Round Table Discussions: Concepts in International Waters and Imagining Foreign Lands (圓桌會議—異域的想像和觀念的公海) provides an overview of the contemporary Chinese art scene. Beijing-based Zhao Zhao (趙趙) is showing a video and photography work, Project Taklamakan (2016), which shows the process of rolling out 200km of wire into the center of the Taklamakan Desert to power a refrigerator. The intention is unclear, but there is dramatic tension in the 15-minute long build up to the finished result, which renders the project captivating.
■ Lin & Lin Gallery (大未來林舍畫廊), 16 Dongfeng St, Taipei City (台北市東豐街16號), tel: (02) 2700-6866. Open Tuesdays to Sundays from 11am to 7pm.
■ Until Oct. 29
Photo courtesy of Yiri Arts
Chinese artist Zhou Mingde (周名德) is showing his contemporary ink on paper landscapes in the solo show In the Mountains (此山中). Zhou’s reinterpretation of the classic genre infuses the work with a wider range of colors and rearranges natural elements. His works cleverly reflect on contemporary notions of speed.
■ Soka Art Center (索卡藝術中心), 350 Tiding Blvd Sec 2, Taipei City (台北市中山區堤頂大道二段350號), tel: (02) 2533-9658. Open Tuesdays to Sundays from 10 am to 7pm.
■ Until Oct. 15
Photo courtesy of Yiri Arts
Hong Kong based artist Zhang Xiaoli (張小黎) is part of the group show Contemporary Neoclassic Hong Kong Ink Art (新古典:當代港式水墨). Zhang’s paintings are imaginative and contain a satirical conversation between nature and consumer culture, especially in regards to food. She uses imagery of nature confined in bento boxes to further ponder the relationship between humanity and the natural world.
■ Daguan Gallery (大觀藝術空間), 16, Ln 69, Jingye 2nd Rd, Taipei City (台北市敬業二路69巷16號), tel: (02) 8501-5677. Open Tuesdays to Sundays from 10:30am to 6:30pm.
■ Until Sept, 30
Photo courtesy of the artist and J. P. Art Center
Tseng Chien-ying (曾建穎) is showing his inventive ink and pigment paintings in The Daydream of Delusions (顛倒夢想). While the subjects are often regarded as visually grotesque, he invites viewers to move beyond the superficial. His works raise questions about the impact our assumptions have on our perception of outward appearances.
■ Red Gold Fine Art (赤粒藝術), 15, Ln 116, Da-an Rd Sec 1, Taipei City (台北市大安路一段116巷15號), tel: (02) 8772-5887. Open Tuesdays to Sundays from 11am to 7pm.
■ Until Oct. 8
Photo courtesy of Soka Art Center
Yeh Chih-hang’s (葉誌航) seemingly dark but playful exhibition Family Album (家庭相簿) takes inspiration from photos of his family life. His oil paintings, based on existing photographs, are a collection of witty commentaries on digital photography and social media culture. The show features a video installation, The Lottery, which includes members of his family acting out a skit about winning the lottery with card board cut-outs made from photos. It’s an exhibition the whole family can enjoy.
■ Yiri Arts (伊日藝術), 4-1, 5, Ln 768, Bade Rd Sec 4, Taipei City (台北市八德路四段768巷5號4樓之1), tel: (02) 2786-3866. Open Tuesdays to Sundays from 1pm to 7pm.
■ Until Oct. 8
This phrase “the medium is the message” neatly sums up Yu Meng-ju’s (余孟儒) mixed media installation show Hold On and Let Go (空手). Yu’s works are a combination of various materials, which forms a dialogue between material and immaterial presences.
■ Yiri Arts Taichung (伊日藝術台中空間), 2 Jingcheng 5th St, Taichung City (台中市精誠五街2號), tel: (04) 2327-4361. Open Tuesdays to Sundays from 1pm to 7pm
■ Opens tomorrow. Until Oct. 22
Hsieh Cong-han’s (謝宗翰) solo show The Sound of Scenery II (風景的聲音 II), features oil paintings that are inspired by senses beyond the auditory and visual. His techniques include subtle brushstrokes that invoke various sensual touches. In his 2015 work, Floating Technique, in particular, the eerie feeling of being afloat is achieved by the use of dark colors.
■ Yiri Arts Pier-2 (伊日藝術駁二空間), Pier-2 Art Center Unit C9-14, 1 Dayong Rd, Kaohsiung City (高雄市大勇路1號駁二藝術特區大義倉群C9-14倉庫), tel: (07) 521-5783. Open Tuesdays to Sundays from 1pm to 7pm.
■ Until Oct. 15
As one of the most important living contemporary Japanese pop artists alongside Yayoi Kusama and Yoshitomo Nara, Takashi Murakami has added to the hype of the global art market over the years. His combination of cherry blossom motifs with multicolored palettes gained worldwide attention since his collaboration with French luxury house Louis Vuitton in 2003. Kaohsiung’s J. P. Art Center is showing Murakami’s colorful limited edition lithograph prints in Collection of Takashi Murakami Prints (村上隆版畫收藏展). Visitors will see images of Murakami’s notorious personified flowers among other characters like pandas and monsters.
■ J. P. Art Center (琢璞藝術中心), 8F, No.63, Wufu 3rd Road, Kaohsiung City (高雄市前金區五福三路63號8樓), tel: (07)215-0010. Open Mondays to Fridays from 10am to 6pm, weekends by appointment.
■ Until Sept. 29
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