Taishin Bank Foundation for Arts and Culture

Comments on the Finalist

 “I Love Taiwan and Love Southern Taiwan Even More” was an exhibition held in conjunction with the World Games at the Kaohsiung Museum of Fine Arts. Originally planned as an expanded exhibition, it was later scaled down, but without any loss of quality. The exhibition brought together a great number of Lee, Ming-tse’s works and presented the maturation process of a Taiwanese artist. The gentle vision of Lee’s mind’s eye was laid out in richly enchanting pictures and diagrams of Taiwan. Lee, Ming-Tse struggled in his early years, but through his perseverance as an artist he has found success. His participation in this exhibition perhaps indicates that creative abilities and market tendencies can come together.   ( Committee member/ Lee, Jun-Hsien)

Artwork Introduction

Lee, Ming-Tse’s I Love Taiwan and Love Southern Taiwan Even More took place at the Kaohsiung Museum of Fine Arts from June 6 to September 6, 2009. The title of the exhibition reflects Lee’s attitude that Taiwan is his canvas, but southern Taiwan is where his heart is.    

Over 158 paintings and drawings that were created during 1981 to 2009 were selected and grouped thematically. He usually integrates pop culture, such as chivalrous-style comics, traditional mythology, Buddhist and folk stories into his work, plus his paintings share his affection for his homeland such as Kaohsiung Harbor and Lotus Lake at Zuoying.

Lee's art also provides a glimpse into Taiwan's post-war history and growth process. This transformation is seen in his various artistic phases, in which he shifted from "Greater China" thinking to his self-identification with the land of Taiwan and its local culture.

As a consequence, Lee's works cannot be interpreted superficially from the imagery he depicts. Instead, his works are laden with symbolic implications, and the messages that he invokes or borrows are often derived from the everyday lives of ordinary people or past traditional elements. His art tends to evoke memories and provoke discussion. Yet, each of his different styles extends the main thrust of his art and cannot be classified chronologically.

One common characteristic of these works are the figures' huge faces, long ears, and long, slanting eyes and eyebrows. In particular, the smudged dark colors of the face convey a person who has achieved detachment and freedom from desires, but who irresistibly falls into the defiled state of an ordinary person in the space of a thought. Even though these delicate works express a traditional aesthetic, they criticize the rapid changes in modern society, the destruction of the environment, and the complexity of the human mind.

About the Artist

Lee, Ming-Tse was born in 1957 in Kaohsiung County. One of Taiwan’s esteemed artists, Lee has exhibited in prestigious international exhibitions such as the Venice Biennale and Japan's Fukuoka Asian Art Triennale.

Lee’s paintings and drawings are interspersed with childhood martial arts comic book fantasies and memories of local folk heroism. Besides being abundant with his personal emotions, his scenes and moods often transcend chronological time by combining the ancient with the modern. He invokes new and old cultural symbols and memories of the land, and his concern and angle of vision are focused lovingly on his homeland of Taiwan.