Born in Nantou in 1936, Hsiao Ming-hsien is also known as Hsiao Long. In 1952, he entered the division of art at the Taiwan Provincial Taipei Normal Education School (now the National Taipei University of Education) and became the junior of artists Huo Gang, Chen Dao-Ming, and Shiao Chin. In the same year, he was introduced by Shiao Chin to study painting with Lee Chun-shan in Lee’s art studio on Andong St. He was the youngest one among the fellow students in Lee Chun-shan’s art studio. After graduating from the Taipei Normal Education School in 1955, he started teaching in Huaxing High School. In 1956, he was selected in the “National Chinese Painting and Calligraphy Exhibition” as well as the “Taiwan Provincial Fine Arts Exhibition.” In the following year, he was selected as the national representative to participate in San Paolo International Biennial Exhibit, Brazil and received the Honorary Award as the first Taiwanese artist who won the national art award. In 1960, he won the first prize of “Hong Kong International Salon.” In 1964, he went to Europe for the two-year studies at Ecoles des beaux-arts in France. He moved to the United States of America in 1969 and has lived there until now. Because of his busy life, he has stopped participated in art-related activities.

Since the early stage of Hsiao Ming-hsien’s artistic practice, he has adopted the abstract form to represent “the poetic illusion” and “the mysterious aura.” He has also developed his interest in the traditional ink-wash at a young age. The entangled ink lines move around the image like the cursive script which reveals the natural rhythm. It perfectly mixes the vision and the illusion in the naturally made harmony.

In the modern art movement in the post-war Taiwan, “Eastern Painting Group” represents a younger generation of artists who show a unique perspective on avant-garde art. Among the founding members of Eastern Painting Group, Hsiao Ming-hsien is the only artist born in Taiwan but he is also the first one to be noticed in domestic as well as international art exhibitions. In 1955, his semi-abstract work was selected by the “National Chinese Painting and Calligraphy Exhibition,” which still took a conservative position at that time. In 1957, he won the Honorary Award of San Paolo International Biennial Exhibit, Brazil and became the first modern painter in Taiwan to receive the international art award. Greatly influenced by Paul Klee, Hsiao Minghsien’s abstract painting also adopts the main structure of Chinese epigraphy as the principle to represent a sense of humor which is plain and yet modest. Meanwhile, he uses the abstract style to visualize the poetic illusion and the mysterious aura. Although Hsiao Ming-hsien is a Taiwanese artist, he has been exploring the Chinese ink-wash tradition since the early stage of his artistic career, which also made him famous in the art society in Taiwan. Ever since he went to Europe in 1964, his artworks have become rarely seen in the public exhibition in Taiwan. Therefore, it is more difficult to understand his recent artistic exploration.