Cristene Chang Hoei studied finger painting, and this mode, which she learnt from master Wu Tsai Yen, gave her the most direct feeling for her materials and aesthetic expression. In recent decades, Chang has honed her printmaking craft and has been primarily inspired by literary and biblical texts. She works with a printing press and casts and pulls mostly in monoprint.
Poem of C is beautifully succinct in capturing all these processes that are an intrinsic part of Chang’s artistic practice. A seafoam green texture is matched with red highlights, densely pulled to reveal both horizontal and vertical imprints. The uneven, tear-like ridges suggest the presence of waves or rocks, the natural processes and outcomes that convene with time passing. A vertical format is a portrait in Western art but a landscape in Chinese painting. The poem in the title is rightly a mirror of the artist’s soul, her reflection and her journey. Chang’s works are unique pieces formed by hand from parts to plate, to process, to print. This piece’s subtle yet sculptural quality reflects the directness and depth of her creative mien.
