A bowl of grass jelly, and the childhood memories associated with it, is perfect for taking the edge off of the sweltering summer heat. Grass jelly is made by boiling dried mesona plants and adding a gelling agent such as agar to the mesona tea.
This summer, the traditional treat has been given an artistic, dreamy new look with the National Palace Museum’s (NPM) “Ink-painting Jelly,” a collaboration with the Taiwanese company BlackBall Grass Jelly. When cream is poured over the jelly, a mountain design imprinted on the top of the black jelly emerges, forming a mountain scene with misty clouds swirling around the peaks, a classic theme for traditional East Asian ink paintings.
This is a winning design of the National Treasure Merchandise Design Competition, designed by Wang Bei-en and Liu Jia-xin, then students of National Taiwan University of Arts and National Taiwan University of Science and Technology, inspired by the famous black-and-white ink painting Dwelling in the Fuchun Mountains by Yuan Dynasty artist Huang Gongwang, and Cloud, Mountain, Smog and Rain by Shi Xi of the Qing Dynasty.
Photo courtesy of Taipei National Palace Museum 照片:台北國立故宮博物院提供
Over the past several years, many souvenirs launched by the NPM have become hits, such as paper adhesive tapes inscribed with zhen zhidao le (“Thou art understood!”, the signature note by an emperor on memos submitted by officials), and LINE stickers. Since 2010, the NPM has organized a National Treasure Merchandise Design Competition, in which the participants are invited to use the museum’s open data platform to develop creative products, so that NPM’s world-class collection of Chinese cultural relics can take on a new life of their own.
(Lin Lee-kai, Taipei Times)
炎炎夏日,來碗冰涼的仙草,阿嬤的古早味最是消暑。仙草茶是由曬乾的仙草熬煮而成,若再加上凝固劑(例如洋菜粉)冷卻,即成為仙草凍。
Photo courtesy of Taipei National Palace Museum 照片:台北國立故宮博物院提供
這傳統的平民小吃,今夏有了飄逸夢幻的姿態。「墨戲仙草」是由國立故宮博物院與台灣品牌「黑丸嫩仙草」聯名推出,黑色的仙草凍表面有描繪山麓的凹凸紋樣,淋上白色的奶油,便成了山間迷濛的雲霧,一幅饒富意境的水墨畫頓時浮現。
這是故宮國寶衍生商品設計競賽的獲獎作品,取材自清代石谿的《雲山煙雨》,以及元代黃公望的《富春山居》這兩幅水墨畫,由王蓓恩及劉嘉欣所設計,她們當時分別就讀於台北藝術大學及台灣科技大學。
故宮近年來所推出的文創商品屢掀熱潮,例如「朕知道了」紙膠帶、LINE貼圖等,更自二○一○年起,舉辦國寶衍生商品設計競賽,廣發英雄帖,參賽者可運用故宮Open Data資料開放平台,發想出各式國寶衍生商品,讓故宮世界級的中華文物收藏,與我們的生活更貼近。
(台北時報林俐凱)
After steel and aluminum, US President Donald Trump has set his sights on slapping 25 percent tariffs on semiconductors, cars and pharmaceuticals. Trump has already slapped additional 10 percent tariffs on goods from China and has also threatened tariffs on Canada and Mexico, plus ordered a study into putting into place reciprocal tariffs. Here’s a look who would be hit the hardest if US import tariffs on semiconductors, cars and pharmaceuticals go into force. SEMICONDUCTORS: ASIA IN THE CROSSHAIRS Semiconductors, or microchips, are the brains in our electronic devices and demand has soared with the development of AI, which
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A: Apart from singer Daniel Kang, more South Korean stars are coming to Taiwan in March. B: Really? Like who? A: Taeyeon of Girls’ Generation will hold a concert at the Taipei Dome on March 16. B: So she’ll set a milestone by becoming the first K-pop artist to stage a show at the venue. A: Singer Lee Mu-jin, boy group NCT 127 and girl group GFRIEND are also visiting Taiwan. I can’t wait. A: 除了姜丹尼爾,3月有不少韓星訪台。 B: 真的嗎?有誰啊? A: 像是少女時代的太妍,3月16日即將唱進大巨蛋。 B: 成為首位破蛋的韓流歌手,這可真是一項里程碑! A: 歌手李茂珍、男團NCT 127、女團GFRIEND 3月也要來,真是令人期待。 (By Eddy Chang, Taipei Times/台北時報張迪)
In the digital age, where communication revolves around text messages, “telephone phobia” (also known as “telephobia”) has become increasingly common, especially among young adults. Despite the ubiquity of smartphones, a significant number of individuals experience anxiety when __1__ making or receiving a phone call. Telephobia, in essence, is a fear or reluctance related to speaking on the phone. __2__ other communication methods, phone conversations require spontaneous responses and lack visual feedback such as body language and facial expressions. In such a real-time situation, telephobia sufferers are concerned about their inability to respond or express themselves appropriately, which can lead