Chen Chin, the important female artist in Taiwan’s arts development, was born in a prominent family in HsinChu City, Taiwan, and was the educated female who could receive new knowledge during the Japanese colonial rule. Her artworks won the social acceptance and her talent in arts was proved by the official art exhibition at that time.Two Chen’s artworks from 1935 are ‘Leisurely’ which is TFAM proud collection and ‘Accordion’ which had been lost its trace since then. TFAM tried the very best to include this one as her collection. Finally, in the February of 2009, the ‘Accordion’ arrived in the museum, and around 6 months of conservation work was commenced immediately. After 74 years, ‘Accordion’ returns to its position in Taiwan arts history, and TFAM exhibits its legendary elegance to the public.

Same with ‘Leisurely’, Chen Chin’s elder sister was the model for ‘Accordion’. Though she wore qi-pao, she revealed a great flavor of western fashion, such as silk stockings, high-heel shoes and lightly-curled hairs. Furthermore, the delicate armchair and accordion accompanied with the model showed a hint of elegant and modern culture and Chen’s tempt to integrate western and eastern styles into her creation.

The back story of ‘Accordion’ to be revealed is not only years of research on this, but also a series of meticulous conservation work. The emphases of conservation on ‘Accordion’ are:

1. Color layers: Same characteristics of gouache ink and color as previously used was applied onto the lacks or peeling parts.
2. Fabric color: the four sides parts inner the frame and the skirts of painting silk are covered with a layer of fabric, which of the color and material were chosen after lots of discussion. All this is for a perfect visual effect and to fit in the theme of the work.
3. Backboard: Japanese traditional method of mounting was adopted in order to prevent deformation and long-term preservation.

The process of conservation work is documented as a record for further research.

Collection