The Pleb Magazine Interview
2025
Edgeland
2021
Travels of the Mind
2019
Invisible Cities
2011
The Pleb Magazine Interview
Can you share your journey as an artist and how your cultural background has influenced your creative process?
請你分享作為藝術家的旅程，以及你的文化背景如何影響你的創作？
I grew up in Houli, Taichung, in a family known for crafting saxophones. Our family has been making musical instruments for over 60 years. From as far back as I can remember, I would watch my grandfather's generation crafting instruments in their old workshop along the streets. My father works in construction, and my mother is a fashion designer. The interaction with materials and the process of creating something from nothing have always been a natural part of my daily life.
During Japan’s 50-year colonisation of Taiwan, my grandfather’s generation was profoundly influenced by Japanese education and culture. As I observed their hands assembling and crafting brass instruments, engraving flowers and birds onto the instrument bodies, I also listened to their stories about Japanese mythology and their singing of Japanese folk songs.
I often visited my father’s construction sites, which were frequently located at the boundaries between the city and nature. There, I would see steel bars being tied together, concrete being mixed, and bricks being stacked into structures. Meanwhile, at my mother’s workbench, I would watch fabric being cut, sewn, and transformed into wearable, three-dimensional forms.
These experiences embody the exchange and reception of culture. Using the materials around me to create something seems to have become an integral part of who I am.
我生長在台中后里製作薩克斯風的家族，家族製造樂器已經超過60年的時間，從我有記憶以來，我就在祖父輩們製造樂器的老家街道中觀看。父親從事營建業，母親從事服裝設計。材料的接觸，無中生有的建構，是日常裡很輕易可以進入的部分。
日本殖民台灣約50年的時間，祖父輩們深受日本教育與文化的養成，我邊看著這些銅樂器在他們手裡製造與組裝，在管身上雕出花鳥，邊聽著他們說著日本神話與唱著日本歌謠。
父親的工地也是我經常拜訪的場域，這些場域經常會在城市與自然的邊界，那些鋼筋的綑綁，混泥土的攪拌，磚瓦堆砌的量體；到母親的工作台上，將布料透過裁剪，車縫而成為一件件可以穿上身的立體結構。都是文化的位移與接收。以身邊的材料做點什麼，似乎就如此的組成了我的部分。
Your works often explore themes of nature and the human connection to the environment. How do you approach these themes in your art?
你的作品經常探索自然以及人群與環境間的關係。你如何在藝術中處理這些主題？
Solitude provides me with the spaciousness to amplify my senses and explore my relationship with nature and the city. I often revisit similar places repeatedly and continuously question myself to connect common elements, which become the foundation for some of my works.
Reading Between the Lines represents my exploration of the fluid zones between edges and lines, particularly the blurred boundaries between nature and culture. These boundaries are not as concrete as those on a map; rather, they are abstract, shaped by individual experiences and perceptions. Following the outlines of architectural volumes nestled in mountains, standing at the edge where mountain ridges meet the sky—these indefinable, shifting zones reside within every thought shaped by experience, and they captivate me.
獨處，給我相對的寬裕得以放大感知，來感受我與自然或城市的關係。通常我透過重複拜訪相似的場域，與不間斷地對自己提問，來串連某一共同元素，這是部分作品的產生。
Reading Between the Lines，是我在探索邊與邊、線與線的浮動地帶，特別是在自然與人文間之模糊邊界；他們非具象如地圖般的有明確地界，而是抽象般的因個人經驗的不同而產生的無形邊界。依循崇山所建構的建築量體的邊線，人站在山陵線與天空間的邊線，這些無法被明確定義的浮動地帶，可住進每個曾經經驗過的思想裡，讓我著迷。
而我作品裡的留白，則是這些浮動地帶的中性調度，是水、是空氣、是界線，更可以是靜止與速度。他們可被借代為任何可被想像的一切。
Reading Between the Lines 010, 016,017
Ink, Mixed Media on Paper
18 x 26 cm
24 x 32 x 4.5 cm Framed
2020
As a member of the Wilderness Art Collective, how has this community shaped or supported your artistic practice?
作為荒野藝術協會的一員，這個群體是如何塑造或支持你的藝術創作？
Before The Wilderness Art Collective became an organisation, we had already exhibited our works together at the Royal Geographical Society in London. We shared our observations and insights gained through direct engagement with nature. They enabled me to maintain an ongoing connection with London even after graduating from the University of the Arts London, allowing me to enjoy the pleasure of moving between different cultures and regions.
從Wilderness Art Collective尚未正式成為一個協會前，我們就一起在倫敦的皇家地理協會展出作品。分享我們各自在自然裡身體力行後的觀看，他們讓我在倫敦藝術大學畢業後與倫敦有持續性的互動，也讓我得以享受在不同文化與地域間位移的樂趣。
Your use of different materials, including cloth, creates a unique texture and depth in your work. How do you choose your materials, and what draws you to specific ones?
