Print

Length:29.3 x Width:46.7 (cm)

Chen Chi-Mao (1926-2005, Fujian) was graduated from the Western Painting Division of the Xiamen Academy of Fine Arts in 1937. In 1946, he came to Taiwan to help establish the Keelung City News and went on to teach at schools in Keelung, Hualien, Chiayi, and Taichung. Chen first encountered woodcut art in secondary school and pursued it throughout his life, publishing print collections such as Song of Youth, Spring on the Plains, and Moon Over Swan Lake. He received the Gold Medal at the Free China Fine Arts Exhibition and the Golden Seal Award from the Chinese Republic Printmaking Society. A founding member of several art organizations including the Chinese Printmakers Association and the Figure Painting Society, Chen played a pioneering role in the development of modern printmaking in Taiwan.
Eagle, created in 1982, belongs to Chen’s Birds in Flight series, produced after his travels in Europe during the 1980s. These journeys expanded his artistic horizons and ushered in new approaches to subject matter, color, composition, and technique. In this work, the eagle faces away from the viewer but turns its head sharply back, its gaze piercing and alert. The print employs simple color layering with bold, expressive pigment application. Through varied pressure and rhythm in the carving knife, Chen creates lines that range from dense to open, fast to slow, vividly rendering the eagle’s fluffy feathers, solid body, and vigorous presence. The work reflects his growing concern for ecological issues during this period.

Accession number:20170300062