The title of the show takes its name from the ancient Chinese lunar calendar, which divides the year into 24 segments, each segment given a specific solar term. This system provided a time frame for agriculture, everyday life and festivals. Jeff Chien-Hsing Liao was born in Taiwan in 1977, and immigrated in 1999 to the United States, residing in the Queens Borough of New York City. He lived in close proximity of the 7-subway line, and created his renowned “Habitat 7” series, which stated his claim and love for New York City.
Over the years, Liao has transitioned from large format film to digital photography. By digitally manipulating multiple exposures of Central Park while adapting a vertical format traditionally found in 17th century Chinese scroll paintings, Liao pays homage to both his Taiwanese heritage and identity as a New Yorker. Central Park New York, 24 Solar Terms looks at a dynamic and ever-changing landscape. At once familiar, the “lung of Manhattan” still reveals surprises. Liao invites us into mysterious enclaves primed for intimacy and reflection carefully hidden among the familiar public gathering sites and well-founded landmarks. In 2012, Liao won the Emerging Icon in Photography Award from George Eastman House. His series “Habitat 7” received critical acclaim, and in 2005, Liao was honored with the New York Times Magazine “Capture the Times” photography contest.
Liao’s work can be found in the permanent collections of the Museum of Fine Arts, Houston, Queens Museum, NY, Brooklyn Museum, NY, J. Paul Getty Museum, LA, George Eastman House-International Museum of Photography and Film, NY, the Norton Museum of Art and the Deutsche Bank art collection. Liao’s first monograph, Habitat 7, was published in 2008 by Nazraeli Press, which also published his second monograph, Coney Island, in 2013. In October of 2014, Aperture Foundation published his third monograph, Jeff Chien-Hsing Liao: New York, encompassing his work in New York for the past 10 years. In September 2017, Nazraeli Press will publish his fourth monograph, Central Park New York that will coincide with his solo exhibition, of the same name at Foley Gallery.
Jeff Chien-Hsing Liao
Central Park New York: 24 Solar Terms
September 6 – October 15, 2017
Foley Gallery
59 Orchard St, New York, NY, United States
foleygallery.com
Summer – Summer Solstice © Jeff Chien-Hsing Liao
Summer – Grain Full © Jeff Chien-Hsing Liao
Spring – Pure Brightness © Jeff Chien-Hsing Liao
Autumn – Frost’s Descent © Jeff Chien-Hsing Liao
Autumn – White Dew © Jeff Chien-Hsing Liao