對於不同材料的使用，包括布料，賦予了作品獨特的質感和深度。你是如何選擇材料的？是什麼引導你這些特殊材質的選擇？
The act of creating with my hands has been an instinct for as long as I can remember. The choice of materials is deeply tied to memories from my experiences.
Current stems from a cancelled journey, documenting an unfulfilled trip to Iceland in 2018. It reflects the inability to depart due to my father's sudden illness and my yearning for Iceland’s coastline on the eve of the journey.
During that time, my mother’s resilience helped me face the fear of love and loss. Love and loss transformed into the entanglement of black sand and white waves along the coastline. The lines symbolising waves mirrored my mother’s hands, stitching together my nearly shattered perceptions. Textiles became something tangible I could hold, serving as a portal for tears traversing different dimensions.
用雙手產出什麼是我有記憶以來的一種本能。材質的選擇更多是我經驗裡記憶。
Current作品是一段取消的旅程，紀錄著2018年一段無法啟程的冰島旅行，那是面對父親突如其來病痛的無法啟程，也是旅行前夕對冰島海岸線的想望。
那一段時間裡，母親的堅韌串起我面對愛與別離的恐懼，愛與別離化成了海岸線裡黑色沙粒與白色浪潮的糾葛，而那些線，所表意的浪，則如同母親的雙手，縫起了我幾近破碎的感知。織品是當時我可以握在手裡的存在，也像是可被握在手裡的，不同維度間淚水的出口。
Current 032
Mixed Media on Raw Canvas
21 x 15 x 1.5 cm
23 x 17.5 x 3.5 cm Framed
2024
Could you elaborate on your series created with raw canvas? What inspired this choice, and what message do you aim to convey through these works?
請你說明以原始畫布創作的系列作品？這個選擇的靈感來自哪裡？你希望透過這些作品傳達什麼訊息？
The rawness and texture of materials are the first considerations in my creative process. Using raw canvas reflects the authenticity of the land, and I aspire for my works to be constructed with only the most essential elements.
材質的原始性與肌理是創作時最先思考的方向，使用Raw canvas，是土地真實的呈現，我期許我的作品只有最必要的構成。
對於一個經常以水為媒介的創作者，紙張與畫布在經驗裡的差異是墨色流動的速度；在紙張裡墨色可以快速地到達我期望他前往的方向，反之在畫布裡則非常的緩慢，墨色的流動需要筆觸更多的推進，他們反應了我創作時意識遊移的速度。
Your art often blurs the boundaries between traditional and contemporary techniques. How do you strike a balance between these approaches?
你的藝術作品經常模糊傳統與當代技法間的邊界。你是如何在這兩者間找到平衡？
At the age of 10, I began practising the calligraphy of Ouyang Xun. Between the ages of 12 and 15, or perhaps even longer, I attended weekly art lessons at the Master Tsai’s studio near the National Taiwan Museum of Fine Arts in Taichung. My teacher, who had spent many years living in Japan and New Zealand, excelled in both Eastern and Western mediums and only returned to Taiwan to settle later in life.
During this period, I delved deeply into the works of Cézanne, Matisse, Monet, and Pissarro. Listening to my teacher’s stories from home and abroad, I naturally found myself filtering through the colours and structures of Eastern and Western art, selecting the elements I loved most.
我10歲時開始練習歐陽詢的書法，在12-15歲之間，或更長的時間裡，每週到畫家老師位於台中國美館附近的工作室畫畫，老師長年旅居日本與紐西蘭，擅長東西方媒材，中年過後才再搬回台灣定居，我在這段期間裡大量的閱讀Cezanne、Matisse、Monet、和Pissarro。聽聞老師在海內外的故事，似乎很自然的就在東西方藝術的色彩與結構裡，過濾出我喜歡的部分。
What role does sustainability play in your work, especially given the connection in your artworks with natural elements?
永續性在你的作品中扮演什麼角色，尤其是你的藝術作品與自然元素之間的關係？
For those elements destined to be discarded during the creative process, I often imagine what they could be transformed into. For the final piece for my Masters at Chelsea College of the Arts, Invisible Cities, drew inspiration from Italo Calvino's literary masterpiece, interpreting the concept of the number "three" and its multiples mentioned in the book through book sculptures. To this day, I still keep the pieces that were cut away.
Me and the Leftovers involved reshaping leftover clay into new sculptures. These materials originate from the elements of the Earth, and after being fired, they possess the ability to eternally return to the cycle of nature.
