In the 1920s and 1930s, while the island embraced thoughts of modernity, Chiayi was one of the most energetic places for the political, cultural, and art movements in Taiwan. As a critical nexus of politics, medical practice, and culture in southern Taiwan, the activities of the Taiwan Cultural Association in Chiayi were often tied with the local gentry, doctors, and scholars, while Chiayi’s rich agricultural and forestry resources also featured in labor-characterized, often-urban cultural events. Addressing people of different social classes, members of the Cultural Association in Chiayi also communicated with speeches, publications, and songs that marked the trajectories of their thoughts.
However, we must realize that these cultural activities were not merely historical events—they were also events in reaction to the colonial modernity and publicness of the Japanese regime and the exploration of Taiwan’s subjectivity toward the two ideas. Against the background of the landscapes of the streets of Chiayi left behind from the Japanese period, “A Portal To” discusses issues of politics, society, language, culture, and identity that Taiwan has been struggling with for the past century with four black sculptures scattered at different locations in Chiayi’s city center. In addition to the sculptures, this project also attempts to navigate possible conversations between these contemporary artworks and the history of Chiayi through an audio work that integrates both fictional and actual narratives As an art project for the streets, “A Portal To” re-embeds those once-familiar objects from history into the space of the city and abstracts people’s perceptions of them using the color black. While being a portal that connects reality and history, this project also seeks to update our views of daily scenes and to offer new ways to see the city. When we have lost the visual memories of history, why not try to evoke another sense of reality?
Photo ©Working Hard. Photographed by Sean WANG.
La-jí-ooh
OnLine
Even a hundred years later, the people of the island of Taiwan have not stopped looking for their own identity.
Struggling through all kinds of political and cultural changes, can the people of Taiwan still recognize what they have experienced on the streets?
Use the audio guide while following the map.