Artist Pang-Chieh Hsu has spent many hours in the Marshall Annex studio/classroom, wonderfully depicted in his oil painting, above. What he likes about the space, he says, aside from its
familiarity, is the contrast between interior and exterior light, and the chance to explore a variety of textures.

Starting with a photograph, he tries to focus on a single spot, just as the camera does, so that the resolution of different parts of the image is not the same. All of his paintings, prints and drawings, he says, are “studies of natural, diffused light.”

A teaching assistant in the UMass art department, Pang is completing his MFA in painting. He is also working on a series of still lifes, for which he has selected objects that reflect themes important to the culture of Taiwan, where he was born. He sees himself as part of a transitional generation moving from a conservative tradition to a modern, westernized way of life that emphasizes greater personal freedom.

Self-portrait, 2001, Shamek Weddle