Blank Canvas is pleased to present Tofu, Incense, and Sky, Taiwanese artist Charwei Tsai’s first solo exhibition in Malaysia. The exhibition features three seminal video works where the artist inscribes the Heart Sutra, a popular Mahayana Buddhist text that she memorised in childhood, on ephemeral materials as a reflection on impermanence. Lovely Daze, a curatorial journal published by Tsai since 2005 will also be on display during the exhibition.
The Heart Sutra, one of the most well-known Buddhist texts, speaks of the fundamental emptiness of all things. “Form is emptiness; emptiness is form,” it famously states. Behind its deceptively simple statements, it reaches for a range of complex truths about how we perceive the world, the interdependence between us and the universe, and the nature of impermanence.
As a child growing up in Taiwan, Charwei Tsai found herself memorising the 260 characters of the Heart Sutra and reciting them when she was afraid or seeking calm. Throughout her life, the artist has come back to the sutra, finding new insights and new comfort in it as she and the world around her have changed. It has also become a core part of her artistic practice, as she explores the spiritual concepts in the text and seeks to make them material.
At Blank Canvas, looking back at the three video works, “Tofu Mantra” (2005), “Sky Mantra” (2009) and “Incense Mantra” (2011), we watch as the artist inscribes the characters of the Heart Sutra on different objects: a delicate block of tofu, a fresh stick of incense, a mirror in which the blue sky is reflected. Her intricate calligraphy covers every inch of their surfaces. And then we watch as the words of the sutra come true. Tofu decays; incense turns to ash; the clouds rush past, dividing and reforming unendingly.
As these forms become emptiness, perhaps we are left with a glimpse of a deeper and more lasting truth. As the world around us changes more and more quickly, can we find moments of calm to reflect on these changes, appreciate the cultural and spiritual heritage we still have, and seek out wisdom on what is truly important? Tofu, Incense, and Sky offers us the time and space to start asking these questions. The closing ceremony of the exhibition on 23 August 2025 will feature two programmes: an artist’s dialogue between Charwei Tsai and Malaysian artist Ain, moderated by KY Leong, founder of Blank Canvas, and Edible Mantra, a live performance by Charwei Tsai.