When we think of natural materials like earth, water or wood, thoughts of digital motifs rarely come to mind. Nature is in fact, one of the most primal subjects one can even discuss, and therefore its quite seldom that we see elements of computers or other types of technological advancements being integrated into art that is composed of natural elements.





Enter the pixelated sculptural art of Taiwanese sculptor Hsu Tung Han. These oddly charming pieces can't help but turn heads and steal gazes from people who randomly pass by his installations and exhibition areas. His peculiar way of shaping wood stems from his innate mentality to challenge the norms of traditional carving. Often dubbed as 'pixelated' or 'glitched' carvings, his strange pieces have appealed to many art critics all over the world. Han's delightful take on melding the old and the new, showcases a rare glimpse of someone's imaginitive power to bridge the conventions often set by a strictly disciplined community.





Most of his sculptures consist of hyper-realistic human forms, disassembled in partiality by the presence and absence of cube-shaped areas. These works are often life-size, consisting of compositions that can tower 4-5 feet in height, making their presence be known, with not much allowance for subtleties. Han's creations have been exhibited around the world, and give Taiwan another maestro to showcase for their journey into the spectrum of modern arts.

Sculpture Artworks by Taiwanese Artist, Hsu Tung Han

The archipelago of the Philippines has been exposed to several foreign influences during its colonial times. From the Spanish conquistadors, to the Japanese invasion and finally ending with the American soldiers who eventually gave the country back to its local population. The cultural diversity of the Philippines is rather prominent, especially in its artistic societies, where movements from different sides of the world collide to create breathtaking and beautiful masterpieces.

Today, we take a look at some of the country's artists who have either shaped or are currently shaping the Philippines' tastes in modern and contemporary art. First off we have the glass sculptures of Ramon Orlina, a peer to the great Dale Chihully (maestro of blown glass art). His style of glass sculpture involves the direct carving of solid glass blocks- a process that he himself popularized as a pioneer. Orlina's method may have arisen due to the complexities of glass casting back in the day, however his proprietary style has now become a favorite for many prominent collectors around the country.

His carved figures are mostly considered to be geometrically abstract constructs, with some formless pieces that reflect and refract light similarly to how the ocean waves create their natural shimmering against the sandy beaches. Orlina has been touted to be the Philippines' most popular glass artisan today, even establishing his own museum for Filipino communities to view and learn from his hard-won original process.




Another sculptor who has gained a nationwide following for creating works that draw from multiple cultures, is Kylo Chua. A Chinese-Filipino artist from Vancouver, Chua works with a variety of hyper-elegant media such as gold, porcelain and bronze. His main material though is cast marble, which he is able to contort in ways that allow him to bring out the graceful feminine appeal within his abstract, humanist figurines. Several of his works depict couples or families, stylized to embody a theme of endless connection and infinite existence. His works have been featured all throughout the country, as well as in Tokyo, Canada and London.

Some of his works are scaled to miniaturized proportions, earning the name "Thumbeline Sculptures", for their tiny, yet fairy-like golden silhouettes. The Artasia Gallery in Manila, is a product of his passion for sculpture, along with his mentor and father, Seb Chua and his uncle, the late Maximo Chan who was also an award winning sculptor and architect in the country.

Sculpture in the Philippines, isn't just about modernity and abstraction though. One famous artisan from Paete, carves realistic faces into alabaster, wood and other mediums to illustrate the passionate hearts of the Filipino people. Fred Baldemor has been sculpting for over three decades, and has been able to create masterful pieces derived from the faces and bodies of his muses. His beautifully classical work are often seen throughout the prominent houses of Manila, being that his craft has earned him a place in the eye of serious collectors and enthusiasts alike.

Baldemor maintains his studio himself, hand-carving his sculptures in the fashion that he's take on since the birth of his trade. From humble beginnings, he has climbed the artistic ladder to sit amongst the very top as one of the great artisans that the archipelago can proudly appreciate.



