Eastern Gouache

2007

Length:112 x Width:146 (cm)

Accession Number：20210100086

Lin Yen-Liang (b. 1970, Tainan) earned his BFA from Tunghai University and an MFA in Art from the University of Tsukuba in Japan. He has taught at Chang Jung Christian University, Tunghai University, and Tainan National University of the Arts. Specializing in both the creation and restoration of nihonga-style (traditional East Asian pigment) paintings, Lin has received numerous awards from the Provincial Art Exhibition, Nanying Fine Arts Exhibition, and Dadun Fine Arts Exhibition. His works have been featured in solo and group exhibitions in Taiwan and abroad. He has also served as a juror for major art competitions such as the Taoyuan and Tainan City Art Exhibitions, and participated in architectural mural restoration projects.
Listening to the Sea depicts a half-human, half-fish male figure surrounded by swirling waves, gazing intently and devoutly at a glowing white lotus before him. The scene unfolds like a dreamscape, where myth and reverie converge. Drawing inspiration from the stylized waves of Japanese ukiyo-e, Lin uses vivid, saturated blues and elegant curvilinear forms to create highly decorative, fluid waves—expressing the ocean’s ever-changing vitality and power. The painting is enriched with generous applications of gold leaf, suggesting a liminal space between the real and the imaginary, the earthly and the divine. Through this shimmering interplay of light and symbol, Lin evokes his longing for the sea and a passionate embrace of life’s mysteries.