“For the Love of this Land—Shiy De-Jinn Retrospective,” organized by National Taiwan Museum of Fine Arts and National Dr. Sun Yat-sen Memorial Hall, both of which are affiliated with Ministry of Culture, will be grandly held at Bo-ai Gallery of National Dr. Sun Yat-sen Memorial Hall from December 10 to 20. The opening ceremony was held at Bo-ai Gallery at 2:30PM today (Dec.10).
Born in Sichuan in 1923, Shiy De-jinn completed his art education in Hangzhou National College of Art before moving to Taiwan in 1948. After thirty years of development and transformation, his painting style is unique in the art circle of Taiwan, integrating the characteristics of traditional Chinese culture and the features of Taiwan’s landscapes and deeply loved and approved by people in Taiwan.
After Shiy passed away in 1981, his good friends established a foundation to preserve the paintings he left behind and donated them to Provincial Taiwan Museum of Fine Arts (today’s National Taiwan Museum of Fine Arts) for collection. The year of 2021 is the 40th anniversary of Shiy’s death. To express gratitude to Shiy for his donation, commemorate the 40th anniversary of his death, and highlight the relationship between his art and Taiwan, National Taiwan Museum of Fine Arts organizes the special exhibition, “For the Love of this Land—Shiy De-Jinn Retrospective.” The traveling exhibition at National Dr. Sun Yat-sen Memorial Hall includes 55 splendid works of Shiy De-jinn.
Director-general of National Dr. Sun Yat-sen Memorial Hall, Wang Lan-sheng, said it is an honor for the hall to be the third stop of “For the Love of this Land—Shiy De-Jinn Retrospective.” After the artist passed away, this is the second time that his works are exhibited at National Dr. Sun Yat-sen Memorial Hall. This time, the exhibition includes only two themes, “Traditional Architecture” and “Taiwanese Landscapes,” but all the works are vivid and touching as the artist can grasp the moment, exert creativity, show skills, and put in the power of life. It is fully displayed by the master that “Greatness can be seen in daily life.” It is especially noteworthy that Mr. Shiy used to serve as the judge of the watercolor competition for National Dr. Sun Yat-sen Memorial Hall forty years ago. Besides, he is also a good friend of the designer of the hall, Mr. Wang Da-hong. It is with the special meaning that his memorial exhibition is held at the hall. Welcome to visit the hall and appreciate the works during the exhibition.
Director of National Taiwan Museum of Fine Arts, Liang Yung-fei, said forty years has passed since Shiy De-jinn died of pancreatic cancer in 1981. But he pursued the eternal value all over his life. The poet Yu Kwang-chung described the death of Shiy De-jinn: “After you’re gone, there’s nothing left in Taipei.” His creative experience included the Taiwanese experience, Chinese experience, and European and American experience. Finally, he decided to take root in Taiwan and leave the abundant and precious cultural assets for Taiwan, donating more than 2,000 works to National Taiwan Museum of Fine Arts. By following his footsteps in Taiwan, the traveling exhibition “For the Love of this Land—Shiy De-Jinn Retrospective” was held at the first stop, Chiayi Municipal Museum. Today it comes to National Dr. Sun Yat-sen Memorial Hall and exhibits 55 splendid works with the themes of Taiwanese Landscapes and Traditional Architecture. We hope to present his love for the land of Taiwan, passion for painting, and excellent exquisite painting skills to the public and achieve the goal of public art promotion. We invite the art lovers in northern Taiwan to seize the opportunity to appreciate these precious works at National Dr. Sun Yat-sen Memorial Hall during the 11 days.
The famous oil painter, Mr. Ho Chao-chu, who used to serve as the director of Shiy De Jinn Foundation, said in his speech that he was an old friend of Mr. Shiy De-jinn for fifty years. The colors of the exhibited works remind him of the time when Mr. Shiy was at the terminal stage of cancer in 1981. At the same time, he also shared the story that Mr. Shiy never found it hard to live in a cow shed in Gongguan, Taipei, because the grass fragrance was reminiscent of his childhood memories in Sichuan. It was also the creative connection with his hometown when he lived in Taiwan.
“For the Love of this Land—Shiy De-Jinn Retrospective” will be grandly held at Bo-ai Gallery of National Dr. Sun Yat-sen Memorial Hall from December 10 to 20, 2021. For more information, please visit the official website of National Dr. Sun Yat-sen Memorial Hall, www.yatsen.gov.tw, or call the service counter, (02) 2758-8008, ext. 545, 546.