Painting
Black Painting (2022)
Charcoal, acrylic, and enamel on canvas.
“I see a red door
And I want it painted black….” The Rolling Stones.
Exhibited in:
Laundry Rocks (2021)
Image transfer, graphite, pigment on paper.
Piles of dress shirts are reimagined into Chinese “scholar rock” fine art tradition. One can see a world through a rock, and imagine a new world despite one’s current situation.
The Chinese laundries of the 1800s were the first wide-spread business enterprises developed by early Chinese immigrants. Over time, they became a significant part of everyday life for Boston Chinatown families, and a means to send money back home. At the peak, there were 500 Chinese laundries in the New England area. Astounded by these family histories, I created Laundry Rocks.
Exhibited in:
Contemporary Calligraphy
ink on paper and mixed-media
Traveling between the messages of intentional and unintentional strokes, Wen-hao uses traditional materials to create modern images that are alive with rhythm and meaning. Tien’s contemporary calligraphy is well-exhibited in the United States (see About).
To the left, “To Go”, ink on rice paper (2011), was exhibited and the catalog cover for “Looking Both Ways: Republic of China 100 Years and Beyond”, Eastern Michigan University and University of Michigan (2011).
Life Underground (2020)
Ink and acrylic on rice paper.
Published in:
EcoTheo Review, with an essay by Peter A. Crawley (printed magazine)
Book art
In private collections.
N is for Net/work (2013)
The Syncopation series
In the “Syncopation” series, nets are constructed as a response to the syncopation of the music at play. The repetition inspires the artist to knead with her brush, hence the nets.
Exhibited in:
An Alphabet of Inspiration: Artists Celebrate 100 Years of Collection, Boston Children's Museum, Boston, MA (2013/2014)
Deck of Cards
Agile and playful, these images visualize my own oddness; play irony and juxtaposition, as well as an underlying deeper truth. This project digs into my busy mind and a rapid (and constant) dreaming and thinking nature. This is the thesis of my Agile Mind drawing workshop (please go to “Workshop” on top).
Love (2018)
Ink and watercolor on rice paper.
“And in the end, the love you take is equal to the love you made” The Beatles. The Square Calligraphy of Xu Bing inspires the style.
Exhibited in:
New Art Center Faculty show, Newton, MA
“It Speaks for Itself?” (2022) at Gaslight Gallery, Frederick, MD.
Mold Drawing (2022)
Ink and watercolor and mold on rice paper.