Liu Max C.W.
Liu Chiwai, and also known as Liu Max C.W., was a Taiwanese painter and anthropologist known for his watercolor and mixed media works. He was known as the "Old Playful Soul of the art world " for his adventurous spirit in exploring Africa, Oceania, and Borneo and his passion for primitive art. He devoted his life to the study of art anthropology and the research of indigenous cultures, and published numerous related works to promote his love for nature and conservation of natural ecology.
Life
1910-1940
Liu was born as Liu Fu-sheng in Fuzhou, Fujian, China in 1912, but changed his name to Liu Chiwai at the age of 10. After the Great Kanto earthquake in 1923, he moved to Kobe, Japan. He graduated from the Kobe English Mission School in 1932 at the age of 18.In 1932, Liu was awarded a scholarship for the Boxer Rebellion indemnity as a Chinese overseas student, and he studied at the Tokyo Railway Training Institute in the specialized electrical department. In 1935, he returned to China from Japan and worked at the Tianjin Cotton Mill.
From 1940 to 1960
In 1940, Liu entered the Technical Office of the Ministry of War in Taiwan as a technician and made multiple trips to Yunnan and Myanmar, which sparked his interest in anthropology. In 1945, he was transferred to the Resources Commission of the Ministry of Economy as a technician and was sent to Taiwan in December for post-war recovery and restoration projects. In 1946, he became an engineer at the Badouzi Power Plant of the Taiwan Power Company, and later became the head of the Mechanical and Civil Engineering Section of the Taiwan Metal Mining Office. In 1948, he was transferred to the Electric Power Division of the Taiwan Sugar Corporation and settled in Tingzhou Road in Taipei. After viewing the exhibition of painter Xiang Hong at the Zhongshan Hall in Taipei in 1949, he began to study watercolor painting independently and created the first piece, "A Sleeping Child on a Tatami Mat ". At the same time, he began to translate art books.In 1950, the watercolor painting "The Setting Sun in the Silent Hall " was selected for the 5th Provincial Art Exhibition in Taiwan. The following April, he held his first solo exhibition at the Zhongshan Hall in Taipei. In May 1954, his first translated work, "Watercolor Painting Techniques", was published. In 1957, he was transferred to the United States Navy's air force base in Hsinchu, Taiwan, and the following year became an engineer at the Military Engineering Bureau of the Ministry of National Defense. In 1959, he and his artist friends founded the "United Watercolor Painting Association".
From 1960 to 1980
In 1961, Liu founded the Eurasia Publishing Company, which specialized in publishing art books. In 1962, he compiled "Modern Painting Basic Theories." In 1964, he was appointed as a professor in the Art Department of the Political Work Cadres College. In July 1965, he spent two years living in the Indochinese Peninsula, where he investigated the artistic civilization of the Champa and Angkor Wat, completed "A Page of History of the Indochinese Peninsula," and shifted his painting style towards primitive art, establishing his personal artistic style.In 1967, he returned to Taiwan to work for the Ministry of National Defense's Military Industry Bureau, and in July of that year, he presented "Watercolors of the Vietnam War" at the National Museum of History. The following year, he transferred to the Design Division of the Logistics Engineering Command. In 1969, he won the fourth Sun Yat-sen Literature and Art Award for his creative work.
In 1971, Liu left his public post to establish an Art Academy with Read Lee. In 1972, he went to the Philippines to explore local art education, ancient painting remains, as well as research the indigenous cultures. In July of that year, he held a solo exhibition at the Hilton Manila, and the following year, he published "Primitive Culture and Art of the Philippine Islands," which won the "Southeast Asian Art and Culture Creation" Honour Award from the National Commission for Culture and the Arts of the Philippines, and he was appointed as an Honorary Research Fellow at the Southeast Asian Cultural Studies Institute of Hong Kong.
In 1974, Liu taught at the Department of Architecture at Chung Yuan Christian University. In 1975, he served as a part-time professor in the Department of Architecture at Tamkang University. In 1976, he participated in the First Asian Artists' Conference in Seoul, South Korea, where he also researched ancient art and architecture on the Korean Peninsula. In 1977, he researched the culture of the Paiwan tribe in Pingtung County and surveyed the slate houses. In 1978, he traveled to Central and South America to visit the ancient civilizations of the Maya, Inca, as well as the other Indian cultures. In 1979, he held a watercolor solo exhibition at the UIC Hall in Singapore and visited the Atayal tribe in Hualien. The following year, he visited Orchid Island.
In 1980, he was appointed as a visiting professor in the Art Department of Ohio State University. From 1981, with the sponsorship of the Malaysia International Times and the Taiwan Handicraft Promotion Center, he traveled to Sarawak in Borneo to collect primitive art materials, including the rainforests of the Rajang River Basin and the Rako Wildlife Reserve. In 1984, he held five solo exhibitions and traveled to South Africa. In 1985, he visited the Lundayeh and Murut tribes in Sabah for interviews and research.
After 1990
In 1993, at the age of 81, Liu led an expedition team to Papua New Guinea in Oceania to conduct research on stone artifacts. It was his last long-term exploration to remote areas.In June 2000, his book "Adventures of a Old Playful soul - Liu Qiwei's Memoir in Images " was published. In 2002, Liu died at the age of 90.