Taichung-based graffiti collective Escape Plan “X” have decorated the city’s Cian Yue Building (千越大樓), which has been in ruins for more than 20 years.
In July last year, the artists were spray-painting inside the building to avoid being caught, when one of the property owners gave them permission to paint the fifth and sixth floors and the rooftop, which used to be a revolving restaurant, the group said.
The property owner gave them the opportunity to bring the building back to life, said the group, which has six members who each specialize in different aspects of graffiti, such as images or writing.
Photo: Ho Tsung-han, Taipei Times
When they first entered the building, there was no water or electricity, said the group members, who set up the utilities and cleaned the grounds.
The group members started graffiti in Taichung, said their leader Hsieh Mang-hsun (謝孟勳), who is a graduate student majoring in sculpture at National Dong Hwa University’s Department of Arts and Design.
All Escape Plan “X” artists have been trained in art or design and they met sharing their work online, Hsieh said.
Since graffiti is not generally socially accepted, the group has often been reported to police for their work by local residents, Hsieh said, adding that this is why the group was named Escape Plan “X.”
Hsieh said he discovered that if graffiti was of a higher quality, people were less likely to report it.
Usually only messy graffiti is reported, Hsieh added.
There is a difference between freehand graffiti and artistic graffiti, Hsieh said.
Only people professionally trained in fine arts know how to apply artistic concepts to graffiti and can become artists, Hsieh said.
If people are spraying freehand, that is destructive, Hsieh said.
Hsieh said he does not like seeing images of Totoro or the Japanese comic book series One Piece, which have been painted in some villages.
Without authorization, it is plagiarism, Hsieh added.
On Dec. 30 last year, the group hosted an electronic music concert on the building’s rooftop with DJs, rappers and about 400 guests.
Escape Plan “X” said it hopes the building can become a legal graffiti site, like the former 5 Pointz: The Institute of Higher Burnin in New York, where the movies Now You See Me and Step Up filmed scenes.
Hsieh said he hopes more artists will work at the Cian Yue Building.
In 2016, the owners of the building formed an urban renewal association and proposed reconstructing the complex, but some rejected the project, saying that it could continue to be used after renovations.
Discussions of an urban renewal project are ongoing.
Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) Chairman Eric Chu (朱立倫), spokeswoman Yang Chih-yu (楊智伃) and Legislator Hsieh Lung-chieh (謝龍介) would be summoned by police for questioning for leading an illegal assembly on Thursday evening last week, Minister of the Interior Liu Shyh-fang (劉世芳) said today. The three KMT officials led an assembly outside the Taipei City Prosecutors’ Office, a restricted area where public assembly is not allowed, protesting the questioning of several KMT staff and searches of KMT headquarters and offices in a recall petition forgery case. Chu, Yang and Hsieh are all suspected of contravening the Assembly and Parade Act (集會遊行法) by holding
Taiwan would welcome the return of Honduras as a diplomatic ally if its next president decides to make such a move, Minister of Foreign Affairs Lin Chia-lung (林佳龍) said yesterday. “Of course, we would welcome Honduras if they want to restore diplomatic ties with Taiwan after their elections,” Lin said at a meeting of the legislature’s Foreign Affairs and National Defense Committee, when asked to comment on statements made by two of the three Honduran presidential candidates during the presidential campaign in the Central American country. Taiwan is paying close attention to the region as a whole in the wake of a
PRAISE: Japanese visitor Takashi Kubota said the Taiwanese temple architecture images showcased in the AI Art Gallery were the most impressive displays he saw Taiwan does not have an official pavilion at the World Expo in Osaka, Japan, because of its diplomatic predicament, but the government-backed Tech World pavilion is drawing interest with its unique recreations of works by Taiwanese artists. The pavilion features an artificial intelligence (AI)-based art gallery showcasing works of famous Taiwanese artists from the Japanese colonial period using innovative technologies. Among its main simulated displays are Eastern gouache paintings by Chen Chin (陳進), Lin Yu-shan (林玉山) and Kuo Hsueh-hu (郭雪湖), who were the three young Taiwanese painters selected for the East Asian Painting exhibition in 1927. Gouache is a water-based
OFF-TARGET: More than 30,000 participants were expected to take part in the Games next month, but only 6,550 foreign and 19,400 Taiwanese athletes have registered Taipei city councilors yesterday blasted the organizers of next month’s World Masters Games over sudden timetable and venue changes, which they said have caused thousands of participants to back out of the international sporting event, among other organizational issues. They also cited visa delays and political interference by China as reasons many foreign athletes are requesting refunds for the event, to be held from May 17 to 30. Jointly organized by the Taipei and New Taipei City governments, the games have been rocked by numerous controversies since preparations began in 2020. Taipei City Councilor Lin Yen-feng (林延鳳) said yesterday that new measures by
RSS