Taipei’s dilapidated Nanjichang community (南機場) has recently been trying to revitalize itself through numerous urban renewal projects such as community gardens and barista training for high school dropouts from the neighborhood. Lately, TC Lin (林道明), a street and documentary photography instructor at Zhongzheng Community College, has been drawing more attention to the community through his photography walks, where he leads photographers on tours throughout Nanjichang and allows them to photograph its residents and the surrounding area. The college is putting on an exhibition in Nanjichang featuring the works of Taiwanese and foreign artists in the hope of drawing more awareness to this vibrant community. The opening reception of Nanjichang International Photo Exhibition (南機場國際攝影展) is tomorrow at 1:30pm.
■ Nanjichang (南機場), 4, Ln 301, Zhonghua Rd Sec 2, Taipei City (台北市中華路2段301巷4號)
■ Opening event is tomorrow from 1:30pm to 5pm. Exhibition runs until May 7
Photo courtesy of Tina Keng Gallery
Luo Jr-shin (羅智信) is doing well for himself this year with a solo exhibition at Michael Ku Gallery last month and an appearance at Art Basel Hong Kong. His latest solo exhibition, Slide, Don’t Slip (地板項目), is currently on view at Taipei’s VT Art Salon. The exhibition showcases two of the artist’s most recent works, Foam to Form and A Portrait of a Young Man as a Sculptor. Luo, who is known for converting everyday household items into works of art, continues to do this for both pieces. Foam to Form considers the impact of polystyrene or Styrofoam on the environment. Portrait, which derives its name from James Joyce’s semi-autobiographical novel, is an introspective take on what it means to be an artist using materials such as clay, timber and metal to create what looks like everyday household items.
■ VT Art Salon (非常廟藝文空間), B1, 47 Yitong St, Taipei City (台北市伊通街47號B1), tel: (02) 2516-1060. Open Tuesdays to Thursdays from 1:30pm to 9pm, and Fridays and Saturdays from 1:30pm to 10pm
■ Until May 21
Photo courtesy of A Gallery
Tina Keng Gallery is currently featuring Novel Energy: The End is the Beginning (新能量：終點亦為起點), an exhibition encompassing four decades of artwork by the famed Shanghai-born, Taiwan-raised painter Hsiao Chin (蕭勤). Hsiao, who lived and worked in Barcelona, Milan, Paris, London and New York, is known for combining Chinese and Western styles of painting and for being instrumental in the founding of modern Taiwanese art. His cheerful, vibrant brush strokes and simple, asymmetrical shapes suggest Chinese brush painting and Western expressionism.
■ Tina Keng Gallery (耿畫廊), 15, Ln 548, Ruiguang Rd, Taipei City (台北市瑞光路548巷15號), tel: (02) 2659-0798. Open Tuesdays to Sundays from 10am to 7pm
■ Until May 26
Photo courtesy of VT Art Salon
On display at Taipei’s A Gallery is Floating Edge (漫漫/浮遊), a joint exhibition by painters Hung Yi-tan (洪乙丹) and Mao Ming-tai (茆明泰) whose work depicts of the beauty and danger of living on the edge. Hung paints skydivers propelling themselves down abysses and jungles using emotive hues such as deep purple and lush green, though he paints from a perspective that is somewhat detached — the skydiver is not the focal point, but part of the vast landscape. Mao employs the ocean as a metaphor with the ebb and flow of the tides, symbolizing the vicissitudes of life.
■ A Gallery (當代一畫廊), 22, Alley 36, Lane 147, Xinyi Rd Sec 3, Taipei City (台北市信義路三段147巷36弄22號), tel: (02) 2702-3327. Open Mondays to Saturdays from 10am to 6pm
■ Until May 28
Photo courtesy of A Gallery
Wang Ya-hui’s (王雅慧) latest solo exhibition, A Slant of Light (返影入深林), was inspired by Tang dynasty poet and painter Wang Wei (王維), who wrote about and painted rivers, mountains, water droplets, mist and other rarefied stuff. Likewise, Wang Ya-hui tries to convey equally profound musings on life, albeit using more contemporary media such as video installation. According to the gallery notes, the spectator will be lured into Wang’s work, “as visual clues beckon them to scrutinize her thoughts, inspiring them to contemplate the exterior world.” Deep stuff.
