24/9/2024
As a participant in ART COLLECTIVE: From the One to the Many at Saatchi Gallery, Winnie Chen presents works that explore the delicate balance between human desire and survival, using both personal and natural themes. Inspired by philosopher George Santayana’s notion that the fulfilment of emotion and desire is central to human happiness, Chen draws on concepts of “mimicry” to explore the dynamics of relationships and environmental adaptation. In her work, mimicry—a biological survival technique in which insects use camouflage to deceive predators—becomes a metaphor for the self-protective behaviours found in human connections. Chen’s approach presents vulnerability as an inherent part of resilience, using her art to reveal the tensions between protection and exposure.
Chen’s work often explores how the environmental and psychological forces around us shape behaviour. Reflecting on her life across Taipei, Shanghai, and the United States, Chen’s practice is defined by themes of impermanence, identity, and relationships. Her use of insects as symbolic figures highlights survival, mimicry, and camouflage—traits that reflect resilience but also underscore fragility. This approach allows her to bridge human experiences with natural patterns, creating work that feels both intensely personal and universally accessible.
In Love Affair, Winnie Chen explores the intoxicating and twisted nature of romantic possessiveness. The painting immediately draws the viewer into a turbulent world of intense emotions, where dark, flowing shapes intertwine with softer, ambiguous colours, creating a sense of both allure and confinement. The visual elements suggest a powerful drive to merge with one another, as though the very act of closeness is both a source of comfort and a consuming obsession. This piece captures the paradox of love as something deeply satisfying yet inherently risky, reflecting a desperate need for connection that provides a peculiar sense of security despite its inherent madness. Chen’s work here reveals a raw and compelling facet of human relationships, portraying how passion, when tainted by control, can become a dark but irresistible force.
In The Great Goliathus, Chen turns her attention to the theme of mimicry, using bold, dynamic strokes to depict the intricate forms of beetles as they navigate their environment. The work exudes an almost hypnotic quality, capturing the viewer’s gaze with its vivid colour contrasts and carefully rendered insect figures. The painting delves into the survival mechanisms of these creatures, whose camouflage techniques enable them to evade predators. Yet, Chen’s portrayal underscores a dark paradox: while mimicry protects them, it also exposes their sensitivity and vulnerability to even minor changes in their environment. The insects’ reliance on deceptive appearances reflects the fragility beneath their adaptations, a trait that Chen presents with a sense of both admiration and melancholy. Through this work, she invites the audience to contemplate how self-protective behaviours, whether in insects or humans, can mask a profound sensitivity to external forces.
By examining the constructs of love and survival through these two works, Chen presents a cohesive view of adaptation, whether emotional or biological, as a fragile balance. Love Affair speaks to the intensity of human attachment, while The Great Goliathus serves as a meditation on resilience within nature. Together, they present adaptation as both protective and inherently vulnerable.
Within the context of ART COLLECTIVE: From the One to the Many, Chen’s works offer a nuanced exploration of individuality and connection. Love Affair presents a deeply personal reflection on human relationships, illustrating the complexities of attachment and dependency. The Great Goliathus expands this theme, offering insight into survival and adaptability within a collective framework. Chen’s exploration of mimicry and adaptation aligns beautifully with the exhibition’s goal of examining the self within broader societal and environmental structures, linking the personal with the universal.
Through her nuanced use of possessiveness in love and mimicry in nature, Chen’s contributions underscore the fragility that defines connection, whether in human relationships or within the natural world. Her work invites viewers to reflect on protection versus exposure, and individual desires versus environmental constraints, creating a layered narrative that resonates with the exhibition’s focus on the complex interplay between self and others.