Oil Painting

1997

Length:73 x Width:91 x Height:2.1 (cm)

Chen Hui-Tung (1938-2024, Tainan City) was first inspired toward art in childhood after seeing a large-scale painting of Taiwan’s history hanging in Chihkan Tower. In 1957, he entered Taitung Normal School and, upon graduation, began teaching at Haidong Elementary School in Tainan. In 1962, together with Wang Tsai-Tien (1938-1990), Wang Sung-Ho, Lu Che-Ying, and Lin Fu-Nan (1941-2024), he co-founded the Lien Chih Painting Society, later renamed the Southern United Painting Society, an important collective in southern Taiwan’s art scene. While teaching in elementary schools, Chen also ran a studio, mentoring numerous students. He later transferred to Yongfu Elementary School, where he became a leading figure in children’s art education in the Tainan area before retiring from that post. Deeply respected in his hometown, Chen served as president of the Southern Art Society, as an art consultant to the Tainan City Government, and played a role in the planning and establishment of the Tainan Art Museum, where he also served on the board of directors, making significant contributions to the region’s art development.
Chen Hui-Tung devoted his career to oil painting. Early on, he was influenced by Western modernism and experimented with abstraction before turning to realistic portrayals of figures and landscapes. Venice depicts the city’s canals flanked by rows of houses, rendered in a realist style infused with Impressionist qualities. The brushstrokes remain visible, lending the surface a lively texture, while the interplay of light and shadow on the water and the use of complementary colors become focal elements of the composition. Through this approach, precise yet imbued with a sense of ease, Chen conveys a scene of bright tranquility, inviting viewers into a leisurely Venetian atmosphere.

Accession number:20170300140