4 • ISSUE September 2009
HYBRID
Volume 16, No. 1
DISHMAN DIRECTOR FU LIEN BLENDS EAST, WEST CULTURES CONFUCIUS SAID, “THE SCHOLAR who cherishes the love of comfort is not fit to be deemed a scholar.” Fu Lien, a Taiwanese artist, writer, educator and art historian, certainly believes in getting out of her comfort zone. “There is a world beyond the world,” she said. “One of my students said I am very artistic about the way I practice my life. I don’t know whether that is good or bad, but I’m very spontaneous — so whatever comes along, I follow that.” Fu is director of the Dishman Art Museum at Lamar University, a position she has held for two years. She moved to America to study in the early ’80s, earning her degree and her master’s in art the University of North Carolina-Greensboro. “In my generation of Taiwanese college students, if they have a little ambition, they want to move away and study abroad,” she said. “England and America is the top choice or, if you know the language, you can go to Europe. There are not many opportunities for art graduate studies in Taiwan, so we often come to America.” After getting her master’s, Fu returned to Taiwan where she taught for five years and worked in a modern art museum for three. She returned to New York after she was awarded a Fulbright Scholarship at Parsons design school, where she earned her doctorate in art history. Her sense of intellectual curiosity led her to leave the comfort of her position in the Big Apple for the unknown of the Lone Star State. “I knew nothing about Texas and it is good to explore,” she said. “A lot of my graduate colleagues don’t want to move away from New York — (they) just teach here and there part time. I wanted to have a full-time job and engage real academia. “I am a supporter. I want to support people, I want to educate people, I want to relate to people, not just be a self-indulgent artist.” After arriving at Lamar, she quickly became impressed by the area’s vibrant arts scene.
Story and photos by Andy Coughlan
