Dusting and Painting My Father's Stones – Artist Statement for the "Father's Stones" Series, 2020
My father retreated to Penghu with the troops in 1949. After waiting several years, he married and started a family there. Later, his work moved from Penghu to Hualien, and it was from that time that he began his hobby of collecting stones. Except for a very few bought ones, most were picked up by himself from riverbanks and seashores. I remember weekends in my childhood when my father often took us to the river on his scooter to collect stones. Later, we moved to Kaohsiung, and this activity stopped until the years after his retirement when he worked part-time in Taitung. Every time he came home, he would bring back some stones, bit by bit. These stones, some polished, some unpolished, some paired with wooden bases and displayed standing in the living room, but most were piled on the shelf next to the entryway.
My father passed away in 2011. Some relatives and friends who collected stones wanted to acquire them all at once. I didn't agree. It wasn't a matter of how much money I could get; rather, I always felt that they should become art related to my father's story to truly honor him. Six years passed just like that. Until one day, I saw the thick layer of dust on the stones and the shelf. In that instant, I finally knew how to deal with these stones. To be precise, it was to use the dust that had settled on the stones and the shelf to paint the landscapes on the stones.
My father used to point at the stones and say to us, "This is a grand Buddha," "This is a classical beauty," "This is a tree with flowing water beside it, this is a cliff face," "This is a mountain with clouds beside it," "These lines are good," "This color is good," "This layering is good," "This texture is good"…. When he looked at them, would he look for what they resembled? Or would he look at the abstract textures, colors, and lines with an aesthetic awareness?
Two years ago, I moved into a new studio. I packed the stones from home in cardboard boxes, cleaned and collected the dust from the shelf, dismantled the entryway shelf, and moved it all to the studio. This time, in the "Ming Yi" and "Settling Down" modes, I finally had the opportunity to hold each heavy stone and wash a batch of them with water. After my father had a car accident in middle age, his hands and legs were not like those of ordinary people. I don't know how he, with his limp, crossed the obstacles among the river stones? With one hand, how could he bring back such heavy stones?
After the dusty water in the washing basin dried, my "pigment powder" appeared. This time, I looked very carefully at these dust-free stones and discovered many details I hadn't noticed before. I don't fully understand them, but I more or less found my father's landscapes. I felt a bit relieved, feeling that I understood him a little more, through the stones he left behind. I know that there is also a landscape in my heart, and I will paint it to show my father. I want to say to him like this: "Dad, this is what they are like."
"It was right not to let the stones go back then. At this point in life, I understand that besides meaning, nothing can be taken away. If the painted stones have even a trace of value and meaning, they can be dedicated and let go." This is what I pondered in my heart.
為父親的石頭滌塵、作畫 — 《父親的石頭》系列創作自述（2020）
父親是1949年隨著部隊撤退至澎湖，等了幾年，他在澎湖結婚成家。後來工作自澎湖移到花蓮，從那時候起，他開始了收集石頭的嗜好。除了極少數是用買的，多數是自己在河邊、海邊揀拾的，我記得小時候的周末，父親常常騎機車帶我們去河邊揀石頭。後來，我們搬到高雄，這個活動就停了，直到他公職退休，到台東打工的那幾年，每次回家，他會陸陸續續的帶些石頭回家。這些石頭，或打磨、或不打磨，有的會配上木座，站立擺飾在客廳中，但多數是堆放在玄關旁的架子上。
2011年父親往生，曾有收藏石頭的親友想要整批收藏這些石頭。我沒答應。倒不是能換多少錢的問題，而是我始終覺得應該讓它們與父親的故事變成藝術，才算真正對得起父親。就這樣，6年過去了，直到有一天，我望見石頭上與架子上厚厚的灰塵，霎那間，終於知道要怎麼處理這些石頭。準確地說，就是用落在石頭以及架子上的灰塵，畫出石頭上風景。
父親曾指著石頭，跟我們說：「這是尊大佛」、「這是個古裝的美女」、「這是棵樹，旁邊有流水，這是山壁」、「這是山，旁邊是雲」、「這線條好」、「這顏色好」、「這層次好」、「這紋理好」…。他看它們的時候，會找它們像甚麼？或者，有美感意識的看著抽象的紋理、顏色與線條。
兩年前搬入新工作室，我把家裡的石頭裝在紙箱中，清掃、收集架上的灰塵，拆掉玄關的架子，移到工作室。這次「明夷」、「安居」模式，總算有機會拿著一顆顆沉甸甸的石頭，用水清洗了一批石頭。父親中年以後因為車禍意外，手腿不是一般人的手腿，我不知道他一拐一拐的，是如何在河邊的石頭間跨越障礙？用單手，怎能帶回這些這麼沉重的石頭？
洗石盆中的塵水乾燥後，我的「顏料粉末」就出來了。這次我非常用心的端詳這些無塵垢的石頭，發現很多我沒注意的細節，我不完全明白，但多多少少發現了父親的山水。我有一點欣慰，覺得多懂得他一點，從他遺留下來的石頭。我知道，我心中也有一片山水，畫出來，給父親看。我想這樣跟他說：「爸，它們是這樣的。」
「當初，沒把石頭讓出去是對的。人生到這個時候了，明白除了意義，什麼也帶不走，畫完的石頭，如果有絲毫的價值與意義，就可以迴向捨掉。」我心中是這樣忖度著。
My father retreated to Penghu with the troops in 1949. After waiting several years, he married and started a family there. Later, his work moved from Penghu to Hualien, and it was from that time that he began his hobby of collecting stones. Except for a very few bought ones, most were picked up by himself from riverbanks and seashores. I remember weekends in my childhood when my father often took us to the river on his scooter to collect stones. Later, we moved to Kaohsiung, and this activity stopped until the years after his retirement when he worked part-time in Taitung. Every time he came home, he would bring back some stones, bit by bit. These stones, some polished, some unpolished, some paired with wooden bases and displayed standing in the living room, but most were piled on the shelf next to the entryway.
