“Totem of Running Water” by Chen Jen-huei
Chen Jen-huei graduated from the Sculpture Department in the Fine Art College at the National Taiwan University of Arts. In the work “Totem of Running Water”, Chen took the meaning and the image of the Chinese character for “water” and created two round bronze pillars, each made from three bronze rings. The rings in each pillar were then interlaced with each other and erected on a granite pedestal, allowing the space around the work to freely flow through it. The interweaving rings that resemble a zipper rise up like a column of water, but if we look at the work starting from the top and work our way down, we can see another column of water flowing downward. Thus, the work shows the upward spray, downward flow and injection of water columns, and the dynamics of the work reveals the abstract meaning of water.