T’ang Haywen

1927 Xiamen China -1991 Paris France

T’ang Haywen was a Chinese-born French artist who became known for his small-format paintings, which are composed of a few fluid brushstrokes in Chinese ink on paper. He was born in Xiamen, China in 1927, but following the outbreak of the Sino-Japanese War in 1937, he spent his childhood growing up in Saigon, Vietnam. He left for Paris in 1947 with the intention of studying medicine but upon arrival, immersed himself in Parisian culture visiting museums and important landmarks. Over the course of his life, he travelled extensively throughout Europe and the United States, never returning to Asia. Along the way, he held various exhibitions in North America and Europe. He passed away in 1991.

In 1998, Alisan Fine Arts was the first gallery to hold a solo-selling exhibition of T’ang Haywen’s paintings in Hong Kong and since then has included his work in four group exhibitions. Notably, as part of Le French May 2005, his artworks, along with Gao Xingjian and Jean Degottex were displayed at the University Museum and Art Gallery, the University of Hong Kong in an exhibition curated by Alice King.

T’ang has been widely exhibited, important shows include a travelling retrospective in 1996-1997, which visited the Oceanography Museum of Monaco, the Hong Kong Museum of Art, Singapore Museum of Art, Museum of East Asian Art in Germany and the Taipei Fine Arts Museum. In 2002, two solo exhibitions of his works were held at the Musée Guimet and the Musée des Beaux-Arts in Chambery, France. In 1999-2000, his works were included in a joint exhibition with artists Zhang Daqian and Zao Wou-ki at the Musée de Pontoise in France. His works have been collected by the National Museum of Modern Art, Paris; Musée Cernuschi, Paris; Musée Guimet, Paris; Musée de Pontoise, France; Museum of Contemporary Art, Nice, France; Menil Foundation, Houston; Art Institute of Chicago; M+, Hong Kong.

BIOGRAPHY
1927 Born in Xiamen, Fujian, China

1937 Left for Vietnam with his family at the outbreak of Sino- Japanese War

1948 Went to Paris to study medicine but enrolled in L’École des Beaux Arts

1955 Held the first exhibition at Galerie Voyelles, Paris, France

1991 Died in Paris

SELECTED SOLO EXHIBITIONS

2024

T'ang Haywen: A Chinese Painter in Paris, Guimet Museum, Paris, France

2019

T'ang Boogie, de Sarthe Gallery, Hong Kong

2014

Solo Exhibition, De Sarthe Gallery, Hong Kong

2003

Galerie Encre de Chine, Paris, France

2002

Paths of Ink, Retrospective Exhibition, Musée Guimet, Paris, France
Presence de T’ang, Musée des Beaux-Arts, Chambery, France
Paths of Ink, Retrospective Exhibition, Shiseido Gallery, Japan

1998

The Tao of Painting, Alisan Fine Arts, Hong Kong

1996-1997

Travelling Retrospective, Oceanography Museum of Monaco; Hong Kong Museum of Art; Singapore Museum of Art; Museumfur Ostasiatische Kunst, Cologne, Germany;Taipei Fine Arts Museum, Taipei, Taiwan

1986

Cultural Centre, Boffrop-Oberhausen, Germany

1985

Burgerzentrum, Chateau de Borbeck, Essen, Germany

1984

Musée des Beaux Arts de Vitre, Château de Vitré, France
Musée des Beaux Arts de Vannes, France

1983

Art in Academy, National Academy of Science, Washington, USA
Musée des Beaux Arts de Brive, France
Musée des Beaux Arts de Quimper, France

1980

Musée des Ponchettes, Nice, France

1979

Musee Savoisien, Chambery, France

1975

Ashmolean Museum, Oxford, UK

1974

Ellingham Mill Art Society, Norfolk Museum, UK

1972

Musée de l’Abbaye Saint Croix des Sables d’Olonne, France

1965

Centre Cultural Midsommagarden, Stockholm, Sweden
International Art Center, Detroit, USA

1964

Galerie Welter, Paris, France
Galerie Galaxie, Detroit, Michigan, USA

1963

Galerie Creuse, Paris, France
Alaska Methodist University, Anchorage, AL, USA

1959

Musée des Oudaias, Rabat, Morocco
Fine Arts School, Casablanca, Morocco
Montreal Museum, Montreal, Canada
Galerie Bradtke, Luxembourg

1958

Galerie Belles Images, Rabat, Morocco

1957

Galerie Belvedere, Hergiswill am See, Lucerne, Switzerland

1955

Galerie Voyelles, Paris, France

SELECTED GROUP EXHIBITIONS

2021-2022

Individuals, Networks, Expressions, South Galleries, M+, Hong Kong

2021

Affordable Art, Alisan Fine Arts-Aberdeen, Hong Kong
Ink Dreams: Selections from the Fondation INK Collection, Los Angeles County Museum of Art, Los Angeles, USA

2016

Alisan Fine Arts: Celebrating 35 Years of Promoting Chinese Contemporary Art, Hong Kong Central Library, Hong Kong

2014

Breeze from Paris Group Exhibition, Eslite Gallery, Taipei, Taiwan

2012

Art HK 12, Alisan Fine Arts, Hong Kong Convention & Exhibition Centre, Hong Kong

2005

Encre/Chine: Ink Paintings by Jean Degottex, Gao Xingjian, T’ang Haywen, Le French May, University Museum and Art Gallery, University of Hong Kong, Alisan Fine Arts, Hong Kong

2004

French Diaspora, Alisan Fine Arts, Hong Kong

2003

Galerie Encre de Chine, Paris, France

1999-00

Maitres de l’Encre: Chang Dai-Chien, T’ang Haywen, Zao Wou-ki, Musée de Pontoise, Pontoise, France

1995

Empire of the Dragons, Aarhus Kuntsmuseum, Denmark

SELECTED PUBLIC COLLECTIONS
Musée National des Arts Asiatiques-Guimet, Paris, France
Musée d’Art Moderne de la ville de Paris, Paris, France
Musée Cernuschi, Paris, France
Musée de Pontoise, Paris, France
Musée de l’Abbaye de Ste Croix des Sables d’Olonne, France
Musée des Beaux Arts de Quimper, France
Musée des Beaux Arts de Vitré, France
Musée de Brive, France
Museum of Contemporary Art, Nice, France
Fonds de la Direction des Musées de la Ville de Nice, France
Los Angeles County Museum of Art, Los Angeles, USA
Menil Fondation, Houston, USA
M+, Hong Kong