This year the Asian Art Biennial (亞洲藝術雙年展) responds to the region’s pertinent questions. Curators Hsu Chia-Wei (許家維) and Ho Tzu-Nyen (何子彥) present The Strangers from beyond the Mountain and the Sea (來自山與海的異人), an exhibition that calls for critical assessment of Asia’s ongoing process of de-colonization as well as a reconsideration of the concept of the void, a central thought in many eastern philosophies. The curatorial preface offers an alternative portrait of Asia by focusing on its borders, outliers and encounters with the otherworldly. The strangers in the title refer to a particular social dynamic inspired by the Japanese folklore character marebito, a supernatural being that comes from afar bearing gifts.
■ National Taiwan Museum of Fine Arts (國立台灣美術館), 2, Wuquan W Rd Sec 1, Taichung City (台中市五權西路一段2號), tel: (04) 2373-3552. Open Tuesdays to Fridays from 9am to 5pm, Saturdays and Sundays from 9am to 6pm
■ Tomorrow until Feb. 9
Photo Courtesy of National Palace Museum
For George Ho (侯玉書), art is a continual journey of self-questioning. Ho’s process aims to weaken his habits and acceptance of what he already knows in order to draw closer to the present moment. His solo exhibition, Being Question, opens tomorrow at the Museum of Contemporary Art, Taipei (台北當代藝術館), and features a large installation of paintings, an interactive treatment bed and a set of videos he has created in collaboration with performance and vocal artist Mia Hsieh (謝韻雅). In the single channel video, The Tactile Acoustics (觸．聽), Ho and Hsieh enact sound and body expressions in Ho’s studio to convey a sense of interplay of energy between the space and the artist in action.
■ Museum of Contemporary Art, Taipei (台北當代藝術館, MOCA, Taipei), 39, Changan W Rd, Taipei City (台北市長安西路39號), tel: (02) 2559-6615. Open Tuesdays to Sundays from 10am to 6pm
■ Tomorrow until Dec. 1
Photo Courtesy of the artist
Jointly organized by Taiwan Hiv-Story Association (社團法人臺灣感染誌協會) and Museum of Contemporary Art Taipei (台北當代藝術館), Interminable Prescriptions for the Plague (瘟疫的慢性處方) is a group exhibition that draws attention to the history and social perception of AIDS since its emergence in the 1980s. Curator Kairon Liu (劉仁凱) describes the HIV virus as a stain that the general public still regards as a sign of moral failure; people infected by the virus are reminded everyday of this condemnation. These judgments may be traced back to religious opinions that have read the AIDS epidemic as a punishment by god. The exhibition is an effort to generate further dialogue about the virus through artistic exchange.
■ Museum of Contemporary Art (台北當代藝術館, MOCA, Taipei), 39, Changan W Rd, Taipei City (台北市長安西路39號), tel: (02) 2559-6615. Open Tuesdays to Sundays from 10am to 6pm
■ Tomorrow until. Dec. 1
Photo Courtesy of Museum of Contemporary Art Taipei
A Proposal of Life from the 17th Century (小時代的日常) at the National Palace Museum (國立故宮博物院) offers a look at the quotidian of ancient China 400 years ago. The show includes a selection of calligraphy, paintings, artifacts and literature from the museum collection that shows an exciting age of explorers, exchanges between the East and West and thriving literati culture. Special attention is given to Ming Dynasty literati Wen Zhenheng (文震亨, 1586-1645) and his book Treatise on Superfluous things (長物志), in which Wen compiles his opinions on cultural subjects such as Chinese zither, chess, calligraphy, paintings, incense burning, tea and clothing. According to the museum, the book was considered a guideline for cultural taste in late Ming.
■ National Palace Museum (國立故宮博物院), 221 Zhishan Rd Sec 2, Taipei City (台北市至善路二段221), tel: (02) 2881-2021. Open daily from 8:30am to 6:30pm; closes at 9pm on Fridays and Saturdays
■ Until Jan. 5
Photo Courtesy of Museum of Contemporary Art Taipei
The Taipei Art District Festival (大內藝術節) is an annual art program organized by galleries in Dazhi (大直) and Neihu districts (內湖). The catchy title for this year’s edition, It’s SHOW time, sets up a celebratory vibe for the slew of exhibitions that will open over the weekend in designated art spaces, bus stations and along the streets of the neighborhoods. This year’s festival takes on a series of themes that are based on today’s technological environment, such as object consciousness, new sensory experiences and the symbols, meanings and landscapes constructed in the post-Internet era. A special augmented reality walk around town is also available, featuring 10 artworks by Taiwanese artists.
■ Multiple locations in Dazhi and Neihu Districts. For more information, visit: www.tad.taipei
■ Tomorrow until Nov. 3
In 2020, a labor attache from the Philippines in Taipei sent a letter to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs demanding that a Filipina worker accused of “cyber-libel” against then-president Rodrigo Duterte be deported. A press release from the Philippines office from the attache accused the woman of “using several social media accounts” to “discredit and malign the President and destabilize the government.” The attache also claimed that the woman had broken Taiwan’s laws. The government responded that she had broken no laws, and that all foreign workers were treated the same as Taiwan citizens and that “their rights are protected,
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The recent decline in average room rates is undoubtedly bad news for Taiwan’s hoteliers and homestay operators, but this downturn shouldn’t come as a surprise to anyone. According to statistics published by the Tourism Administration (TA) on March 3, the average cost of a one-night stay in a hotel last year was NT$2,960, down 1.17 percent compared to 2023. (At more than three quarters of Taiwan’s hotels, the average room rate is even lower, because high-end properties charging NT$10,000-plus skew the data.) Homestay guests paid an average of NT$2,405, a 4.15-percent drop year on year. The countrywide hotel occupancy rate fell from
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