Text & Photos by Lin Tiaosun

Amid the sweeping changes in the art market and environment, and facing the differences between traditional galleries and newer operational models, Gary Lee took over the legacy of his father’s 20-year effort in 2009. With a master’s degree in business management, he aimed to preserve his father’s traditional second-hand art market while injecting fresh energy, building a fully revitalized Cloud Gallery with his own hands.

“In the past, contemporary art was modern classics. The artists led by Cloud Gallery are meant to help contemporary art become the future’s classics—that is my vision,” Gary Lee said, his eyes steady despite a seemingly shy demeanor. Born in 1983, he may still seem young in the art world, yet having grown up in an artistic family alongside his father and cousin, he has amassed 34 years of deep immersion in art. Gary did his homework in the gallery after school, observing how his father ran the business and maintained relationships between collectors and artists. He laughed, recalling his fortune in being the son of a gallery owner, which allowed him to study painting with contemporary masters Yang Hsing-sheng, Wang Ren Jye, and Wei Chi-yi. Although he no longer creates art himself, he is confident in his ability to analyze composition.

When he began managing the gallery, Gary not only had to face collectors and artists but also contend with his father’s doubts regarding his new operational approach. He inherited the past while ushering in a new era—establishing systematic backend management, joining gallery associations, organizing exhibitions, participating in domestic and international art fairs, joining the Danei Art Seven-member Group, and engaging in Rotary Club exchanges to learn industry operations. Under his bold yet meticulous innovations, artists felt his dedication, collectors trusted him, and his father recognized the gallery’s diversified growth. What had been nearly a year of tense silence between father and son ended one day in a car ride when his father suddenly broke the silence, saying, “Son, you’re doing very well!” For Gary, that moment not only validated his hard work but also marked the transition from tension to balance between traditional gallery practices and contemporary art.

Friends describe Gary Lee as earnest, diligent, fearless, and passionate about his work. Having studied painting himself, he can empathize with the artists’ struggles. Despite the demands of managing the gallery, he consistently checks in on the artists’ lives and creative processes. For him, being a gallery owner is not about keeping distance or focusing solely on selling art, but maintaining a partnership with artists in pursuing shared ideals.

For collectors, Gary believes that sincerity and integrity are paramount. Understanding a collector’s preferences and needs allows him to provide the most suitable, highest-quality works, and maintaining honesty in service guarantees quality. He recalled an incident years ago with a three-meter artwork: concerned about the weight capacity of the hooks in a collector’s home, he repeatedly confirmed with the installation team, who assured him it was safe. Yet, when hung, the artwork fell, severely damaging the frame though not the piece itself. The collector, calm and gracious, expressed no anger. Gary felt deeply responsible for the mistake and made full restitution: he covered the costs of reframing, reinforced all hanging structures in the collector’s home, and restored all artworks in the home—not just those purchased from Cloud Gallery. The collector’s wife later told him, “No one else could satisfy my husband like you did!” This incident strengthened their relationship, turning it into a friendship, with the collector directly consulting Gary on art-related questions. “Gaining someone’s trust motivates me to work even harder!” Gary said with a smile.

At an art fair, Gary once saw Théodore Géricault’s (1791–1824) masterpiece The Raft of the Medusa. Though he knew of the painting, seeing it in person made him realize how such a small work could possess such immense impact, leaving him deeply moved. For Gary, the emotional expression of artists in the moment of creation can evoke a spontaneous response in viewers—sometimes even changing a person. While academic discussion interprets art intellectually, he strives to deliver the experience of life and the warmth of living through service, hoping to let the world see the excellence and vibrant colors of Taiwanese artists.