Seeing, Feeling & Thinking(16)

Marvelous Table and Bottle
Oil on Linen 91 x 73cm 2006
Private Collection


The air inside a closed sphere such as a rubber ball must be separated from the air outside. But in 1922, the famous “Klein Bottle” proposed by Germany topology mathematician Felix Klein (1849-1925) broke with this phenomenon. The air inside and outside the bottle is interlinked with each other now.

It was Klein’s concept that inspired the artist to complete this painting “Marvelous Table and Bottle” . An aquatic stretches its branches and leaves out off the bottle in order to breathe in a freer manner. Under the red curved table, its legs , because of gravity distortion on the ground, are perpendicular to two different 90 degrees to produce rotation effect, bringing some sense of insecurity.

The dotted pink and blue strokes blend into the rotation of the gravity. And this is the point that makes the table and the bottle look “odd and wonderful”.

“That’s all there is to it!” ,said the artist.

T.Y. Sheng