■ TKG+ Projects, B1, 15, Ln 548, Ruiguang Rd, Taipei City (台北市瑞光路548巷15號B1), tel: (02) 2659-0798. Open Tuesdays to Sundays from 11am to 7pm
■ Until June 5
Photo courtesy of TFAM
The winning design of the 2016 X-site (第二屆X-site計畫), an annual competition that seeks to bring architectural elements to public art, is currently on display outside the Taipei Fine Arts Museum. This year’s piece, Floating (浮光之間), is named after traditional Chinese pavilions — those covered structures that are usually found in the middle of picturesque gardens which function as breezy public rest stops for weary commuters and travelers. Designed by Shen Ting Tseng Architects (沈庭增建築製作), which consists of Shen Ting-tseng (沈庭增), Li Ya-chi (李雅琪) and Huang Hsin-yi (黃馨儀), the installation puts a modern spin on the Chinese pavilion by being sleek and industrial. The structure is situated outdoors and accessible to the public.
■ Taipei Fine Arts Museum (台北市立美術館 TFAM), 181, Zhongshan N Rd Sec 3, Taipei (台北市中山北路三段181號), tel: (02) 2595-7656. Open Tuesdays to Sundays from 9:30am to 5:30pm and until 8:30pm on Saturdays
■ Until July 3
Photo courtesy of TKG+
April 14 to April 20 In March 1947, Sising Katadrepan urged the government to drop the “high mountain people” (高山族) designation for Indigenous Taiwanese and refer to them as “Taiwan people” (台灣族). He considered the term derogatory, arguing that it made them sound like animals. The Taiwan Provincial Government agreed to stop using the term, stating that Indigenous Taiwanese suffered all sorts of discrimination and oppression under the Japanese and were forced to live in the mountains as outsiders to society. Now, under the new regime, they would be seen as equals, thus they should be henceforth
Last week, the the National Immigration Agency (NIA) told the legislature that more than 10,000 naturalized Taiwanese citizens from the People’s Republic of China (PRC) risked having their citizenship revoked if they failed to provide proof that they had renounced their Chinese household registration within the next three months. Renunciation is required under the Act Governing Relations Between the People of the Taiwan Area and the Mainland Area (臺灣地區與大陸地區人民關係條例), as amended in 2004, though it was only a legal requirement after 2000. Prior to that, it had been only an administrative requirement since the Nationality Act (國籍法) was established in
With over 80 works on display, this is Louise Bourgeois’ first solo show in Taiwan. Visitors are invited to traverse her world of love and hate, vengeance and acceptance, trauma and reconciliation. Dominating the entrance, the nine-foot-tall Crouching Spider (2003) greets visitors. The creature looms behind the glass facade, symbolic protector and gatekeeper to the intimate journey ahead. Bourgeois, best known for her giant spider sculptures, is one of the most influential artist of the twentieth century. Blending vulnerability and defiance through themes of sexuality, trauma and identity, her work reshaped the landscape of contemporary art with fearless honesty. “People are influenced by
The remains of this Japanese-era trail designed to protect the camphor industry make for a scenic day-hike, a fascinating overnight hike or a challenging multi-day adventure Maolin District (茂林) in Kaohsiung is well known for beautiful roadside scenery, waterfalls, the annual butterfly migration and indigenous culture. A lesser known but worthwhile destination here lies along the very top of the valley: the Liugui Security Path (六龜警備道). This relic of the Japanese era once isolated the Maolin valley from the outside world but now serves to draw tourists in. The path originally ran for about 50km, but not all of this trail is still easily walkable. The nicest section for a simple day hike is the heavily trafficked southern section above Maolin and Wanshan (萬山) villages. Remains of
RSS