Aside from carving, Filipinos also love to paint. Historical records have shown us the incredible pieces of painters like Malang, Amorsolo and Joya. Many of whom were able to lead their respective movements in the scope of art genres within the nation's multi-cultural heritage. One of the late masters, Ang Kiu Kok, was of Chinese descent, but was able to strongly influence the avant-garde Filipino painters of later generations through his primal cubist style, proliferating colors of stark contrast against textures that were bold and full of emotion.



Kiu Kok's paintings garnered him the admiration of many collectors, up until his passing in 2005. Today, he still lives on through the beauty and impact of his many works, all of which stay precious in the permanent collections of the Philippines' colleges, schools and private galleries.

Artworks by Filipino Artists (Ramon Orlina, Kylo Chua, Fred Baldemor, Jose Joya, Kiu Kok Ang) Photography by Filbert Tiu and Publications of the Artists

Born in Da Nang, Vietnam, 1969, Tiffany Chung is one of Vietnam's leading contemporary visual artists. Her embroidered canvas maps, cartographic artworks and similarly detailed installations have all been exhibited in areas across the US, Australia, the UAE and Japan. Having been a part of the Vietnamese population that had immigrated during the Vietnam war, Chung was able to seek out education in the US, studying at the California State University, achieving her bachelor's degree in Fine Arts.





As a Southeast Asian artist with widespread recognition, Chung seeks to lead the next generation of contemporary artists in their search for the bold and the new- through similar processes of experimentation and stylistic evolution. Through her works she seeks to address many internationally related social issues like migration, environmental degradation and areas damaged by natural disasters or political upheaval. Her works have been characterized as polished, beautiful and saccharine throughout her many decades of professional artistry.







In 2007, Chung co-founded the non-profit art space Sàn Art, in Ho Chi Minh City, along with peers in the contemporary art circles of her country, as well as personalities from the Propeller Group. The famous Art critic; Xiaoyu Weng has mentioned this about her works: "Often based on old urban plans and grid-like official surveys, Chung's vivid, abstracted maps foreground the cultural memories and histories specific to each region."

Paintings and Artworks by Tiffany Chung, Photography by Galerie Quynh

In all of my travels across Asia, I've been able to encounter a great divide in the schools of thought accepted and appropriated throughout the artistic communities. There seems to be some kind of popular definition-battle between critics, artists and galleries who are on one of two very opposite sides. On the one hand, there are the classicists otherwise known as the purists or traditionalists. This group proudly associates historical and ancestral art with a higher form of culture in their society. I've observed this trait to be most true in some areas of China, where the elder generations all but venerate the calligraphic-looking 'mopit' paintings of olden times. They put such a high regard on the idealism of these artists from past time periods, that any deviance from the prescribed standard insults the way art is supposed to be viewed. Not that everyone is like this- but there are extremists in every field of human culture, art included.



On the other end of the range, we see a bunch of people who love to experiment with combinatory learnings from different sources. They possess eclectic tastes that govern their direction when creating new artworks and exhibition pieces. Many people describe them as post-modernists or contemporary practicioners, and a majority of them belong to generations significantly younger than the group I previously mentioned. Milenials are also often times a part of this second category of artisans. A greatly appreciating view towards westernized movements can sometimes drive many artists to integrate into their works- values, messages and even techniques foreign to their forefathers' cultures.

It's just an observation that I've made, nothing else. There are of course, middleground people who simply appreciate that art can actually be one thing, while being another. There is no real limit to creativity. We can't predict it by putting it into a a set of definitions and restraining people to follow our schools of thought.

Amidst all the tension cycling throughout their region, South Korea remains as one of Asia's most influential countries in the areas of tech, business and arts. Their taste for the post-contemporary side of art has evolved into a local influence that spans across multiple generations in the nation's diverse society.



Within the realm of arts, there are some who have bridged the gap between stundent and maestro- orchestrating works that can capture the eye's atention and grasp the respect of the masses in their multitude.

Jeongmoon Choi, a graduate from Sungshin University in 1990, is a korean artist who plays with
light threads", weaving an almost mathematical stream of visual arrangements into reality. She has since then moved to reside in Germany, displaying her some of her more notable works at the Moeller Fine Art in Berlin and at the Karst Project in Plymouth. Choi illustrates an joining of mediums, through her intense, psycho-sensual works that are now appreciated all over the world.







