“Jun T. Lai: Wonderland” aims at presenting and elaborating Jun T. Lai’s diversified and enchanting art achievements from the year 2000 and onwards. The notion of “Wonderland” has been at the heart of Lai’s recent creations, which traces back to the first morning at the turn of the millennium when she stood by the coast in Taitung with others to witness with excitement the first ray of sun in Taiwan for the new epoch. Lai felt at that moment that most people seemed to be living in a state of elusive ambiguity, and whether with personal realization of a complete self or a sense of identity for this land, things appeared quite muddled, and it was difficult to set truth apart from fabrication. The value of freedom for each individual life is the ultimate principle behind Lai’s art, and it is where the different “Wonderland” series departed from. Lai hopes to reconstruct personal mythology set in reality through her individual will, creative imagination, and expressions and communications driven by life, seeking to create a sustainable art and cultural endeavor with symbols and allegories representing the new era.
The content of this exhibition encompasses Lai’s works of new media painting, sculpture, spatial installation, conceptual performance, and public art. The layout of the exhibition and the positioning of the artworks intend to guide the viewers onto a meandering route to enter into each distintive exhibition space, where they could see the different themes in Lai’s creations and texts in an orderly manner, one after another. In doing so, it helps to understand Lai’s persistently positive aesthetic belief and also her vivid and diverse artistic context, and the viewers could then explore the following three philosophies upheld by Lai since she her move to Taitung: “New Century’s Outlook / New Homeland’s Identity / New Life’s Experience”, which are inspired by beautiful encounters of nature’s revelations and emotions that have touched her heart. From which, she has garnered more passion and energy for expressing her creativity and vitality, resulting in new and vibrant fruitful outcomes of art.
After graduating from the Department of Art of Chinese Culture University in 1974, Lai continued to study in a graduate program at the Tama Art University in Japan. A year before her graduation in 1977, she held her first solo exhibition in Kunugi Gallery, Tokyo, which opened up her professional art career. Over the last 40 years, Lai’s art has continued to grow and expand, with her art frequently exhibited at home and abroad, with her gaining an outstanding reputation and accomplishing substantial achievements in both fields of fine art and public art. Her public artworks are seen in different social settings in Taiwan and overseas, totaling close to 40 artworks. As the winner of the 2007 and 2016 Public Arts Awards’ Creativity Award, Lai has proven her position in this highly competitive arena with her exceptional accomplishments. Her personal in-depth exploration and innovative experimentation with art were recognized when she was presented in the 80s with Taipei Fine Arts Museum's Contemporary Art Trend Competition Notable Prize and Contemporary Chinese Sculpture Competition First Prize.
She was also presented with the first prize for the arts category in the 2016 Wu San-Lien Arts Awards. Lai seeks to find the joy in art while staying determined and working hard, as she also aims to form a unique path and style as a woman artist in an era of diversity and social vibrancy.
‘Jun T. Lai: Wonderland’