Huang was born in Taipei, 1966. Grown up in a family with profound artistic background, he graduated from department of Mechanical Engineering, National Taiwan University in 1984 and studied design from the ground zero in the United States. He was awarded with a bachelor degree in the department of industrial design at Art Center College of Design, Pasadena in 1992. In 1993, he received his MFA in Illinois Institute of Technology design, and became a Ph.D. candidate in 1996. Huang was in the position as Artist Director in major computer entertainment corporations like Sega and Sony, and started to receive attention. In 2001, he came back to Taiwan, and fully devoted himself in to creation of techno/ digital artistic works, which he achieved greatly. He also established the “storynest studio.” Huang has received numerous awards, e.g., Muse Award from the American Alliance of Museums, silver medal in the National Exhibition of Prints, Taipei Arts award, The Innovation Awards, the first price of New Voice New Vision in New York, and so on. Huang was an in-school-artist and assistant professor in Chinese Culture University. He currently is the associate professor of the Digital Contents & Technology, National Chengchi University.
Most people would be surprised to learn that this artwork is the condensation and the epitome of a theatrical stage; nonetheless, it is an artwork created by HUANG Hsin-Chien through meticulous arrangements and intricate configurations. Huang specializes in using digital and techno-art media to express profound philosophical reflections. This work portrays the metaphor of the stage as life, as it is paved with confounding and twisting symbols of frustrations, surprises, and more; it tells of the inescapable destiny for rulers and commoners. Although we are able to inspect our own lives, as the final chapter concludes, we are often left with a sense of helplessness.
The concepts and applications of digital and technology arts prevailed in Taiwan, interacted with media such as the earlier video art, and become crucial elements in the development of Taiwanese contemporary art in the new century. Huang’s endeavor is no doubt playing a notable role in this movement. Starting from his rational training as a mechanic engineer, he has way profounder reflection upon the relation between science and human civilization after he enters the field of artistic creation. Science could improve the life of human being, but meanwhile, could turn up against human body, mind, and social relations.
In the mid and late 1990s, Huang’s works such as Puppet Motel, Cat Witness, and Migration still focus on elaboration and observation upon individual experience. Nevertheless, started from works such as Formation, Dwelling, Decay & Emptiness in 2002, it is more and more easily to observe philosophical observation upon life. Applications of interactive mechanisms, digital sculptures, and sound media, expand in terms of depth and variety for his attempt of seeking for the meaning of life. What is the implication of “I”? How to establish the relation between one and others? How are feelings and consciousness conveyed and changed through the process? How do self and environment factors interact and infiltrate one another? In the life that is meant to be decayed, how could the meaning of it prevent from being absurd and eroded? With all sort of media between contexts, Huang provides a digital response mixed in sounds and lights. In the trace of light, shadows, interactive technologies, and alternative sensations, what Huang actually cares is no longer just about the technology per se, but the reflection of essence of objects and human life alike, exploring imagination of life that is more subtle et yet with multiple layers. In his other works, such as Mirage Theater, Huang extends his artistic breadth toward fields of history, architecture, or stage design, offering a contemporary platforms for different humanity concepts to cohabitate with one another.
Chinese title: | 虛空色染 觀無樓 |
English title: | Void-gazing pavilion |
Decade: | 2007 |
Medium / Classification: | Sculpture |
Dimensions: | 171×100×53 cm |
Artist: | HUANG Hsin-Chien |
Life-span: | 1966 - |
Collection Unit: | Collection of the National Taiwan Museum of Fine Arts |
Contact method for authorization: | Guide to the Use of Image Files and Data from the Online Collection Database |
Related Exhibition: | "The Pioneers" of Taiwanese Artists, 1961-1970 |