Post-Van Gogh Retrospective:
Post-Van Gogh Series

Dr. T.F. Chen

Watching TV
Acrylic on canvas
36" x 48"
1990

The "Potato Eaters" by Vincent van Gogh comes from his early years, when he trained in oil paintings of a Dutch-style realism.  The work reflects the down-to-earth, often harsh reality of peasant life with its endless toil and suffering, painted with a somber gravity of straightforward and often crude craftsmanship; yet this work is not doubt a masterpiece due to its expression, compassion and love.  We see the artist's sincerity as he strives to intimately reveal an anguished searching of the soul, transcendence above daily burdens, as the lamp enlightens the potato eaters gathered around the table.

In "Watching TV," Chen slightly changes their sitting position so that all of the family members can gather round and enjoy the fruits of their labors, relax a bit as they unwind in front of the TV, which is now a past-time almost universal in our everyday experience in this technology age.  The TV acts as a window to the world's activities which enter every household, rich and poor alike, to unify the world-family.  Whether you are a fisherman or diplomat, scholar or merchant, you are a member of this global village. 

In the closing ceremony of the Annual Conference of the State of the World Forum in San Francisco, 1998, Chen remarked: "In our age of computers and communication, not only do we need hardware and software, but also Soulware."

High technology transcends the world, now we must ask, what shall transcend high technology?  Moreover, how shall we maintain true human connection along with these technological advances in this upcoming age?