Every Chalice is a Dwelling Place (每一個花萼都是棲息之所) is part group exhibition, part promotional event for the 13th Taipei Culture Award and part opportunity for each of the 10 participating Taiwanese artists to interpret the title’s theme of finding a “spiritual space that transcends religion and culture.” Architect Chi Ti-nan (季鐵男) replicated IT Park’s second and fourth floor gallery space on Taipei City Hall’s first floor courtyard to showcase the painting, videos and installation by artists including Michael Lin (林明弘), Yao Jui-chung (姚瑞中) and Tsong Pu (莊普).
■ Taipei City Hall (台北市政府), 1 Shifu Rd, Taipei City (台北市市府路1號). For more information call IT Park: (02) 2507 7243
■ Until April 28
YES — Young Emerging Stars, a group exhibit, presents the work of emerging contemporary Taiwanese artists working in painting, ceramics, photography and installation. Some of the more recognizable names include Lin Yi-shu (林羿束), Tsai Zung-lung (蔡宗隆) and Chen Wei-tu (陳威圖).
■ Aki Gallery (也趣), 141 Minzu W Rd, Taipei City (台北市民族西路141號). Tel: (02) 2599-1171. Open Tuesdays to Sundays from noon to 6:30pm
■ Until May 2
Taiwanese multimedia artist Jenny Chen (陳張莉) continues her transformation of Chinese landscape painting into sculpture and video in Time Flow (時間流). In this exhibit, the artist creates a space for dialogue among graphic art, steel sculpture and installation that guides the viewer to reflect on the natural environment.
■ Kuandu Museum of Fine Arts (關渡美術館), Taipei National University of the Arts (台北藝術大學), 1 Xueyuan Rd, Taipei City (台北市學園路1號). Open Tuesdays to Sundays from 10am to 5pm.
Tel: (02) 2896-1000 X2432
■ Until May 16
2010 Grand Exhibition of Taipei County Artists marks the 11th year since the founding of this rotating exhibit of artists from throughout Taiwan and throws up the theme of place in relation to artistic creation. The group show includes 10 categories: ink and water drawings, calligraphy, seal cutting, block print, ceramics, oil painting, water color painting, photography, sculpture and composite material.
■ Yingge Ceramics Museum (鶯歌陶瓷博物館), 200 Wenhua Rd, Yinge Township, Taipei County (台北縣鶯歌鎮文化路200號). Open daily from 9:30am to 5pm, closes at 6pm on Saturdays and Sundays.
Tel: (02) 8677-2727
■ Until Sunday
The Sound of Silence (大音希聲) is a retrospective exhibit of cast iron and copperplate sculpture by Taiwanese artist Lin Liang-tsai (林良材). Lin’s choice of materials is important because “cast iron is like people; it changes over time.” His sculptures of the human form examine the internal and external aspects of existence.
■ National Museum of History (國立歷史博物館), 49 Nanhai Rd, Taipei City (台北市南海路49號). Open Tuesdays to Sundays from 10am to 6pm. Tel: (02) 2361-0270. Admission: NT$30
■ Until May 9
A few weeks ago I found myself at a Family Mart talking with the morning shift worker there, who has become my coffee guy. Both of us were in a funk over the “unseasonable” warm weather, a state of mind known as “solastalgia” — distress produced by environmental change. In fact, the weather was not that out of the ordinary in boiling Central Taiwan, and likely cooler than the temperatures we will experience in the near-future. According to the Taiwan Adaptation Platform, between 1957 and 2006, summer lengthened by 27.8 days, while winter shrunk by 29.7 days. Winter is not
Taiwan’s post-World War II architecture, “practical, cheap and temporary,” not to mention “rather forgettable.” This was a characterization recently given by Taiwan-based historian John Ross on his Formosa Files podcast. Yet the 1960s and 1970s were, in fact, the period of Taiwan’s foundational building boom, which, to a great extent, defined the look of Taiwan’s cities, determining the way denizens live today. During this period, functionalist concrete blocks and Chinese nostalgia gave way to new interpretations of modernism, large planned communities and high-rise skyscrapers. It is currently the subject of a new exhibition at the Taipei Fine Arts Museum, Modern
March 25 to March 31 A 56-year-old Wu Li Yu-ke (吳李玉哥) was straightening out her artist son’s piles of drawings when she inadvertently flipped one over, revealing the blank backside of the paper. Absent-mindedly, she picked up a pencil and recalled how she used to sketch embroidery designs for her clothing business. Without clients and budget or labor constraints to worry about, Wu Li drew freely whatever image came to her mind. With much more free time now that her son had found a job, she found herself missing her home village in China, where she
In recent years, Slovakia has been seen as a highly democratic and Western-oriented Central European country. This image was reinforced by the election of the country’s first female president in 2019, efforts to provide extensive assistance to Ukraine and the strengthening of relations with Taiwan, all of which strengthened Slovakia’s position within the European Union. However, the latest developments in the country suggest that the situation is changing rapidly. As such, the presidential elections to be held on March 23 will be an indicator of whether Slovakia remains in the Western sphere of influence or moves eastward, notably towards Russia and