Max Liu Chi Wei, Old Man & Sea (Self-Portrait), 1998

Mixed media on canvas
50 x 37.5 cm (visible), 78.5 x 66 x 2.5cm (framed)
Condition: Very good

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Max Liu (Chinese, 1912–2002) was born in Fuzhou, Fujian Province, China. His birth name was Liu Fu-Sheng. At the age of nine, he moved to Japan with his family and later worked for the National Government as a technician in the Ministry of National Defense's Ordnance Bureau. He eventually moved to Taiwan, where he contributed to post-war power infrastructure recovery and restoration projects.

As a self-taught artist outside the formal academy system, Liu’s journey with art began in 1949 after visiting an exhibition by Xiang Hong (dates unknown) at Zhongshan Hall in Taipei. Inspired, he started experimenting with watercolour painting and translating art books. In 1971, he resigned from his government position to become a full-time artist. He integrated art anthropology and indigenous cultural field studies into his work, striving to promote art while expressing his love for nature and ecological conservation.

His painting Old Man & Sea reflects Liu’s deep love for nature and adventurous spirit. Much like Hemingway’s The Old Man and the Sea, the piece embodies themes of courage, determination, and resilience.

As a child, Liu moved to Japan during World War I and later witnessed the Great Kanto Earthquake and the Second Sino-Japanese War. He also travelled to Vietnam during the war, encountered indigenous tribes, and even visited African villages. Throughout his life, he sought connections with nature, developing a profound respect for the land and a commitment to protecting animal habitats.

These experiences shaped Liu’s outlook, and even in his eighties, he remained energetic and full of laughter. In the painting, a playful old man wears only a simple cloth skirt, standing beside a towering fishbone totem. This peaceful and equal relationship symbolises Liu’s lifelong bond with nature.

(Photographed in March 2025)