Faith brings together two artists who each examine religion. Chen Hui-chiao’s (陳慧嶠) geometrically abstract mixed-media (table tennis balls, cotton, steel and acrylic paint) installations show her fascination with dreams and astrology, and optimistically suggest a logical force directing the universe. The sculptures of Indonesian artist Titarubi question social values that dictate gender roles, particularly the clothing that Muslim women are expected to wear. Her glamorous dresses serve as “dissension against a male-oriented society where women are taught to be more mindful of their appearances than their minds.”
■ Sakshi Gallery (夏可喜當代藝術), 33 Yitong St, Taipei City (台北市伊通街33號). Open Tuesdays to Saturdays from 1:30pm to 9:30pm, Sundays from 1:30pm to 7:30pm. Tel: (02) 2516-5386
■ Opening reception on Saturday at 7pm. Until Jan. 9
Photo courtesy of A Gallery
Though its title, On the Road (迢迢路), may evoke road trips through North America, Chen Shun-chu’s (陳順築) series of photographs follows the ideas contained in Henri Cartier-Bresson’s “decisive moment,” though here Chen’s subject matter is the forms and textures of Penghu (澎湖) absent of the human subject that so preoccupied Cartier-Bresson.
■ IT Park Gallery (伊通公園), 41 Yitong St, Taipei City (台北市伊通街41號). Open Tuesdays to Saturdays from 1pm to 10pm. Tel: (02) 2507-7243
■ Opening reception on Saturday at 7pm. Until Jan. 1
A Sterile Room (無菌室) presents the latest oil paintings by Huang Yi-sheng (黃頤勝). Huang’s representational paintings of sparrows and sheep in pastoral settings imagine a bygone age of simplicity. Huang says his art forms an alternate reality founded on the world we are familiar with.
■ A Gallery (一畫廊), 22, Alley 36, Ln 147, Xinyi Rd Sec 3, Taipei City (台北市信義路三段147巷36弄22號). Open Mondays to Saturdays from 1pm to 9pm. Tel: (02) 2702-3327
■ Opening reception on Friday at 5pm. Until Jan. 8
Masters of Modern & Contemporary Chinese Ink Painting (中國近現代水墨畫名家特展) brings together a number of well-known living and deceased Chinese and Taiwanese artists to celebrate the 100th anniversary of the Republic of China’s founding, which serves as the exhibit’s time frame. The exhibition juxtaposes the various styles of these ink painters to delineate the development of the form, from the traditional to the modern to the contemporary. The work of early China-trained practitioners, including Lin Feng-mian (林風眠) and Chang Dai-chien (張大千) — who would later fall under the rubric of abstract expressionism — are shown alongside the work of later Taiwan-born, Japan-trained practitioners such as Lin Yu-shan (林玉山).
■ 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$30
■ Until Jan. 2
A Contemplative Journey (苦行觀化-劉文隆山水畫展) showcases the ink paintings of Liu Wen-long (劉文隆) from 1999 to 2008. Liu’s vivid portrayal of towering mountains and rugged rocks follow the traditional approach to literati painting. However, his works are distinguishable by their unique composition and perspective, depicting close-range details of the landscape in some places and providing panoramic views in others.
■ Kaohsiung Museum of Fine Arts (高雄市立美術館), 80 Meishuguan Rd, Kaohsiung City (高雄市美術館路80號). Open Tuesdays to Sundays from 9am to 5pm. Tel: (07) 555 0331. Admission: Free
■ Until Dec. 28
From Heroic Expression to Resplendent Color (從狂狷豪邁到絢麗色彩) is a retrospective exhibit on Walasse Ting (丁雄泉) that offers a comprehensive overview of the artist’s career from the 1950s until his death earlier this year. Ting experimented with many styles —especially abstract expressionist and neo-figurative painting — over his long career before arriving at his more mature works, which focus on traditional subjects such as women, flowers, plants and birds.
■ Taipei Fine Arts Museum (TFAM), 181, Zhongshan N Rd Sec 3, Taipei City (台北市中山北路三段181號). Open Tuesdays to Sundays from 9am to 10pm; closes at 6pm on Mondays. Tel: (02) 2595-7656. Admission: NT$Free
■ Until Feb. 13
The Great Master of Fairy Tales: the Hans C. Andersen Bicentenary Exhibition is an ideal exhibit for anyone who enjoys a good yarn. The exhibition focuses on the life and works of Andersen through animation and walls of over-sized books.
■ National Taiwan Museum of Fine Arts (國立台灣美術館), 2, Wucyuan W Rd Sec 1, Taichung City (台中市五權西路一段2號). Open Tuesdays through Sundays from 9am to 5pm. Tel: (04) 2372-3552. Admission: Free
■ Until Feb. 20
May 6 to May 12 Those who follow the Chinese-language news may have noticed the usage of the term zhuge (豬哥, literally ‘pig brother,’ a male pig raised for breeding purposes) in reports concerning the ongoing #Metoo scandal in the entertainment industry. The term’s modern connotations can range from womanizer or lecher to sexual predator, but it once referred to an important rural trade. Until the 1970s, it was a common sight to see a breeder herding a single “zhuge” down a rustic path with a bamboo whip, often traveling large distances over rugged terrain to service local families. Not only
Ahead of incoming president William Lai’s (賴清德) inauguration on May 20 there appear to be signs that he is signaling to the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) and that the Chinese side is also signaling to the Taiwan side. This raises a lot of questions, including what is the CCP up to, who are they signaling to, what are they signaling, how with the various actors in Taiwan respond and where this could ultimately go. In the last column, published on May 2, we examined the curious case of Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) heavyweight Tseng Wen-tsan (鄭文燦) — currently vice premier
The last time Mrs Hsieh came to Cihu Park in Taoyuan was almost 50 years ago, on a school trip to the grave of Taiwan’s recently deceased dictator. Busloads of children were brought in to pay their respects to Chiang Kai-shek (蔣中正), known as Generalissimo, who had died at 87, after decades ruling Taiwan under brutal martial law. “There were a lot of buses, and there was a long queue,” Hsieh recalled. “It was a school rule. We had to bow, and then we went home.” Chiang’s body is still there, under guard in a mausoleum at the end of a path
Last week the Directorate-General of Budget, Accounting and Statistics (DGBAS) released a set of very strange numbers on Taiwan’s wealth distribution. Duly quoted in the Taipei Times, the report said that “The Gini coefficient for Taiwanese households… was 0.606 at the end of 2021, lower than Australia’s 0.611, the UK’s 0.620, Japan’s 0.678, France’s 0.676 and Germany’s 0.727, the agency said in a report.” The Gini coefficient is a measure of relative inequality, usually of wealth or income, though it can be used to evaluate other forms of inequality. However, for most nations it is a number from .25 to .50