Yang Chi-Chuan’s (b.1985, Taipei) work is characterised by a subtle and evocative nature that explores the connections between individuals, locations, items, and occurrences. Her artistic works encompass drawings, installations, sound pieces, and most recently wind chimes and kinetic curtain sculptures. These creations can be interpreted as a continuing collection of stories that explore the interconnectedness of things. The narrative quality of her art is inviting, charming, and captivating, immersing the audience in different situations and allowing them to examine a variety of issues related to life, family, politics, urban surroundings, and numerous cultural aspects.

A recurring theme in Yang’s work is the exploration of personal experiences, a distinct and significant subject that holds relevance for everyone, particularly during their developmental years. Picturing the stories you have told me (2018), for example, is a collection of crayon illustrations accompanied by an audio recording. The intricate small-size compositions resemble fragments, unhurriedly scavenging memories and snippets of stories. In parallel, the recording fosters a feeling of immersion, guiding the viewer into a realm of intimacy and trust. The composite aspects of the work are intricately intertwined and imbued with an air of enigma: the presence of the “you” and the “me” in the narrative prompts us to inquire about the specific time and place of the events, compelling us to delve further and uncover responses.

Nine Lines (2018) is a substantial installation that depicts a choreographed arrangement of power lines and utility poles, intertwined and leaning against one another, representing the mundane aspects of daily life. As if uprooted from the streets, one pole bends, the other carries a microphone, encouraging the audience to think about our surroundings on the streets one passes everyday and takes for granted. Additionally, it evokes thoughts of transformation, the end of an era, and the emergence of advanced and streamlined methods of energy transportation and communication. By appropriating bodily, anthropomorphic poles, Yang’s work serves as a means of reflecting on the changes in our urban or societal landscape. Other installations that also emphasise immersion, such as Essays: A Platform (2017), are particularly theatrical, constructing intricate stages in which the audience is exposed to captivating scenes and scenarios.

After realising the “Plastonki” exhibition in 2021, Yang has been delving deeper into the physical and emotional characteristics of handcrafted ceramics, suspending an array of ceramic objects in tree structures or vertically, producing motorised wind chimes that spin and ring, and curtains that gradually rise and fall. The recent ceramic installations crystallise different threads of Yang’s practice over the past ten years—an ever-deepening exploration of personal experience, the natural environment, architectural space, memory, sound, ruin, performativity, organic form and non-readymade. Wind chimes have also transformed the gesture of suspension with which Yang has been fascinated for years—she gingerly demonstrated her interest in pendulous movements and suspension in exhibitions such as “Specimen” (2014), “What a Wonderful World” (2017), and in installations such as Nine Lines. Yang’s recent sound-ceramic installation commissioned by the 2023 Taipei Biennial juxtaposes the wind chimes and curtain pieces presented at the solo exhibition “Tuning into Autumn” (2023): the former examines one’s struggle with anxiety and fear, while the latter signifies ways in which one may calmly embrace life. In the landscape of “Tuning into Autumn”, Yang gently encourages visitors to recalibrate their speed, to relive a cadence that aligns with nature, to revisit affection and fondness, and to, ultimately, cultivate a state of tranquility with life, as fallen leaves and seeds.

Yang’s artistic approach encompasses several mediums and focuses on documenting, safeguarding, and reflecting on events, ideas, and individuals. She serves as an interpretive visual archivist, as well as a guardian of hidden knowledge. Amidst a constantly changing world, her practice exudes a sense of calmness that beckons you to engage and explore at your own leisure, unravelling what exists or has existed. By recording and sharing these ideas, Yang embodies an appealing sense of humanism and a compassionate exploration filled with warmth.

Yang’s recent solo exhibitions include: “Tuning into Autumn”, Kiang Malingue, Taipei (2023); “Plastonki”, Kiang Malingue, Hong Kong (2021); “Plastonki”, Künstlerhaus Bethanien, Berlin, Germany (2020); “Have a Good Day”, Taipei Artist Village (2017); “Tick-Tock”, Things That Can Happen, Hong Kong (2017); “Essays During the Night”, Juming Museum, Taipei, Taiwan (2017). She participated in the 2023 Taipei Biennial “Small World”. She was the finalist for the 2018 Art Sanya Huayu Youth Award, and the 2017 Taipei Arts Award.