Reality Impalpable (不確定的真相) is a solo exhibition of works by Chinese artist Li Hui (李暉). Li’s light installations — including one composed of 13,000 LEDs — are meant to serve as a symbol of China’s hectic and rapidly changing society, particularly his hometown of Beijing, which is contrasted with the philosophies of Buddhism and Confucianism.
■ Museum of Contemporary Art, Taipei (MOCA, Taipei), 39 Changan W Rd, Taipei City (台北市長安西路39號), tel: (02) 2552-3720. Open Tuesdays to Sundays from 10am to 6pm. Admission: NT$50
■ Opening reception on Friday at 6pm. Until June 26
Photo courtesy of MOCA, Taipei
Return to the Essence (返本歸真) surveys Taiwan’s abstract painting scene through the work of five artists: Chu Teh-i (曲德益), Lee Shi-chi (李錫奇), Tsong Pu (莊普), Yang Chi-hung (楊識宏) and Hsueh Pao-shia (薛保瑕).
■ 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
■ Opening reception on Sunday at 3pm. Until May 29
Modigliani and his Circle showcases works by and documents about Italian figurative painter Amedeo Modigliani and some of his friends and contemporaries, including Moise Kisling and Max Jacob. This is the first exhibition dedicated to Modigliani in Asia.
■ Kaohsiung Museum of Fine Arts, 80 Meishuguan Rd, Greater Kaohsiung (高雄市美術館路80號), tel: (07) 555-0331. Open Tuesdays to Sundays from 9am to 5pm. Admission: NT$260
■ Until July 31
Shanghai’s influx of foreign influences toward the end of the 19th century set traditional Chinese ink painting on a new trajectory, as an exhibit of 20 works by 16 artists at 99 Degrees Art Center attempts to show. The pluralistic tradition that evolved from the merging of disparate cultures and artistic styles continues to the present day. The works on exhibit span the past 100 years and include examples by Ren Bonian (任伯年), Wu Changshuo (吳昌碩), Huang Binhong (黃賓虹) and Chang Dai-chien (張大千).
■ 99 Degrees Art Center (99度藝術中心), 5F, 259, Dunhua S Rd Sec 1, Taipei City (台北市敦化南路一段259號5樓), tel: (02) 2700-3099. Open Tuesdays to Sundays from 11am to 6pm
■ Until May 29
The Animal’s Soliloquy (動物的獨白) presents a new series of surrealist and psychedelic paintings of animals by Johnny Leo (廖文彬). Leo’s dreamy paintings address environmental degradation.
■ Butchart Contemporary Art Space (布查當代藝術空間), 155, Linong St Sec 2, Taipei City (台北市立農街二段155號), tel: (02) 2820-9920. Open daily from 11am to 9:30pm
■ Until May 16
Sound Creature (聲音生物) is an exhibition of sound installations featuring environmental sound artist (wind, waves, water) Wang Fu-jui (王福瑞), cassette tape experimenter (classical music) Chang Yung-ta (張永達) and interactive sound installation guru Hiroko Mugibayashi from Japan, among others.
■ Galerie Grand Siecle (新苑藝術), 17, Alley 51, Ln 12, Bade Rd Sec 3, Taipei City (台北市八德路三段12巷51弄17號), tel: (02) 2578-5630. Open Tuesdays to Sundays from 1pm to 6pm.
■ Until May 8
In the March 9 edition of the Taipei Times a piece by Ninon Godefroy ran with the headine “The quiet, gentle rhythm of Taiwan.” It started with the line “Taiwan is a small, humble place. There is no Eiffel Tower, no pyramids — no singular attraction that draws the world’s attention.” I laughed out loud at that. This was out of no disrespect for the author or the piece, which made some interesting analogies and good points about how both Din Tai Fung’s and Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co’s (TSMC, 台積電) meticulous attention to detail and quality are not quite up to
April 28 to May 4 During the Japanese colonial era, a city’s “first” high school typically served Japanese students, while Taiwanese attended the “second” high school. Only in Taichung was this reversed. That’s because when Taichung First High School opened its doors on May 1, 1915 to serve Taiwanese students who were previously barred from secondary education, it was the only high school in town. Former principal Hideo Azukisawa threatened to quit when the government in 1922 attempted to transfer the “first” designation to a new local high school for Japanese students, leading to this unusual situation. Prior to the Taichung First
Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) Chairman Eric Chu (朱立倫) hatched a bold plan to charge forward and seize the initiative when he held a protest in front of the Taipei City Prosecutors’ Office. Though risky, because illegal, its success would help tackle at least six problems facing both himself and the KMT. What he did not see coming was Taipei Mayor Chiang Wan-an (將萬安) tripping him up out of the gate. In spite of Chu being the most consequential and successful KMT chairman since the early 2010s — arguably saving the party from financial ruin and restoring its electoral viability —
The Ministry of Education last month proposed a nationwide ban on mobile devices in schools, aiming to curb concerns over student phone addiction. Under the revised regulation, which will take effect in August, teachers and schools will be required to collect mobile devices — including phones, laptops and wearables devices — for safekeeping during school hours, unless they are being used for educational purposes. For Chang Fong-ching (張鳳琴), the ban will have a positive impact. “It’s a good move,” says the professor in the department of
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