2025 Manchester Art Fair – Luminous Traces: From Inner Flow to Taiwanese Cultural Tapestry

This tapestry reflects a collective exploration of inner balance and spiritual healing in contemporary Taiwanese art. It showcases a creative spectrum defined by cross-disciplinary expression and color as a conduit of emotional depth. From Malaysian-born artist Phyllis Chua’s vibrant pattern compositions, to Billy’s emotionally charged, high-saturation color fields, and Paulina’s flowing meditative Ebru marbling, these three artists use color as a universal language that transcends cultural and material boundaries, transforming inner richness into luminous expression.

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Tzu-Yi Wang and Yu-Chin Lin, through childlike brushstrokes and multi-material constructions, capture the purity of the inner world. DEREX’s works, rooted in prayer and love, embody the power of faith and point toward spiritual truth and reconciliation. Shih-Hung Yang, employing his realist mastery of light and space, captures fleeting emotional moments within architectural environments, offering a dialectical reflection between rationality and sensitivity that grounds the exhibition’s visual rhythm.

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Through their distinctive artistic vocabularies, these artists embody the essence of Luminous Traces, a reflection of the diversity and vitality of contemporary Taiwanese art.

Phyllis Chua, Paulina Cheung, and Billy Degas Lo explore the resonance between color and flow: Chua combines anthropological insight with ink, watercolor, and textile patterns to express the richness and serenity of life experienced in Taiwan. Paulina transforms the ancient art of Ebru marbling into a flowing meditation of color, channeling love and healing through movement. Billy’s signature use of vibrant, luminous tones expresses the intuitive energy of a new generation, injecting visual intensity into the exhibition.

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Meanwhile, Tzu-Yi Wang, Yu-Chin Lin, and DEREX construct pure inner realms. Wang’s works blend classical and playful brushwork to depict fantastical worlds that intertwine innocence and worldly experience. Lin, proficient in painting, ceramics, and metal sculpture, articulates vivid inner narratives that capture subtle transitions between stillness and motion, embodying a pure “dialogue with the self.” DEREX, integrating aerosol techniques and street art practice, turns art into a vessel for truth and faith.

Light and rationality find embodiment in the photographic works of Shih-Hung Yang, a physicist turned artist whose internationally awarded images use realist lighting to narrate the tension between structure and emotion. His works bring a serene yet precise clarity to the exhibition’s visual dialogue.

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This exhibition represents both an artistic exchange between Taiwan and the UK and a profound reflection on the spiritual state of a generation. Since its founding in 2020, LEXPO Taiwan has served as a vital bridge between the Asian and European art scenes, continuously promoting Taiwanese artists on the global stage. LEXPO has curated numerous exhibitions across international art fairs, integrating art into everyday life and expanding global visibility and dialogue for creators.

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Luminous Traces sincerely invites audiences in Manchester to enter a contemplative yet healing realm of contemporary Taiwanese art through a cultural tapestry woven by seven artists, and to experience the infinite possibilities of flowing color and inner dialogue.

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