A gift of discarded cables, electrical wire and components put Los Angeles artist Chenhung Chen onto a search for “entelechy”,  the actualization of potential or the means of that actualization. Stripping copper wire from the cables, Chen saw a linear complexity in the material that was both brittle and supple.  It had the capability to express the driving force for inner fulfillment.

Opening April 9 at the Los Angeles Artist Association, Chen's solo show “Entelechy” uses electrical wires & components with crocheted copper wire to create complex and detailed sculptures that Chen describes as “drawing in air”.  Chen uses line to express feelings of delicacy, buoyancy, motion, power and strength.

In Chen's most recent sculptures, she is inspired by “women's work” to include passages within each piece that creates “a spine-like structure” holding the electrical wire and components together. The act of crocheting, a skill commonly taught to young women in the Taiwanese schools of Chen's youth, is a very feminine activity, she says. While these delicate sculptures float above the ground, the sense of gravity is distinct.

On the surface, the discarded materials of "Entelechy" would seem to criticize the human capacity to create waste and highlight environmental degradation. However, arts writer Peter Frank regards Chen's sculptural work as an “assertion of invention and exploration, exemplifying  the constructive and progressive impulses of humankind” and they suggest an optimistic future where new means to save ourselves is at hand.

About Chenhung Chen

Chenhung Chen is an artist living and working in Los Angeles. She was born in Beigang, Taiwan graduating from the Chinese Cultural University. She continued her post-graduate education at the School of Visual Arts in New York City where she graduated with a Master of Fine Arts degree. She has traveled the world spending time in India, Malaysia, Australia, Thailand, North Eastern China as well as Beijing, and Rome, as a volunteer for a non-profit organization working for global peace.

About Los Angeles Artist Association

LAAA's mission is to provide opportunities, resources, services and exhibition venues for Los Angeles artists, with an emphasis on emerging talent. Founded in 1925, LAAA has launched the art careers of many celebrated artists and has played a central role in the formation of Los Angeles' arts community.

LAAA serves a broad cross section of artists of all mediums, career levels and socio-economic backgrounds, including those from low income communities. By supporting the emerging talent at the onset of their career path, we hope to influence all the cultural stakeholder groups in Los Angeles and contribute to the cultural identity of our community. LAAA is pledged to providing emerging artists with the experience, education and exposure needed to create and sustain a career in the arts.