Sculpture

1960

Length:17.8 x Width:10.6 x Height:53.3 (cm)

Chen Hsia-Yu (1917-2000, Longjing, Taichung) was introduced by painter Chen Hui-Kun (1907-2011) to study sculpture in Japan, training in the studios of Mizutani Tetsuya (1876-1943) and Fujii Kosuke (1882-1958). From 1938, he was selected for the Shin-Bunten (New Ministry of Education Art Exhibition) for three consecutive years, earning permanent exemption from preliminary review. After returning to Taiwan, he taught at Taichung Normal School (now National Taichung University of Education) and served as a juror for the Taiwan Provincial Art Exhibition. He later resigned from teaching and jury duties to devote himself fully to sculpture, spending his life exploring the forms of the human body and animals. His works are noted for their stability, simplicity, and quiet presence.
The female nude was one of Chen’s primary subjects, and the 1960 work Bather is among his representative pieces. The figure stands with a towel draped over one arm, one knee slightly bent, suggesting the intention to step forward. Chen deliberately retained the uneven, rough texture of the surface to record the sculpting process as it responded to the body’s muscular forms. The toes and tendons on the tops of the feet are rendered with particular care, integrating the figure seamlessly with its base—a detail to which Chen devoted special attention in order to convey an unseen sense of movement. Through simplified form and boldly textured surfaces, the work captures the complex, subtle shifts of musculature. Smooth, rounded lines and a stable structure combine to express both serenity and an understated suggestion of motion.

Accession number:20160100005