Taiwan’s cultural diversity is reflected in the works of local artists whose album packaging designs have earned Grammy nominations, the artists of the works said.
Lee Pei-tzu (李珮慈), the art director of experimental band iWhooiWhoo’s (一虎一虎) album Pregnancy, Breakdown, And Disease (病子病病病子), said that her work conveys a uniquely Taiwanese theme of “sickness” that is rarely seen in Western art.
The album’s music also showcases Taiwan’s diverse linguistic heritage — including Hoklo (commonly known as Taiwanese), Hakka and various indigenous languages — the band’s singer, Lai Yu-chiao (賴予喬), said.
Photo: CNA
Lee’s design, resembling a gift box that unfolds layer by layer to symbolize a gradual journey toward healing, was nominated in the Best Recording Package category at the 67th Annual Grammy Awards. If given the opportunity to take the stage and accept the award, Lee said she would express thanks for Taiwan’s diverse culture, which has “nurtured” her work.
Also nominated in the same category is Andrew Wong (黃家賢), who, along with Julie Yeh (葉昶利), designed the album packaging for Jug Band Millionaire by The Muddy Basin Ramblers.
Their design blends Taiwanese elements with the concept of Western sheet music.
The band’s members are British and American nationals living in Taipei, who Wong said represent Taiwan’s diverse community.
“They come from different countries, but have all chosen to live in Taiwan,” Wong said.
In the past few years, Taiwanese artists have been awarded in the Best Recording Package category at the Grammy Awards.
In 2022, Li Jheng-han (李政瀚) and Yu Wei (于薇) became the first Taiwanese to win the award for Pakelang (八歌浪), an album by The Chairman (董事長樂團) and the Second Generation Falangao Singing Group (第二代馬蘭吟唱隊).
In 2023, Taiwanese Xiao Qing-yang (蕭青陽) and Hsiao Chun-tien (蕭君恬) won the same award for the album Beginningless Beginning, produced by the Tamsui-Kavalan Chinese Orchestra (淡蘭古道國樂團) for the short film Tamsui-Kavalan Trails Trilogy (淡蘭古道三部曲).
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