[Interview] Tristan Wu

Tristan Wu is a contemporary artist from Taiwan whose work has drawn attention in major art scenes such as France and Taiwan. Here we present a video interview with the artist.

On the occasion of this solo exhibition, we had the chance to film an interview with him.

He shares all kinds of stories about how his works come to life. 😳

We hope you will first take in the world of Tristan Wu, here for his very first solo show in Japan. Once you do, exploring the works themselves becomes all the more rewarding.

*Japanese subtitles are included in the video, so please be sure to watch.

[Full Translation]

On this First Exhibition in Japan

Hi, I'm Tristan. I'm truly delighted to be holding my very first solo exhibition in Japan, at +Art Gallery in Tokyo. In this show I'll be presenting my latest series, Workers, alongside my earlier generations, my classics and my grand armies. The exhibition will center on large-format works on military canvas. I want to move you with my baby colossus! It's going to be really cool.

Why I Make These Works

As you'll come to see, I want you to understand that my aesthetic, in my own eyes and in my own way, pursues splendor, impact, strength and power as directly as possible. For me, each of my paintings has to be a spectacle, a theatrical and powerful discharge of emotion, like a machine gun. Pretty much. Whatever the subject. Otherwise it wouldn't be competitive, it would blend in, and it would mean nothing to me.

On the Imagery in My Work

I've created many narratives to guide my process. It began with a single character: extremely violent, unbelievably absurd, yet in a sense completely free. I call him Hysterical Mitch, and I depict his journey of rage. Then I glorified him by building armies in his image, giving him an overwhelming advantage in numbers. I really did paint a great many legions. So many armies! It became an obsession. And the more I made them, the more some kind of system or structure began to emerge. So I imagine this world itself as a doppelganger of our own. Within that absurd world, a mega-corporation comes to dominate, supplying everything that world needs to exist. It's exactly like our world. Just like the real world. That is why Wu Tech Industries is the company I founded.

On the Workers Series

I love the aesthetic portrayal of strength and power found in the image of a mass or collective of the same individual.

It gives me a certain sense of calm and security, and at the same time, when the colors are applied just right, it becomes a magnificent and beautiful landscape. The Workers are the new generation in this regard, and also the bees of the hive that is my Wu Tech Industries. I give them a way of behaving that speaks of marching, moving, or even expanding. As the blank white bars on their backs suggest, their functions are unknown, undecided. Yet they remain within the framework of my Wu Tech Industries. Just as I want to grow my artistic presence in this competitive world, I want to grow my company.

The Show

Hi, I’m Tristan. I am very happy to have my very first solo exhibition in Japan, in Tokyo, at Gallery +Art! In this exhibition, I will be showing my latest series, Workers, as well as my previous generations, my classics, my grand armies! There will be mostly big formats on military canvas. I want to impress you with my baby colossus! It’ll be really cool!

The imagery

As you will be introduced into the show, I want you to understand that I display a sense of aestheticism that is, in my eyes and my own way, in the pursuit of splendidness, impact, strength and power, as straightforward as possible. For me, each of my paintings should be a spectacle, a theatrical and strong discharge of emotion, like a machine gun. Pretty much. Whatever the subject. Otherwise, it wouldn’t be competitive, it’d be blend, and it would make no sense to me.

The vessel

I’ve created lots of narratives to serve as guides to my process. It started off as just one character, so violent and so unbelievably absurd, but in a way completely free. I call him Hysterical Mitch and his journey of getting pissed off. Then I glorified him by creating armies in his image to give him a sort of a great advantage in numbers. I really painted a lot of armies. A lot of armies! It’s become an obsession. Then, the more I make them, the more some sort of system or structure turns out to be. So I kind of imagine it’s a whole world itself, a doppelganger to our world. And in this absurd world, a mega company comes to dominate and supply everything that world needs to exist. It’s just like our world really. It’s just like the real world. Hence, Wu Tech Industries, my foundation.

The workers

I love the aesthetic portrayal of strength and power in the image of mass and collectiveness of the same individual. It gives me some sort of comfort and a sense of security and in the same time, it’s a magnificent and beautiful landscape if I apply the colours right. The workers are the new generation of this regard and also the bees to the hive, my Wu Tech Industries. I give them a certain marching or moving or even behaving formation that tells expansion. Their functions, just as the blank white bars on their backs say, are unknown or undecided. They can be whatever they want to be, however, they are still under the framework of my Wu Tech Industries. I want to grow my company just as I want to grow my art presence in this competitive world.

[Exhibition Information]

Address: Shibuya Scramble Square, Shops & Restaurants, 14F

(2-24-12 Shibuya, Shibuya-ku, Tokyo 150-0002)

Access: About 30 seconds to 1 minute from each of JR Shibuya Station (Yamanote Line, Shonan-Shinjuku Line), Tokyo Metro Shibuya Station (Fukutoshin Line, Hanzomon Line, Ginza Line), and Tokyu Shibuya Station (Toyoko Line, Den-en-toshi Line).

Works are available for viewing and purchase, and will also be sold online during the exhibition period.

Online Shop: https://pls-art-shop.com/

Organized and curated by Plus Art Inc.

Artist: Tristan Wu