When night falls, the hustle and bustle of day begins to settle down. Even as the world slumbers in silence, the rhythm of life keeps beating still. The vitality of day becomes the life force of the night, and as it builds itself anew, it conceals a mysterious message for the pure and sensitive at heart within itself. The wealth and profound mysteries of the night are brought to life by command of Chu Teh-Chun in his abstract painting from 1976, “Sombre dans l′obscurité.”

Unlike his vivid imagery in high spirits so characteristic of the 1960s, Chu Teh-Chun’s works in the 1970s took on a calmer vigor. In 1970, he set off for Amsterdam in the Netherlands to attend a grand exhibition of paintings commemorating the 300th anniversary of Rembrandt Harmenszoon van Rijn. From this, he broadened his definition of light and shadow, gradually shifting from using strong contrast to merging the two to complement one another. In doing so, his lights shone even brighter, his shadows penetrating deeper into darkness. By the time he created “Sombre dans l′obscurité” in 1976, it was evident that the artist had fully mastered the art of arranging light and shadow. Even though he had reduced the saturation of the piece and cut its colors to a bare minimum, he still created a kaleidoscopically changing scenery that reflects the transparent keenness of the soul. Under Chu Teh-Chun's paintbrush, lights shine even in the darkness of the evening sky. An intrinsic holiness trickles through the night and radiates with translucent shades of green. The secluded silence of the night as complemented by inky greens are like the lights that map out the shadowy figures of Rembrandt’s “The Night Watch,” dazzling in their brilliance and impossible to take in all at once. It offers an invitation for viewers to investigate the alluring mystery hidden deep within the darkness of the night.

On the other hand, Chu Teh-Chun’s calligraphic brush strokes shift from the solid mightiness of his early days to a flexibility that flows with the whole of the image. In “Sombre dans l′obscurité,” the artist thins his oil paints and introduces washes, dry brush strokes and dripping techniques found in Chinese ink paintings. Paired with an enlightenment drawn from the artist's calligraphic mastery, the canvas gives off a brisk impression of speed that purifies the radiance of the image, which adds to its dignified temperament. Within the strict composition of the image, each lift and contour of the brush is done with extreme care, while remaining both free from inhibition and rich in elegance. The green that represents vitality glows like emeralds, as if waiting for an opportunity to burst all at once. It shows the cycle of life between heaven and earth in a way that leaves one anticipating the mysteries it has in store. “Sombre dans l′obscurité” presents the reserved tempo of life between threads of light woven into shadow. As the two forces stir against each other within a torrent that cloaks the pulse of life, the pieces fall into place in a fascinating complexity. Out of Chu Teh-Chun’s colorful gallery of works from the 1970s and the 80s, this painting is especially unique in its sophisticated charm, conveying the lucidity of the artist’s soul like a midnight sonata.