Paper Money is a series of large oil paintings that depict a type of yellow paper money burned in traditional Chinese culture as a ritual offering to heaven and a medium to communicate with gods or underworld spirits. Stacked in tall, almost unwieldy piles, the depicted money becomes a meditation on the nature of paper itself—its prevalence, its tactile qualities, and personal associations. Pang refers to this style of painting as Abstract Realism. His intention is an artistic exploration of the possibility of distilling abstract qualities from objects, thus allowing for a personalized approach in the construction of meaning. 

Pang-Chieh Hsu is originally from Taiwan and has been living and working in the United States since 1995. He is currently Associate Professor of Drawing and Painting at the Armstrong Atlantic State University in Savannah, Georgia. He has participated in numerous residencies including the Carmago Foundation in Cassis, France; The Edward F. Albee Foundation Residency Fellowship in Montauk, New York; and the Yaddo Resident Artist Program in Saratoga Springs, New York. Pang has been the recipient of grants from the Pollock-Krasner Foundation and Joan Mitchell Foundation, and his work has been published in New American Paintings.