Lin Shih Yung, Evidence. Take-3, 2017

Oil on canvas
145.5 x 89.5 x 5 cm
Condition: Very good
Artwork located in Taiwan

-

When Lin Shih-Yung (Taiwanese, b.1982) returned home to start over at the age of 25, his initial creations seemed to awaken memories of his childhood he was unwilling to face. Forced to adapt to new environments, he grew up quickly, carrying the weight of strict family rules and expectations. These pressures led him to feel alienated in the absurdity of the world. However, over time, he learned to coexist peacefully with the darker aspects of himself, completing his current self through painting. For him, family represents a heavy burden that he cannot let go of, and each past experience continues to carry significant meaning.

Graduating from the Art Education and Creative Research Institute at Hsinchu University of Education, Lin Shih-Yung has become a highly recognised figure in Taiwan's photorealistic oil painting scene, known for his distinctive creative style, character representations, and symbolism.

His self-created symbol, the "Banana Man," serves as a metaphor within his works. Through surreal expressionism, Lin conveys the somber and intense emotions tied to family and childhood memories. In the "Evidence" series, the figure delicately examines and plays with each potential piece of evidence within the space created by memory (the canvas). He arranges, measures, and scrutinises, as if memories can truly be fragmented and manipulated across multiple dimensions of the mind, shifting at will.