3 minute read
DISCOVER THE FUSION OF EASTERN AND WESTERN ART IN WENDY YEO’S PAINTINGS
| By Viviana Puello
Wendy Yeo is a renowned artist who incorporates Eastern and Western art techniques and traditions. Her paintings are characterized by fast, broad brushstrokes and open composition, reflecting her unique individual style. Wendy Yeo creates a beautiful and distinctive fusion in her semiabstract paintings by combining Eastern and Western art elements. Experience this captivating blend for yourself by exploring Wendy Yeo’s artwork.
Wendy Yeo’s artistic practice has been greatly influenced by her Chinese roots. Growing up in Hong Kong, she was exposed to traditional Chinese painting techniques early, which sparked her love for painting. Over time, she has developed a distinctive style combining Eastern and Western artistic practices.
Yeo’s paintings are captivating as she captures the essence of her subjects using broad, fast brushstrokes that create an impressionistic effect. Despite her Chinese background, she doesn’t rely solely on physical appearance. Her compositions incorporate negative space, where the concept of “space” is crucial. Yeo’s artistic process is thoughtful and careful.
While Chinese art traditions heavily influence her work, Yeo also seeks to incorporate elements of individuality and expression more commonly associated with Western art.
This fusion of Eastern and Western techniques is a defining characteristic of Yeo’s semi-abstract paintings.
Yeo aims to showcase her Chinese
“Sunrise in Spring” Acrylic on Canvas heritage’s beauty and diversity through her paintings while embracing the universal themes of human experience that transcend cultural boundaries. Her unique blend of artistic traditions makes her work stand out and speaks to the beauty of cultural diversity in the modern world.
Wendy Yeo’s creative process combines travel, observation, and abstraction. She travels often and draws inspiration from the diverse sights and experiences she encounters. In addition, Yeo takes note of the visual impressions that capture her attention, whether it be the vivid hues of a sunrise or the fluid motion of natural shapes.
To capture these impressions, Yeo creates quick sketches “in the field” to capture the essence of what she’s seeing. From there, she brings these sketches back to her studio, where she begins the process of abstraction. Through this process, Yeo takes the elements of her drawings that speak to her the most and transforms them into semi-abstract compositions.
Ultimately, Yeo’s creative process is about capturing the essence of the natural world and the movement and energy that defines it. By drawing on both Eastern and Western art traditions, she is able to create works that are at once familiar and surprising, beautiful and thought-provoking.
Wendy Yeo draws a lot of her inspiration from nature. She finds beauty in the natural world, which she then translates onto the canvas through her unique artistic style. Her paintings showcase beautiful landscapes, ponds, mountains, sunsets, and sunrises, each painted with vivid colors and bold brushstrokes. Wendy’s art has a calming effect that transports the viewer into nature, creating a sense of peace and tranquility.
Aside from her love of painting, Wendy is also committed to environmentalism and helping bring awareness about environmental conservation. She is particularly concerned about the destruction of nature and the impact of pollution on the environment. Her paintings often feature natural elements, but they also convey the importance of taking care of the earth.
Wendy Yeo’s love of nature and her passion for art combine to create visually stunning and thought-provoking paintings. Through her work, she inspires people to connect with nature, appreciate its beauty, and take action to preserve it for future generations. As we continue to face environmental challenges, Wendy’s art reminds us that we all have a responsibility to care for the earth.
CAN YOU DESCRIBE YOUR ARTISTIC STYLE?
“As I have Chinese heritage, my main aim in my work is to combine Eastern art techniques, e.g., broad, fast brushstrokes and “space” in my compositions, with Western individuality of expression.”
WHAT IS YOUR CREATIVE PROCESS?
“I travel a lot, and from the visual impressions I acquire from that, along with quick sketches “in the field.” I then abstract this information when creating artwork back in my studio. I like to portray a lot of movement related to natural forms, the four seasons, and sunrise and sunset.”
WHAT MESSAGE DOES YOUR WORK TRANSMIT TO YOUR AUDIENCE?
“My main message is to combine Eastern and Western art traditions/techniques in my work.”
AWARDS, RECOGNITIONS AND PUBLICATIONS.
I won many prizes at the Slade School of Fine Art, and the prize-winning paintings are now held in the University College London Museum. Also, I have paintings in various Private Collections and the collections of Ashmolean Museum Oxford, Wolfson College Oxford, Hong Kong Museum of Art, Hong Kong University Museum Art Gallery, and Yu Kyung Museum South Korea. Publication: “China” in the Oxford Children’s Reference Library series by Anne Lonsdale and illustrated by Wendy Yeo.