對於那些在創作過程將要被丟棄的部分，我都會有他們可以轉變成什麼的其他想法，我在切爾西藝術學院碩士學位的作品Invisible Cities是從伊塔羅・卡爾維諾的文學作品中汲取靈感，以書本雕塑來詮釋書中所提及數字「三」及其倍數。至今我還保留他們所切割下的部分。Me and the Leftovers，則將餘下的陶土重新塑造成雕塑。這些材質都來自於地球的元素，被燃燒後又都可以永恆的回歸。
17b
Ceramic
3 x 3.5 x 5.5 cm
2024
Invisible Cities
A group of cutting into books
2009
Can you walk us through your creative process when starting a new piece or series?
請你帶我們了解你在創作新作品或系列時的過程？
This has been a long journey. Reflecting on the works I’ve created over the past decade, I’ve come to deeply appreciate processes that unfold through the passage of time. The beginning of a new work often stems from connections formed through the accumulation of life experiences.
The Mediation series began with a series of unconscious gatherings—capturing the textures of nature through walking—and gradually expanded into imagery that dialogues with Eastern and Western art history. Unconscious collection, observation, and repetition are part of my daily life. These collections include words, emotions, images, and seemingly insignificant moments.
這是一段很長的旅程，回想這十年來的作品，我更深刻的發現以“時間”來獲得的過程讓我相對的喜愛。一個新作品的開始會是某一段生活累積所產生的連結。The Mediation作品是開始於一連串無意識的採集，透過行走捕捉自然的質感，逐漸的擴張為東西方藝術史對話的影像。有無意識的收集、觀看、重複是我的日常，而這些收集包涵著文字、情緒、圖像、那些看似不經意的小事件。
Your works have been exhibited in various settings. How does the context of an exhibition space influence how you present your art?
你的作品曾在不同的場景中展出。展覽空間的環境如何影響你呈現藝術的方式？
The connection between my work and its environment, along with an emphasis on spaciousness, are my primary concerns. My largest iron sculpture stands on a narrow elliptical lawn in the middle of a concrete expanse, Still Mountain gazing across the Wu River towards the Jiujiufeng Mountain Range in Nantou.
This kind of subtle reading, one that invites careful or profound observation before revealing itself with a faint smile of cognition embodies how I wish to present art—hidden and understated.
作品與環境的連結，還有大量的留白是我首要關注的。我最巨大的一頓重鐵件雕塑是站在一塊混泥土中央的一狹長橢圓草地上，Still Mountain隔著烏溪與南投九九峰山群遙望。這種需要被細心或深度觀看才會恍然微笑的理解是我想呈現藝術的方式。隱密與低調。
Still Mountain
Steel
L2600 x W600 x H770 cm
One Tonne
2021
Do you have any upcoming projects or exhibitions that you’re particularly excited about?
是否有即將推出的作品或展覽，讓你特別感到興奮的？
Currently, I am collaborating with several artists on a walking project spanning Tainan in Taiwan and the Thames River in London. It is a series of interactions between Eastern and Western cultures, as well as contemporary influences, guided by Chinese pictographs.
Another ongoing project, a self-portrait created using recycled clothing from close friends, explores the connections between individuals and their relationships.
目前我跟幾位藝術家計劃著臺灣臺南與倫敦泰晤士河的散策，是一個結合中文象形文字所開啟的一系列中西與當代文化的互動。另外透過回收親近朋友的衣物來做的自畫像系列，則是另外一個思考人與人間連結的正在進行中的作品。
Where can people buy your art?
人們可以在哪裡購買你的藝術作品？
The following websites and exhibition venues are where people can purchase my artwork.
以下的網頁與展覽場地都可以購買我的藝術作品
The Wilderness Art Collective’s website
https://www.wildernessart.org/store
Wan Lin Chang Website and Instagram
https://www.instagram.com/wan_lin_chang
Do you offer art commissions?
你是否接受藝術委託？
I do. I also enjoy any form of challenge and collaboration. I have worked for five years with the I-Ching University in Taiwan on Lantern Festival projects. Still Mountain is one of them, where I developed a transition from the traditional use of bamboo or wood in lanterns to a more outdoor-appropriate metal structure. It was about finding a challenge between traditional art and contemporary practice that I could complete within the scope of the project. Over the five years, the expansion and possibilities of metal, how to plan its deconstruction, movement, and assembly, became the most necessary and interesting aspects to consider in exploring this work.
接受。我也喜歡任何形式的挑戰與合作。 我與台灣易經大學合作過五年的燈節作品。Still Mountain是其中的一個，從傳統燈節使用竹造或木構，發展成更適合戶外的鐵件。是在傳統藝術與當代間找尋一個可以在任務內完成的挑戰，在這五年的時間裡，鐵的延展與可能性，如何有計劃的拆解，移動與組裝，變成探索此作品最被需要考量與有趣的部分。