Fred Chuang

Late-blooming, emerging artist, Fred Chuang, is the son of physician émigrés from China. He holds a BA from Dartmouth College and an MFA in Theatre Design: Costume & Scenery from Carnegie-Mellon University.
Since his recent discovery of his innovative technique, Chuang has been able to tap into his individual creative source in a way that has allowed him to move into the realm of Fine Art.

Using spray acrylic, Chuang paints on the back side of clear, PETG panels in a technique that is obviously not about the direct placement of pigment. His process focuses on leaving or creating clear openings, "windows" and "windows-within-windows," and filling them with subsequent colors. Chuang creates indirectly, building his artwork layer by layer, generating images to be viewed through the clear surface..
Painting from behind injects a high degree of spontaneity and surprise into Fred Chuang's work, which he calls "OBVERSE" paintings. Chuang uses this label to distinguish his art from "reverse" paintings-an antique, pre-conceived, formulaic process. In contrast, OBVERSE PAINTINGS result from a creative "dialogue" between intentions and results.

Through strategy and intuition, Chuang searches for drama and eloquent balance.
"Working from behind is not the equivalent of working in reverse."

Each painting is unique-unrepeatable, by virtue of the technique. After completion, paintings are annealed, giving the surface a "fingerprint" -a final mark of distinction. The works are framed without glass, in an open frame, which emphasizes the fact that these works are more than arrays of pigments-rather, they are art and objects.
Some paintings are coated with polyurethane to harden and protect the surface. As with all pigmented fine art, these paintings should be sheltered from direct sunlight and excessive heat.