Description/
In 1926, Chen Cheng-po painted Outside Chiayi Street using Guohua St. near his home as the background. He became the first Taiwanese painter to exhibit at the Imperial Art Exhibition when the piece was selected for its 7th edition, but unfortunately that painting is now lost. He tackled the same scene again in 1927 and gave it the same title. In that later version seen here, he presents a street scene near his residence complete with modern facilities like electrical wiring and sewerage. The straight road vanishes into the horizon in this fixed-point perspective. Neat rows of electric poles and houses flanking the street also diminish incrementally in perspective, expressing the depth of field as well as the resulting rigorous street grid after the government undertook an urban renewal project. The cloudless azure sky and bright ocher ground intensify the feel of the scorching heat in the air. Staffage such as a flock of chicken in the foreground, scattered pedestrians along the two sides of the road and colorful clothing drying in front of the houses all help add visual interest and animate the painting.
Bibliography/
- Chuanying Yen, The Complete Collection of Taiwanese Art 1: Chen Cheng-Po (Taipei City: Artist Publishing, 1992), 230.
- Yuchun Lin, Oil‧Passion‧Chen Cheng-Po (Taipei City: Lion Art Publishing, 1998), 36-37.
- Junyao Cai, “The Urban Renewal Project and Public Construction in Chiayi City during the Japanese Colonial Period” (Master's thesis, Department of Architecture, National Taiwan University of Science and Technology, Taipei City, 2004).
- Hanni Chiu, "Homeland Consciousness and Identity Politics in Chen Cheng-Po’s Paintings: A Study of his Three works, Outside of a Chiayi Street (1926), Street Scene on a Summer Day (1927), Chiayi Park (1937)," Taida Journal of Art History 33 (2012.09): 271-342.
Outside Chiayi Street
1927
Materials & Techniques：Oil on canvas
Dimension：65x53.4 cm
Private Collection
Location:Outside Chiayi Street (now at the intersection of Chuiyang Rd. and Guohua St., Western District, Chiayi City, Taiwan)
