Paiwan artist Sakuliu Pavavaljung yesterday denied that he sexually assaulted a teenage girl, following a description of an assault posted online last week that led to speculation that he had been involved in such an incident and local prosecutors launching an investigation.
Pavavaljung, who received a National Award for Art in 2017, said that the incident depicted in the Facebook post never happened.
“I did not do what the online story alleges,” 61-year-old Pavavaljung said. “I will clear things up when I talk to judicial authorities about the matter.”
On Thursday last week, artist Kuo Yu-ping (郭俞平) posted online a piece titled “Story of a Small Town,” in which he describes how a Paiwan artist, who Kuo calls Kulusa, sexually assaulted a 19-year-old female fan earlier this year.
Since the post, numerous readers have said that the artist is Pavavaljung.
Yu Yue-lien (余悅廉), an engineer, wrote in a Facebook post on Sunday that Pavavaljung attempted to sexually assault her in the summer of 2006, when she attended an exhibition of his work.
Following the allegations, the Taipei Fine Arts Museum, which was set to feature the veteran artist at the Taiwan Pavilion for next year’s Venice Biennale and Kassel Documenta Fifteen in Germany, said on Monday that work on the curation was halted “until matters are clarified.”
The National Culture and Arts Foundation, which granted Pavavaljung a National Culture and Arts Award in 2018, said it is halting sponsorship of the artist.
Prosecutors in Pingtung have launched a probe into the matter.
Pavavaljung said that in the wake of Kuo’s post, people in the arts community, as well as friends and family, have expressed concern.
“I am innocent,” Pavavaljung said. “I will continue my preparatory work for upcoming exhibitions.”
He declined to comment on moves by Taipei Fine Arts Museum and the National Culture and Arts Foundation to halt his sponsorship.
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