T.F. Chen Art For Humanity Foundation

The goal of the Art for Humanity World Tour is to organize innovative and empowering exhibits, cultural events, educational programs, competitions, and awards, all focusing on peace, tolerance, and cultural diversity. We invite the participation of cultural and arts institutions of all types, in communities large and small, from all over the world. Together, we will elevate the importance of art education and foster the value of art as a powerful vehicle for global peace and the expression of love. Please join us as a member, arrange or sponsor an event in your area, or work with us directly.

In the spirit of love, peace, and tolerance, the T.F. Chen Art for Humanity Foundation dedicates itself to the Art for Humanity World Tour and the fostering of Art Education and Art, not only for the sake of art itself, but also for the sake of humanity.

The promotion of art as a means to build character among youth
The mobilization and empowerment of the world’s youth to embrace the arts to express their vision of global harmony
The mobilization and empowerment of arts and cultural organization toward the creation of a global culture of peace
The promotion of multiculturalism while preserving individual cultural identities and traditions
The reinforcement of art for the sake of humanity through the art and philosophies of T.F. Chen and other visionaries

This vital project will seek to involve the youth as well as the arts and cultural organizations and ministries in countries spanning six continents. The centerpiece and focus of the World Tour as it visits each country will be the Art and Cultural Festival for Peace and Tolerance, initiated with invitations to First Ladies and Cultural Ministers to joint our Board and offer their support.

Through these festivals, the World Tour will swerve as a catalyst, host, and a forum for a plethora of other activities, including:

Local and national art competitions
Workshops in local schools
Local exhibitions
Panel discussions
Symposia
Meetings
Ceremonies

We also plan to grant awards and scholarships to arties and scholars, both young and old, who explore the themes of love, peace, and tolerance.

Our festivals and events will entire communities into artistic process. We plan on installing large blank canvasses at each location and will encourage the public to experience art for themselves and express their own visions of peace and harmony. These words will come to represent the artistic identity of each community and become living documents.

Renowned artists will be invited to exhibit and perform at each local site. No genre will be excluded and we look forward to expressions of visual art, sculpture, song, theater, film, photography, and others. All of the World Tour events will be documented on film to form a permanent record.

We want this World Tour to be truly a global event. As the map shows, our plan is to visit cities on nearly every continent, including, but not limited to:

These are grand plans, but they will remain that—just plans—without you. Your support and generosity can help turn these plans for the World Tour into a reality and truly launch a Global Culture of peace, tolerance, and love.

Our own commitment to this mission is considerable, including a $1.5 million advertising campaign. The most conspicuous element of the campaign is a Television announcement, featuring Dr. Chen’s art and philosophy that will air on major networks beginning in May 2004. Please visit our Web site at www.tfchen.org to view this announcement online.

Please read on to find out how you can support this vital mission and contribute to the creation of a new Global Culture.

For decades, Dr. T.F. Chen and his family have committed their time, their effort, and the proceeds from the sale of original artwork toward the mission of The Art For Humanity Foundation. Naturally, we will continue this commitment for the World Tour.

However, we cannot complete this mission alone. As with our previous endeavors, we must rely on the generosity of friends and supporters to meet the costs of the World Tour. There are many ways for you to contribute, and many benefits available to you in thanks for your generosity. As a small organization with big dreams, we welcome your involvement in the areas listed below, and look forward to a close, mutually rewarding relationship.

We have established several ways to contribute to and support our work. Every contribution, large and small, makes a difference in supporting our mission and makes you a part of a global family— all committed to the advancement of Art Education and the creation of a Global Culture of Peace.

We offer seven different levels of membership, each conferring different levels of benefits. As a member you gain a special relationship with the Foundation, the Chen family, and the global community of members.

Sponsors at the President’s Circle and Founder’s Circle levels, both corporate and individual, receive special recognition at all Foundation events and exhibitions. You and your company will also receive recognition and thanks on the Foundation Web site, in the Foundation Newsletter, and in event and exhibition press materials.

For corporations, sponsorship provides a unique opportunity to significantly increase exposure, visibility, and prestige. It creates a partnership with the Foundation that can enhance your own public image by associating your brand with significant artistic events around the world and putting your company’s name in front of an audience of sophisticated art lovers who are as influential in business as they are in the world of the arts.