Choi's works use different allocations of media, such as various lighting forms, and UV thread that resembles the afterlight of glowworms found in nature. This bold series that she has created through her style, touches on the merging of inspirations in her design process. Some works acquire muses from what appears to be spider-web formations, while others can be related to abstract formulae and graphs put in a different light, literally.

Younger, but similarly impactful artists like surrealist JeeYoung Lee, posts bouts of curiosity to the modern world though her strange, yet illuminating collection of photographs that depict the boundless extent of human imagination. Lee's works often explore worlds that could be taken to be purely fantastical- with a grounding element that can bring the audience back to some form or memoir of reality. She herself, is often placed within her pictures, but never facing the viewer, possibly to send an abstract message to whoever seeks to interpret her works.









Aside from being exhibited worldwide, Lee has also acquired honors and recognitions, such as the Sovereign Art Prize in 2012. She, alongside a select group of artists, constitute the growing and evolving circles of contemporary art in South Korea today.

Xooang Choi is another artist from the region, who stands on the cusp of post-contemporary art. His creations although miniature during the earlier years of his career, have grown in side, depicting thought-provoking subjects that have been criticized to evoke very strong reactions from the base of his fans. Some of his more large-scaled pieces have been noted to look nightmarish and epic- in such ways that may strike both fear and curiosity in the minds of patrons.







Choi's famous work "The Noise and Sheddings." is a pair of two setups. The first involves a ring of 70 human heads that each possess very different expressions. These pieces form in a way that put the viewer at a mildly distant view, though still centered in their gaze. The second makes use of different body-part forms, piled in ways that would ask to be mentally re-assembled within the boundaries of human interpretation and limit.

Such works indeed ask the question- what kind of art constitutes as contemporary in South Korea? Is it the type that scares? or maybe those that elicit unbelievable reactions from commentators of their exhibitions. Art cannot fully be explained in its own right, so we can only seek to push farther into its unknown definitions and expectations to come.

Sculptures and Artwork Photography Credit to their Respective Artists (Jeongmoon Choi, Xooang Choi & JeeYoung Lee)

Every now and then, we meet a quirky yet talented artist whose works find their niche in the hearts of people who appreciate a certain slice-of-life in their artworks. Let's take a look at the works of someone who makes use of a medium very unique to the world of art. These are the works of Haroshi, the skateboarding sculptor from the heart of Tokyo. His meticulously carved creations are colorfully created by the process of stacking old skateboard decks together to create a carvable mass, which he then contours to mimic his original subject's look.






Haroshi's pop art sculptures have melted the hearts of younger generations in Japan, simply because he was able to connect with their sense of playfulness and joviality. Many of his creations embody subjects that are cartoonish or game-like, often resembling characters that have a familiar animated appearance to the most beloved ones seen by kids in the city.








His portfolio of works also extends to deeper subjects of influence, such as anatomies in gesture. Some certain works can be considered provocative or rebellious in nature, due to the subject matter they concern, but to most, he is simply a youthful artisan who has found his own originality in the craft of wood carving. Not many think of using such a curious medium, but he certainly seems to have a knack for popular culture and its desires.



Sculptures by Japanese Artist Haroshi

It's not a new concept to use art for the objective of sending a clear-cut message to society. Some artists make use of their craft to challenge stereotypical beliefs and behaviors about politics, age and culture. Rosanna Li Wei Han exhibits her public sculptures at the cityscapes of Hong Kong to showcase her own belief of challenging the views towards physical idealism in gender roles. As a retired professor of design at the Hong Kong Polytechnic University, Li has years of experience dealing with the ability of art to capture people's attention. Her charming, yet simplistic sculptures defy the sexist concepts of "good bodily proportions" or anatomical "musts" often desired by society due to popularization in mainstream media.



Li's subjects are almost always human figures, both men and women whose phsyique tends to be more large-framed and hefty according to some observers. Some of her artwork series entitled “Men and Women ‧ This and That”, have prodded at society's grueling  definitions of how a human body should appear as. Distinctly though, she has also formed her pieces in such a way that they wouldn't appear offensive or strikingly apparent to anyone who either does or does not fit the proportions knelt on by those norms.







