already presented around the globe. For us, the young Taiwanese artist tries to describe his path to Pop Art and what fascinates him so much about it.
by Wang Chienyang I am a Taiwanese artist of fine art and installation, but also a painter and photographer. I started photography in the university where I studied fine art after I was invited to capture the dance performances of my friends from the dance department. At that time I knew nothing about photography. Still using a video camera at the time, I gradually began to teach myself everything and my technique improved with every shoot. In my student days I continued to photograph dance and realized that photography was a much more direct and effective way to express my thoughts compared to painting, which I had been studying for quite some time. Since then I have used photography as my creative medium.

Pearl Milk Tea Bath, 2011

Japanese popular culture has had a strong influence on me since my childhood. I love watching Japanese anime and reading manga because they inspire me a lot and I incorporate their elements into my work. Films and animations are also my favorites, especially those based on superhero comics like Marvel or DC. These always accompanied me in my childhood. I never realized that this subculture could be a representation of art until I came across pop art, and after Andy Warhol and Roy Lichtenstein brought these popular styles and themes into the exclusive art salons, things like posters, cartoons and other commodities could be considered art. But what influenced me the most was an exhibition called "Fiction Love" held at the Museum of Contemporary Art in Taipei in 2004. It was a contemporary art exhibition that showed an interaction with animation with works by artists from Japan, Korea, China, Europe and the United States. Among them, the works of Japanese artists Murakami Takashi and Yoshitomo Nara had left a great impression on me and my later works. My series "House" is inspired by otaku culture in this virtual age. Otaku culture in Japanese is a phenomenon of the young generation who are obsessed with their interests, especially in anime and manga, which makes them social outcasts. Thanks to today's social networks, these people are nevertheless in contact with others on the Internet without having to leave the house themselves, and my works represent an evolution of this otaku concept: staying in a "house", if one regards the "house" as a basic unit of society. In addition to being a place of retreat where people can relax and read comics, the "house" can also be a stage for fantasies, where virtuality is brought into reality from the subconscious.

My works are mainly posed. I play the director who looks for the right background for the shoot and produces special art scenes. I also communicate with my models so that we can portray their featured characters in an exaggerated manga style. Naked bodies are a feature of my works as they show the individual again in their natural, simple state. Each work features a stop-motion manga, which is meant to create a young, playful self with a theatrical setting. I like to add everyday objects such as toys, anime and movie plots to create a cheerful loveliness that can help viewers escape from reality and have a surreal experience. Being inspired by everyday actions and social culture, even the subcultures, and bringing them into my creations is my way of presenting the spirit of pop art. Creating a unique scenery for the shoot is also a main creation of my works, so that each "house" can represent a completely different thought. I also see the process of creation as a kind of art act. Many people think that Photoshop can create any background, but I prefer to build a real "house" that can hold my thoughts. I still remember the texture of the handmade movie commercials in Taiwan from the past. Painting brings out a different emotion like printing nowadays.

I've been doing this "House" series for seven years, starting with simple shoots of nude models in their own homes to painted models in front of a surreal created background, transforming a real space into a stage of fantasy. Later, I used manga as a medium to discuss political and social issues. "House" is no longer a simple house. It's wonderful that the "House" series has been shown in exhibitions all over the world in these few years. This is a great opportunity for me to create different "Houses" in different countries while my exhibition is running.


More info and more works by the artist:

Wang Chienyang
www.wangchienyang.com