Moreover, sponsorship will help establish and validate your company’s position as a responsible member of the global community.

The Foundation can also arrange for special events, and exhibits for corporate sponsors, as a way of promoting their products and services. We also welcome inquiries about customized sponsorship and underwriting opportunities.

Dr. Chen’s masterful, beautiful, and vibrant paintings celebrate the diversity of human culture and experience, with universal messages of love, hope, and harmony. His work is renowned by scholars and art lovers the world over and will make valuable additions to any collection. Dr. Chen is one of the few living artists to have reached such a high level of achievement.

We gladly welcome contributions of time, goods, and professional services of all descriptions.

If you would like to discuss additional opportunities to get involved, please contact us at (212) 966-4363 or chen@tfchen.org.

Renowned for his artistic style, philosophical visions, and honorable character, Dr. T.F. Chen is a true Renaissance man who embodies the merging of Western and Eastern Cultures. Born in Taiwan, Chen was awarded a scholarship in 1963 from the French government to study in Paris. He lived there for 12 years, earning his M.A. in French Contemporary Literature and his Ph. D in Art History from Univ. of Paris (La Sorbonne), while pursuing his art studies for 7 years at L'Ecole des Beaux-Arts. In 1969, Dr. Chen established his theory of "Five-Dimensional World Culture" and initiated "Neo-Iconography" in art. Neo-Iconography is a daring new form of communication. It unites East and West, past and present, by organizing and combining familiar "icons" in unfamiliar ways. Like a passionate art collector, Dr. Chen assembles images he treasures and places them together in contexts that defy time, space, and cultural barriers -- resulting in a stunning, eclectic composition. Recognized as "one of the twenty most influential artists in the world today" (Art Critic, Dr. Thomas McEvilley), Dr. Chen has conducted more than 200 one-man exhibitions worldwide. He has published over 20 books in English, Chinese and French regarding his art and theories; and is frequently invited to lecture and exhibit around the globe. Chen's works are featured in over 200 textbooks (including the university level art history textbook, Arts & Ideas), countless articles, newspapers, etc.; and are collected widely both privately and publicly.

My wife Lucia and I were born in Taiwan during the time of Japanese colonization and war in the 1930’s and 40’s. It was the so-called “ Cultural Desert” -- a time when arts and culture were scarce and suppressed by martial law. I remember as a young boy, memorizing every worn page, every image of the 50 art books that a local dentist had smuggled in from Japan. My inspiration was Vincent van Gogh, and at 14 years old, I decided to be an artist and to go to Paris to become a great painter. I consumed anything relating to fine art, literature or music in that impoverished time, and fed my soul with their beauty. I made my friends among those creative minds who had left us all a legacy of their masterpieces. Though everyone was extremely poor materially during that time, I felt that the arts made me very rich. In fact, I was always very happy as I nurtured myself with these masterpieces and with the joy that came from my own painting and writing. I believe that immersing myself in even the little bit of art that was available to us at that time, made me into a passionate, intelligent, creative man with a great love and keen sensibility towards our Humanity and our world.

In 1963, I earned a scholarship from the French Government to go to Paris and study at la Sorbonne and L’Ecole des Beaux-Arts. In 1969, upon seeing the American astronauts land on the moon, I felt that we, as humankind, were entering into a new era, that our cultural ecology was shifting from “Divergence” to “Convergence,” and that the whole world was becoming “One.” And this “oneness,” this world family has been blessed by the arts. Our world culture is enriched by the creations of artists of all races, from all continents, of all times and space, in all media. From these revelations, I established my view of “Five-Dimensional World Culture” (with “Soul” as the fifth dimension and “Love” as the essence) and initiated my art style of “Neo-Iconography” to represent our new “Global Village.”

I left France in 1975 and became an American citizen in 1983. With a mixture of Asian, European, and American influences, a consciousness of being a “World Citizen” developed within me, and I discover that it is now a prevailing and wonderful phenomenon among our cultures today. This kind of conscious awakening in the individual surely paves a way for the cultivation of a Global Culture based on Love, Peace and Tolerance for all.

My beloved wife Lucia, the President of our Cultural Center, and I have always viewed Art as a powerful vehicle towards enriching our individual souls, shaping our good character, and advancing a Global Culture of Peace. We invite you to join us in adding your treasure and your awareness to this great mix!