Her most famous sculpture is probably the permanent artwork situated over at Yau Tong Station, entitled People Passing By, People Lazing By. Her curriculum vitae showed us that she has also had an extensive educational journey throughout different countries of the world, including the Cheltenham & Gloucester College and the University of London in the UK, Hong Kong Polytechnic University and the Northcote College of Education.

Sculptures by Rosanna Li Wei Han, Photography by the artist's publications

With the rise of geometric abstraction, many art collectors find themselves drawn to minimalist forms depicting smooth, unobstructed paths and undulating appearances. Mariko Mori from Japan, is an artist who practices this futuristic way of sculpting, using her sleek floating sculptures to portray a juxtaposition of Asian mythology with westernized elements. Her waveform style is quite representative of the type of art currently given focus by 3D sculptors and digital design masters.



She loves to create large scale installations, some often resembling different types of ethereal and celestial objects. These works have found audiences in her hometown of Tokyo, as well as in high-mark locations around the world like several London galleries. Mariko Mori's insight into the a futurist's perspective, combined with the sheer simplicity of her works, suggests that japan's tendency for beauty-in-basic structure, has also permeated its ever growing art communities.



Mori's art isn't just limited to still-objects though, she herself has been involved in hybrid performance art. There was an instance in 1994 when Mori stood in a Tokyo subway station dressed as if she had just touched down from an outer space landing. Her silvery metallic attire was even accompanied by a matching headset and microphone. Interactive and personalized performance-installations are also what characterized Mori's distinct and curious concept of what art should embody and share with the public.



Some of her earlier works, especially in the fields of photography and videography were influenced very strongly with Japanese cultures of different timelines. This included drawing some manner of relevance from cosplay, the popular activity of many Japanese young people- wherein they recreate various costumes of beloved cartoon and heroic characters for fun public interactions.

When I was young, I used to think that art was this big, extravagant thing. I thoought that artists were people who could not be explained, and were often out-of-this-world crazy in some aspects of their personality. It was only later on in life that I discovered the passion they share for creating wonders and sending messages with a language that is unspoken by words. Ideas are best conveyed by pieces that catch the mind's eye rather than sentences that fall on deaf ears.



Art is a mode of communication. It's beauty can come forth in tens of thousands of ways. Whether it be through the multitudes of possible interpretations of a work, or through the sheer magnitude and gravity of a masterpiece's meaning, depth and significance to a society. It seems that this very strange part of human capacility- the skill to draw, paint, sculpt, imagine.. is often overlooked by those who fiercely believe that logic and reasoning are the only keys to understanding our condition as moral and mortal creatures on this earth.

Both modern and traditional art movements have their place in the history of many societies, conveying importance in whatever those people held dear at the time. Traditionalists often render works that perfect their imagery of certain beliefs and aspects of cultural heritage. Modernists on the other hand, scrape at the possibility of the new, engaging in the contraversial, testing the limits of people's understanding, and challenging the norms to which we have all come to live by.

Every type of information is only made useful when it is spread to more than a single individual. I feel that art is one of the main ways that information is spread. It might not be the most direct way to do this, but it can be the most striking, the most impactful, and certainly the most beautiful of any method known to man in this day and age.

"Distant Memory" A Painting by Chinese Artist Zhang Xiangming, Oil on Canvas

Welcome to my little archive about the fine art sectors within the different countries of Asia. My father used to tell me that art is like a river, constantly flowing down a mountain path, sometimes splitting into different genres that stem off and create their own movements.



For me, art is one of my most elusive passions. As a writer, I've loved finding myself in new destinations across the continent, visiting private galleries, museums and universities has been an utmost pleasurable experience. Learning about the artistic cultures of old, as well as the curious tastes of more modern generations has been fascinating to say the least.

(Photographed is Yayoi Kusama, a personal favorite artist of mine, who's psychedelic style has earned her the name, Queen of polkadots.)