'Face' 1961

Tsai Hsia Ling

Original oil on canvas
35 ⨯ 45 ⨯ 5 cm
ConditionVery good
€ 2.500

Willem Kerseboom Gallery

• About the artwork
  Oil on canvas
  35x45 cm ,framed, signed
  
  Tsai Hsia-Ling (蔡遐齢) was born in China in 1936.
  He is part of the Ton-Fan group, a movement of pioneering abstract artists in China, Europe and the U.S., also known as Société de Peinture de l’Orient. It’s a Taiwanese avant-garde art movement founded in Taipei by Ho-Kan in 1956.
  The group’s formation played an important role in the development of Taiwanese art and the history of 20th-century Chinese art.
  He and Hsiao Chin were the first Chinese artists who were also active in Italy in the post-World War II period.
  Little is known about this artist’s recent history and his works are difficult to find on the market.
  2017 From China to Taiwan: Pioneers of Abstraction (1955–1985), Museum of Ixelles, Ixelles, Belgium
  1972 Contemporary Arts Center, Cincinnati, U.S.A.
  1971 Salon Grands et jeunes d’aujourd’hui, Paris, France
  1970 Cité Internationale des Arts, Paris, France
  1969 Galleria Banco, Bolzano, Italy
  Galleria Numero, Florence, Rome, Prato, Italy
  1965 Galleria Grattacielo, Lugano, Switzerland
  1964 Galerie Senatore, Stuttgart, Germany
  Museum of Art Carnegie Institute, Pittsburgh, U.S.A.
  1963 New Art Gallery, La Jolla, San Diego
  Galleria Numero, Florence, Italy
  Museum Leverkusen, Leverkusen, Germany
  1962 Museum Leverkusen, University Missina
  1961 Galleria Grattacielo, Lugano, Switzerland
  Galerie Nächst St. Stephan, Vienna, Austria
  Palazzo Pretorio Prato, Italy
  Museum of Art Carnegie Institute, Pittsburgh, U.S.A
  1960 News Daily Press News Building, Taipei, Taiwan
  1st Hong Kong International Salon of Paintings, St John’s Cathedral, Hong Kong
  (Solo) Galleria Numero, Florence, Italy
  1959 National Taiwan Art Hall, Taipei, Taiwan
  (Solo) Galleria Numero, Florence, Italy
  1958 News Daily Press News Building, Taipei, Taiwan
  
  
  
  Tsai Hsia-Ling 蔡遐齢 pinyin Cai Xialing
  
  1935 Tsai Hsia-Ling 蔡遐齢 was born in Suzhou China.
  
  1949 He left China for Taiwan.
  
  He studied at the Provincial Normal University of Taipei.( Fine Arts department )
  and began to frequent the artists : Ho Kan at the origin of the first movement of
  Chinese Art, rather abstract Art - Hsiao Chin and Li Yuan-Chia..
  
  He joined the eight outlaws Ton Fan Grouo pinyin dongfang huahui 东方画会 Orient
  Movement, as they were called, because of their revolt with respect to artistic standards.
  Chen Tao Ming , Hsia Yan, Hsiao Ming-Hsien, Hsiao Chin, Li Yuan-Chia, Ouyang Wen-Yuan,
  Wu Hao and participated in the exhibitions of the Avant-garde group.( 1958-1960 )
  
  1961 He went to live in Germany and stayed there for seven years.
  
  Daniele Sicard
  
  •
  
  
  Solo exhibitions selection
  
  1959 Numero Gallery Florence Italy
  1960 Numero Gallery Florence Italy
  
  Collective exhibitions selection
  
  1960 1rst International Salon of Paintings Hong Kong
  1960 05.01 30.01 The Ton Fan Group Mi Chou Gallery New York United States
  1960 New Daily Press,News Building Taipei Taiwan
  1960 30.05 06.12 Ton Fan Group Mi Chou Gallery NewYork United States
  1960 Museum of Art Carnegie Institute Pittsburgh United States
  1960 Palazzo Pretorio Prato Italy
  1961 Grattacielo Gallery Lugano Switzerland
  1962 Leverkusen Museum Leverkusen Germany
  1963 Numero Gallery Florence Italy
  1963 New Art Gallery La Jolla San Diego United States
  1964 Museum of Art Carnegie Institute Pittsburgh United States
  1964 Senatore Gallery Stuttgart Germany
  1965 Grattacielo Gallery Lugano Switzerland
  1969 Numero Gallery Florence Italy
  1969 Banco Gallery Bolzano Italiy
  1970 International City of Arts Paris France
  1971 Salon des Grands et Jeunres d'Aujourdh'ui Paris France
  1972 Contemporary Art Center Cincinnati United States
  2017 From China To Taiwan - Pioneers of Abstraction ( 1955-1985 ) Ixelles Museum Ixelles Belgium
  
  
  
  
• About the artist

  Born in China in 1936, Tsai Hsia-Ling became a key figure in the avant-garde art movement that was innovative in both Asia and the West. As a member of the Ton-Fan Group – also known as the Société de Peinture de l’Orient – ​​he helped shape abstract art in Taiwan and beyond. Founded in Taipei in 1956 by Ho-Kan, this movement marked a radical turning point in the development of Taiwanese and Chinese art history, combining traditional aesthetics with the influences of European modernism.

  Tsai and his contemporary Hsiao Chin were among the first Chinese artists to be active in Italy after World War II. At a time when Europe’s cultural landscape was being rebuilt and new artistic forms were being experimented with, Tsai positioned himself as a bridge between East and West. His work reflects a search for harmony between traditional Chinese calligraphy and the dynamism of Western abstraction, with a focus on expressive brushwork and the power of emptiness and space.

  His style has continually evolved, exploring themes of spiritual balance, cosmic energy, and the interplay between order and spontaneity. Within the broader context of the Ton-Fan Group, Tsai helped redefine Chinese modernity beyond academic and political constraints. His artistic legacy has not only influenced generations of Taiwanese and Chinese artists, but has also resonated within the international art world, where he has been recognized as a pioneer of a transnational, intercultural abstract art.

  Today, Tsai’s oeuvre remains an important reference point within the 20th-century Asian avant-garde. His works remind us of a period when art was not only a form of expression, but also a means to forge new cultural dialogues.

Are you interested in buying this artwork?