Taiwanese kites are drawing attention at an ongoing French kite-flying festival, which has brought together participants from 38 countries to show off their kite flying and craft skills, a Taiwanese kite maker said on Monday.
The eight-day Dieppe International Kite Festival, which opened in the northern French port town of Dieppe on Saturday, is one of the oldest kite-flying festivals in Europe and features kites of traditional and contemporary designs from all over the world.
The biennial event is also the world’s premier venue for the display of kite-making skills.
PHOTO: CNA
At the invitation of Dieppe Mayor Sebastien Jumel, Taiwan’s representative to France, Michel Lu (呂慶龍), greeted participants during the festival’s opening ceremony.
At the Taiwanese pavilion, set up by the Taiwan Yunlin Kite Association, a bright red fish-shaped kite caught the attention of Jumel and a group of Dieppe City councilors. The kite was presented to Jumel as a memento by Tsai Wen-fu (蔡文福), a kite-making master from the association.
The eye-catching fish kite was created through the joint efforts of members of the association, who set up the pavilion to display a wide range of new and unique Taiwanese kites.
The fish shape is a symbol of good luck in Taiwanese culture.
Tsai said the festival allowed people from other countries to gain better insight into the skills of Taiwanese kite makers and gave participants from Taiwan a chance to exchange views with kite aficionados from other countries.
Tsai said he had learned a lot from his discussions with international kite makers.
Various demonstrations, competitions and exhibitions are being held at the festival, including a world cup kite fighting contest and an artistic kite competition.
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
A magnitude 4.1 earthquake struck eastern Taiwan's Hualien County at 2:23pm today, according to the Central Weather Administration (CWA). The epicenter of the temblor was 5.4 kilometers northeast of Hualien County Hall, at a depth of 34.9 km, according to the CWA. The earthquake's intensity, which gauges the actual effect of a temblor, was the highest in Hualien County, where it measured 2 on Taiwan's 7-tier intensity scale. The quake also measured an intensity of 1 in Yilan county, Taichung, Nantou County, Changhua County and Yunlin County, the CWA said. There were no immediate reports of damage or injuries.
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
‘WORSE THAN COMMUNISTS’: President William Lai has cracked down on his political enemies and has attempted to exterminate all opposition forces, the chairman said The legislature would motion for a presidential recall after May 20, Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) Chairman Eric Chu (朱立倫) said yesterday at a protest themed “against green communists and dictatorship” in Taipei. Taiwan is supposed to be a peaceful homeland where people are united, but President William Lai (賴清德) has been polarizing and tearing apart society since his inauguration, Chu said. Lai must show his commitment to his job, otherwise a referendum could be initiated to recall him, he said. Democracy means the rule of the people, not the rule of the Democratic Progressive Party (DPP), but Lai has failed to fulfill his