My father passed away in 2011. Some relatives and friends who collected stones wanted to acquire them all at once. I didn't agree. It wasn't a matter of how much money I could get; rather, I always felt that they should become art related to my father's story to truly honor him. Six years passed just like that. Until one day, I saw the thick layer of dust on the stones and the shelf. In that instant, I finally knew how to deal with these stones. To be precise, it was to use the dust that had settled on the stones and the shelf to paint the landscapes on the stones.
My father used to point at the stones and say to us, "This is a grand Buddha," "This is a classical beauty," "This is a tree with flowing water beside it, this is a cliff face," "This is a mountain with clouds beside it," "These lines are good," "This color is good," "This layering is good," "This texture is good"…. When he looked at them, would he look for what they resembled? Or would he look at the abstract textures, colors, and lines with an aesthetic awareness?
Two years ago, I moved into a new studio. I packed the stones from home in cardboard boxes, cleaned and collected the dust from the shelf, dismantled the entryway shelf, and moved it all to the studio. This time, in the "Ming Yi" and "Settling Down" modes, I finally had the opportunity to hold each heavy stone and wash a batch of them with water. After my father had a car accident in middle age, his hands and legs were not like those of ordinary people. I don't know how he, with his limp, crossed the obstacles among the river stones? With one hand, how could he bring back such heavy stones?
After the dusty water in the washing basin dried, my "pigment powder" appeared. This time, I looked very carefully at these dust-free stones and discovered many details I hadn't noticed before. I don't fully understand them, but I more or less found my father's landscapes. I felt a bit relieved, feeling that I understood him a little more, through the stones he left behind. I know that there is also a landscape in my heart, and I will paint it to show my father. I want to say to him like this: "Dad, this is what they are like."
"It was right not to let the stones go back then. At this point in life, I understand that besides meaning, nothing can be taken away. If the painted stones have even a trace of value and meaning, they can be dedicated and let go." This is what I pondered in my heart.
為父親的石頭滌塵、作畫 — 《父親的石頭》系列創作自述（2020）
父親是1949年隨著部隊撤退至澎湖，等了幾年，他在澎湖結婚成家。後來工作自澎湖移到花蓮，從那時候起，他開始了收集石頭的嗜好。除了極少數是用買的，多數是自己在河邊、海邊揀拾的，我記得小時候的周末，父親常常騎機車帶我們去河邊揀石頭。後來，我們搬到高雄，這個活動就停了，直到他公職退休，到台東打工的那幾年，每次回家，他會陸陸續續的帶些石頭回家。這些石頭，或打磨、或不打磨，有的會配上木座，站立擺飾在客廳中，但多數是堆放在玄關旁的架子上。
2011年父親往生，曾有收藏石頭的親友想要整批收藏這些石頭。我沒答應。倒不是能換多少錢的問題，而是我始終覺得應該讓它們與父親的故事變成藝術，才算真正對得起父親。就這樣，6年過去了，直到有一天，我望見石頭上與架子上厚厚的灰塵，霎那間，終於知道要怎麼處理這些石頭。準確地說，就是用落在石頭以及架子上的灰塵，畫出石頭上風景。
父親曾指著石頭，跟我們說：「這是尊大佛」、「這是個古裝的美女」、「這是棵樹，旁邊有流水，這是山壁」、「這是山，旁邊是雲」、「這線條好」、「這顏色好」、「這層次好」、「這紋理好」…。他看它們的時候，會找它們像甚麼？或者，有美感意識的看著抽象的紋理、顏色與線條。
兩年前搬入新工作室，我把家裡的石頭裝在紙箱中，清掃、收集架上的灰塵，拆掉玄關的架子，移到工作室。這次「明夷」、「安居」模式，總算有機會拿著一顆顆沉甸甸的石頭，用水清洗了一批石頭。父親中年以後因為車禍意外，手腿不是一般人的手腿，我不知道他一拐一拐的，是如何在河邊的石頭間跨越障礙？用單手，怎能帶回這些這麼沉重的石頭？
洗石盆中的塵水乾燥後，我的「顏料粉末」就出來了。這次我非常用心的端詳這些無塵垢的石頭，發現很多我沒注意的細節，我不完全明白，但多多少少發現了父親的山水。我有一點欣慰，覺得多懂得他一點，從他遺留下來的石頭。我知道，我心中也有一片山水，畫出來，給父親看。我想這樣跟他說：「爸，它們是這樣的。」
「當初，沒把石頭讓出去是對的。人生到這個時候了，明白除了意義，什麼也帶不走，畫完的石頭，如果有絲毫的價值與意義，就可以迴向捨掉。」我心中是這樣忖度著。
