Silhouette of a Great Master: A Retrospective of Chang Dai-chien's Art on the 120th Anniversary of His Birth,Period 2019.04.01-06.25,Galleries 202,204,206,208,210,212
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Chang Dai-chien's Self-Portraits

     Chang Dai-chien was the modern Chinese artist who loved most to do self-portraits, painting more than a hundred of them over the course of his career. A total of ten self-portraits by Chang have been selected for this exhibition, ranging from small album leaves to large hanging scrolls. Four are in the National Palace Museum collection and six currently entrusted from the National Museum of History. The most obvious difference between Chang's self-portraits and those by other painters is that he was not confined to the tradition of formal realistic portraiture. For example, in "My Little Monkey and I" he includes a cute gibbon that he loved so much, while in "Self-Portrait at 59" he appears in the guise of an ancient scholar reading. In "Self-Portrait Begging," he takes the role of a mendicant monk seeking alms for a living, and in "Zhong Kui" he even assumes the form of this legendary figure from Chinese mythology and folk belief. In terms of style, most of Chang Dai-chien's self-portraits are in the expressive "sketching ideas" manner. Were it not for the long tell-tale beard that he sported, it would be difficult sometimes to tell them apart from regular figure paintings. And it is precisely because of the direct and diverse approach that Chang took with form and format, presenting him so vividly and alive as the unbridled artist he was, which make his portraits that much more enjoyable to appreciate.

My Little Monkey and I

My Little Monkey and I
  1. Chang Dai-chien (1899-1983), Republican period
  2. Album leaf, ink on paper, 23.8 x 35.8 cm

The title of this painting, the twelfth leaf from "Cursory Sketches by Dai-chien" (I), comes from the inscription of the same contents written by Chang Dai-chien in the lower right. Chang's original name, Yuan, is a homophone for "monkey" in Chinese. Since Chang was often accompanied by a pet gibbon, art circles widely rumored that he was the reincarnation of a gibbon. This painting fully reflects the affection that he had for gibbons. Painted in 1956, at the age of 58 by Chinese reckoning, it was the first time that Chang traveled to Europe and also the time he met with Pablo Picasso (1881-1973). Inspired by the trends in modern Western art, Chang's brushwork became increasingly bold and succinct, as he often applied the ink more liberally and directly.

This leaf is from an album, a Significant Historic Artifact, in the collection of the National Museum of History.
Self-Portrait at 59

Self-Portrait at 59
  1. Chang Dai-chien (1899-1983), Republican period
  2. Hanging scroll, ink and light colors on paper, 133.5 x 33.8 cm

This painting was done in 1957, when Chang was 59 years old by Chinese reckoning and living at the Garden of Eight Virtues in Brazil. According to the inscription, it is a self-portrait that Chang presented to his friend, Chang Mu-han (1902-1980). Chang Dai-chien in the painting here appears dressed in the robes of an ancient scholar, seen from the side cross-legged, and wish his left hand holding a text as he reads the contents. In that year, Chang Dai-chien was afflicted by eye problems and sought medical attention in the United States during autumn. The lines in this work, which are decisively strong and succinct with only the facial area showing more attention, do not appear to indicate that Chang's vision has been affected. However, his inscription in large characters reveals the frustrations of dealing with "the haze (of blurred vision) that comes with old age."
Zhong Kui

Zhong Kui
  1. Chang Dai-chien (1899-1983), Republican period
  2. Hanging scroll, ink and colors on paper, 93.5 x 48.6 cm

This painting was done on the Dragon Boat Festival in 1947, when Chang Dai-chien was 49 years old by Chinese tradition and living in Shanghai. From the brief inscription in the upper right, we know that it was done for a friend, Chen Ting-shan (1897-1987). The figure in the painting here takes the form of Zhong Kui, the legendary demon queller of Chinese mythology and folk belief often associated with this traditional festival. He wears a dark gauze cap and holds a sword in his hands. With a thick beard, he looks very similar to Chang Dai-chien from the side. The hairpin stuck in his cap also clearly indicates the unbridled and unconventional nature of the painter, who dashingly expressed the true spirit of his art and playfulness with this work.
Self-Portrait at 70

Self-Portrait at 70
  1. Chang Dai-chien (1899-1983), Republican period
  2. Hanging scroll, ink and colors on paper, 128 x 68 cm

This is a self-portrait that Chang Dai-chien painted to celebrate his seventieth birthday in 1968, when he was living at the Garden of Eight Virtues in Brazil. In the half-length portrait here, Chang is shown wearing the long robes and thick beard for which he was known. With a calm look, he gazes off to the side with a sense of leisure and ease. At the invitation of Chang, the painting and mounting was filled with celebratory inscriptions written by his friends and others in the art world, such as Chang Chun, Chang Wei-han, Tseng Shao-chieh, and Liang Han-tsao, making the painting of particularly special significance to him.

Mr. Paul Chang, the son of Chang Dai-chien, presented this painting as a gift to the National Museum of History in 2014.
Self-Portrait Begging

Self-Portrait Begging
  1. Chang Dai-chien (1899-1983), Republican period
  2. Hanging scroll, ink and light colors on paper, 135.9 x 69.1 cm

Chang Dai-chien did this painting in 1973 on the day of his 75th birthday and was living at the Huan-pi Retreat in California at the time. The portrait shows Chang with a long white beard, the whiskers appearing a bit disorderly. In the right hand he holds a cane and in the left an empty bowl as he takes the form of a beggar. Chang Dai-chien in his later years chose to settle in Taiwan, residing at the Abode of Maya studio-residence that he had built. This work also became part of the collection at the National Palace Museum. "Self-Portrait Begging" is now also engraved in stone, which was erected near "Plum Hill" at the Abode of Maya where the ashes of Chang are interred. The painting is one of the finest self-portraits of Chang Dai-chien, commemorating an artist who saw himself as if begging for alms among people, depending on the sale of his painting throughout his life.

Mr. Chiang Fu-tsung donated this painting to the National Palace Museum.