Two exhibitions currently on show highlight both old and new art techniques and mediums, yet show that ultimately it is the artists' ideas that wins out. Wang Wan-chun's (王萬春) current show of paper-cut works at the Chi-Wen Gallery contains small, framed pictures that resemble painted Surrealist land-scapes, but were made by cutting quality Japanese paper with knives or scissors, and overlaying colors to create depth and spatial dimension.
Paper cutting is a tradition in Taiwan. Years ago, countryside shamans visited families to fashion paper cut-outs in their likeness, which they painted with a calligraphic brush to further depict their faces. Armed with these symbolic paper figures, the shamans would then chant blessings for the entire family. Legend has it that these shamans remained celibate in order to keep their paper spells potent.
Wang remembers such cultural traditions, often basing his images from well-loved Chinese myths such as the Tales of the Monsters From the Six Dynasties and Strange Tales of Liaozhai, which are ripe with super-natural beings and monsters. His imagery shows vast, nightmarish landscapes of lost wandering souls, decapitated heads, ominous skies, and bestial figures, which he contrasts with the image of a tranquil mountain or a trickling waterfall. Wang is at his best when he focuses on detail. Small, clearly delineated shapes such as a turtle boast finely cut lines; the horizon lines of many of his pictures, on the other hand, are not evenly curved lines -- they virtually quiver and shake with raw emotion.
PHOTO COURTESY OF CHI-WEN GALLERY
After Dark is a group show of graduate students in the digital arts department of the Taipei National University of the Arts (in Guandu) at the Huashan Cultural Center. Seeing the work of young students is thrilling -- like watching a horse race. That is, spectators are often tempted to bet which artists will be in the art world for the long run. Most of the works on view are video-based and require minimum lighting for optimal viewing. It is the hope of many in the nation's art scene to make Taiwan a digital artist's paradise, and as this exhibition demonstrates, local art universities are turning out some talented and technically skilled artists.
Lin Jiun-shian's interactive work asks for the viewer to hold the flame of a lighter to the monitor screen. A heat sensor then triggers a change in the projected images, which allude to the local custom of devotional paper burning.
Kuo Zhong-kuan's (
PHOTO COURTESY OF KUO I-CHEN
Such spiritual voids in technology-based art is exemplified by Chang Po-chih's (
Kuo I-chen (郭奕臣) is definitely an artist to keep an eye on. For him, technology is merely a means to convey his meaning, and is not the be-all and end-all. In the nostalgic Beyond the Liminal Zone, a small sculpture of a house displays the nervously staccato images of the urban scene outside the gallery, which is recorded by six cameras.
Chen Chih-chien's (陳志建 ) projection on a screen suspended above the viewer's head shows sped-up footage of the Ximending area. This is an effective way to communicate that we cannot keep up with the pace of technological development, nor can we arrest time.
Exhibition notes:
What: Wang Wan-chun (王萬春) Spirit of Youth and Passion, Paper-cut art
Where: Chi-Wen Gallery 3F, 19, Ln 252, Dunhua S Rd Sec 1, Taipei (台北市大安區敦化南路一段252巷19號3樓)
Telephone: (02) 8771-3372
When: Tuesday to Saturday, 11:00am to 7:00pm through June 24
What: After Dark, Taipei National University of the Arts graduate students' show
Where: Huashan Cultural Center (華山文化園區), 100 Bade Road Sec 1, Taipei (台北市100八德路一段一號).
On the net: www.aga.org.tw
Telephone: (02) 2321-4808
When: Until May 28
On Jan. 17, Beijing announced that it would allow residents of Shanghai and Fujian Province to visit Taiwan. The two sides are still working out the details. President William Lai (賴清德) has been promoting cross-strait tourism, perhaps to soften the People’s Republic of China’s (PRC) attitudes, perhaps as a sop to international and local opinion leaders. Likely the latter, since many observers understand that the twin drivers of cross-strait tourism — the belief that Chinese tourists will bring money into Taiwan, and the belief that tourism will create better relations — are both false. CHINESE TOURISM PIPE DREAM Back in July
Taiwan doesn’t have a lot of railways, but its network has plenty of history. The government-owned entity that last year became the Taiwan Railway Corp (TRC) has been operating trains since 1891. During the 1895-1945 period of Japanese rule, the colonial government made huge investments in rail infrastructure. The northern port city of Keelung was connected to Kaohsiung in the south. New lines appeared in Pingtung, Yilan and the Hualien-Taitung region. Railway enthusiasts exploring Taiwan will find plenty to amuse themselves. Taipei will soon gain its second rail-themed museum. Elsewhere there’s a number of endearing branch lines and rolling-stock collections, some
Could Taiwan’s democracy be at risk? There is a lot of apocalyptic commentary right now suggesting that this is the case, but it is always a conspiracy by the other guys — our side is firmly on the side of protecting democracy and always has been, unlike them! The situation is nowhere near that bleak — yet. The concern is that the power struggle between the opposition Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) and their now effectively pan-blue allies the Taiwan People’s Party (TPP) and the ruling Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) intensifies to the point where democratic functions start to break down. Both
This was not supposed to be an election year. The local media is billing it as the “2025 great recall era” (2025大罷免時代) or the “2025 great recall wave” (2025大罷免潮), with many now just shortening it to “great recall.” As of this writing the number of campaigns that have submitted the requisite one percent of eligible voters signatures in legislative districts is 51 — 35 targeting Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) caucus lawmakers and 16 targeting Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) lawmakers. The pan-green side has more as they started earlier. Many recall campaigns are billing themselves as “Winter Bluebirds” after the “Bluebird Action”
RSS