Vicky Chen

Building on the knowledge and expertise of Taiwan's established collector community, Vicky Chen is part of a new generation embracing advances in technology as well as international travel to expand the local art scene.

With the launch of TAO ART in Taipei in 2020, Chen has created a space that combines the past with the present, bringing together artefacts and antiques from her father's collection with contemporary acquisitions.

Since founding the space, Chen has focused on supporting the Taiwanese art community, collecting works by artists including Chou Yu-Cheng, Wu Chi-Tsung, John Yuyi, and Jeng Jundian. Yet she remains open to discovering artists elsewhere, travelling to catch key exhibitions in places like New York and London.

Among Chen's artwork selections for Ocula are discoveries she made at fairs and exhibitions internationally, including Philippe Parreno, whose light works she is particularly taken by, having seen a site-specific light installation by the artist at MoMA in 2019, or Nairy Baghramian, having seen the artist's sculptures at Skulptur Projekte in Münster, Germany, in 2017.

'I like it when people don't realise when they are looking at an artwork,' Chen notes. 'I want art to be fun; for it to be close to us.' At TAO ART, her collection reflects this playfulness, where the boundaries between art and non-art objects is blurred, as does her interest in work that is characterised by humour and wit.

'To me, collecting art isn't just about purchasing a beautiful piece of art. It's collecting moments and memories in life.' Such a concern is reflected in the relationships she builds with artists, also, emphasising the importance of growing alongside the individuals she supports, as with her friendship with Berlin-based Chinese artist He Xiangyu, whose work is being presented at TAO ART during Taipei Dangdai.