Grey Cube Gallery proudly presents the fifth Patterns online art show for the month of September 2025. The show encompassed a range of artistic styles and mediums (oil on canvas, acrylic, watercolor, colored pencil, ink, steel, bronze, digital art, photography, porcelain). Each submission has been judged based on the following elements of artistic expression: orginality and quality of art, overall design, creativity, interpretation of the theme, demonstration of artistic ability and usage of medium. Out of all entries, 51 artworks were shortlisted for inclusion in the show. The competition attracted entries from many countries across the world: Taiwan, USA, Australia, Canada, Netherlands, China, France and Japan.. Enjoy the show and thank you for expressing an interest in our competition.

I am a self taught artists working in water based medium, mainly acrylic, but also at times gouache and water-colour. I am a hyperrealism painter fascinated by the world around me. I am very drawn to shiny surfaces as well as transparent objects, especially when the lighting brings them to life. I look for beauty in everyday objects that most people take for granted or just don’t truly see them as they are. The seemingly boring and mundane subjects can truly be like magnets if portrayed in the right light. Shiny metal is one of those materials that can host endless visions….the light hits it and the reflections are captured on the smooth, sleek surface…people and animals especially the eyes...an artists dream! My future art plans are to paint the countless subjects I have chosen to become paintings and to share my art with as many people as I can. "To take my inner visions with my hands and create a work of art for you the viewer .... That is the ultimate in self expression."

My work is often an exploration of techniques, materials, textures, and contrasting elements. The push and pull of light and dark, subtle and bold, organic and geometric, provide visual interest while combining with geometric and linear elements to control the composition. Balance and harmony are often achieved through intuitive mark making, the choice and placement of colour, and through the repeated motif of the circle, which holds an important place in each painting. Throughout history the circle has symbolized unity and wholeness and has permeated every aspect of our lives. From the planets, to nature, to the repetitive cycles of time, the circle is universal and pervasive. In my paintings, whether whole or broken, the circle represents our attempt to reach society’s perceived idea of completeness. The imposed order often found in my work, is symbolic of the way we try to control every aspect of our lives in a continual search for that wholeness and fulfilment.

Jason Shih was born in 1972 in Taiwan. In 1991, he began to specialize in metal sculpture when he was a sophomore in the Fine Arts Dept. of Taipei National University of the Arts. In 2001, he graduated from School for American Crafts, Rochester Institute of Technology, USA, and majored in Metal Sculpture. And then, he served as the metal sculptor Albert Paley's assistant, involved in crafts and public art work practices. Furthermore, he earned his Art Ph. D. from China Academy of Art, China (2015). Now, he lives in Taiwan, and consistently engages in the both areas of sculpture and public art. Jason Shih’s artistic vision is shaped by a diverse array of influences, from contemporary dance to avant-garde fashion. He cites German choreographer Pina Bausch and British designer Alexander McQueen as significant inspirations. Bausch’s explorations of time and space resonate with Shih’s interest in sculpture’s capacity to embody kinetic energy and spatial imagination. McQueen’s innovative approach to contemporary imagery and themes provides Shih with a broad canvas for creative expression. Shih’s work is also influenced by the aesthetic principles of Futurism and Constructivism, movements that emphasize dynamic energy and continuous motion.

The “ZIG ZAG ZIG” prints are a continuing series of mixed-medium impressions produced in editions of three each. The images were conceived as bas-relief sculptural, studio- based collages. Every composition reveals, by its unique strength, how it would resolve itself as it follows the tendencies of its internal forces. I continue to add and subtract material to the still life in exploring preliminary proofs. I am interpreting nature in its purest, abstract state - constructing a rhythm of pictorial lyricism using objects impregnated with fluorescent pigments. I place great emphasis on edge and the interrelationship of form and color in maintaining a harmony of visual balance. Objects never end - forms intersect with infinite combinations of sympathetic attunements and clashing aversions. No object may be viewed in isolation, but absorbs its surroundings, just as it contributes to the total composition. The multi-shaped image is placed between two sheets of clear Plexiglas and framed in zinc utilizi