Li Chen or Li Zhen (Chinese: 李真; pinyin: Lǐ Zhēn; Wade–Giles: Li Chen) is a sculptor. He was born in 1963 in Yunlin County, Taiwan.
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Early life and education
Li attended Taichung Municipal Dajia Senior High School. Before joining Taiwan's mandatory military service, Li took up a position in the workshop of local sculptor Hsieh Tung-liang where he studied body sculpture.
Career
Two of Li's early art series The Beauty of Emptiness and Energy of Emptiness use simple minimalist lines that create an aesthetic of emptiness to reinterpreted the image of Buddha statues. In the Spiritual Journey Through the Great Ether series, Li is less limited by tradition, inventing a technique that incorporates gold and silver leaf on the exterior of his bronze sculptures.
Soul Guardians was inspired by Li's reflections on the occurrence of natural disasters over almost a decade. He takes the main character of a myth as his creative focus as he discusses the significance of "God" for humanity. This was followed by The Beacon: When Night Light Glimmers series, which took a "special light" as its creative core.
More recently, Li has reflected on human nature in his creative works: the Ordinary People series in 2010 demonstrates his spiritual contemplation. The 2011 series Immortality of Fate, which is one of Li's "virtual" series, utilizes wood, rope and ceramic clay to convey his awareness of the changeability of cause and effect in life. In the same year, Li also produced the Ethereal Cloud series, the first time he showed cast stainless steel pieces.
Li's auction record is HKD.11,190,000 for a sculpture "Dragon-Riding Buddha" created in 2001, set at China Guardian, Hong Kong, on 7 October 2019.
Series
The Beauty of Emptiness (1992–1997)
Energy of Emptiness (1998–2000)
Spiritual Journey Through the Great Ether (2001–)
Soul Guardians (2008–2009)
Immortality (2008–)
The Beacon (2009–2010)
Ordinary People (2010–)
Ethereal Cloud (2011–)
Exhibitions
2019 Ethereal Cloud – Li Chen New Works, Asia Art Center, Beijing, China
2018 Through the Ages - Li Chen Solo Exhibition, Aurora Museum, Shanghai, China
2017 Being: In/Voluntary Drift - Li Chen Solo Exhibition, Museum of Contemporary Art, Taipei, Taiwan
2014-15 Journey of Solitary Existence: Li Chen's "Ordinary People" Series Debut Exhibition, Asia Art Center, Beijing, China
2013–14 Discovery Channel's documentary "Chineseness", Taipei, Taiwan
2013 Li Chen 2013 Place Vendôme Premiere Sculpture Exhibition in Paris
2012 Li Chen: Eternity and Commoner, Frye Art Museum, Seattle
2011 Greatness of Spirit: Li Chen Premiere Sculpture Exhibition in Taiwan, Taipei
2010 The Beacon– When Night Light Glimmers, ShContemporary 10, Shanghai
2009 Li Chen: Mind‧Body‧Spirit, Singapore Art Museum, Singapore
2008 Soul Guardians- Li Chen Solo Show, Asia Art Center, Beijing
In Search of Spiritual Space, National Museum of China, Beijing
2007 Energy of Emptiness, 52nd International Art Exhibition – La Biennale di Venezia, Venice
2005 Li Chen Sculpture, Art Taipei 2005, Taipei
Publications
Through the Ages-Li Chen, Aurora Museum and Asia Art Center, 2019, ISBN 9789869566438
Being: In/Voluntary Drift - Li Chen Solo Exhibition, MOCA Taipei, 2018, ISBN 9789869651806
La Légèreté Monumentale de Li Chen, Asia Art Center, 2014, ISBN 9789868633254
Greatness of Spirit: Li Chen Premiere Sculpture Exhibition in Taiwan, Asia Art Center, 2012, ISBN 9789868633223
Li Chen: The Beacon Series: When Night Light Glimmers, Asia Art Center, 2010, ISBN 9789868633216
Li Chen: Mind．Body．Spirit, Singapore Art Museum & Asia Art Center, 2009, ISBN 9789868406087
Li Chen: Soul Guardians-In an Age of Disasters and Calamities, Asia Art Center, 2009, ISBN 9789868406070
Li Chen in Beijing – Solo Exhibition at National Art Museum of China – In Search of Spiritual Space, Asia Art Center, 2008, ISBN 9789868406018
Li Chen in Venice, Asia Art Center, 2007, ISBN 9789579780469
Li Chen 1992–2002 Sculpture, Asia Art Center, 2004, ISBN 9579780447