Taitung-based National Museum of Prehistory (NMP) has launched a new exhibition with the theme of "New Vision of Austronesian (南島新『視』界)," to celebrate the 10th Taiwan Indigenous Youth Arts Festival. This retrospective and prospective exhibition will run from May 31 through July 24 in the multi-purpose classroom at the museum’s Peinan Site Park.
According to NMP, this year's exhibition "New Vision of Austronesian" will make use of the "vision" angle of visual art to review the culture and art of the Austronesian peoples, inviting students to express their views and voices as Austronesian youths, and to understand the creations of contemporary Austronesian youths through art. A total of 7 schools are invited to participate in this exhibition to present and demonstrate their lively creation and vitality through different art forms such as wood carving, clay, weaving, embroidery, performance, video, art installation, and more.
NMP also invited contemporary Austronesian artist Iming (伊命), who is from the indigenous Puyuma tribe, to speak with these students based on the current theme. Iming's works revolve around the mountains and the flying fish, which is the traditional culture of Tao. In addition, Lin Sheng-hsien (林勝賢), a Makatao artist, uses simple and abstract works to express the image of "wandering and leaving" to present the historical memory of the Pingpu tribe's migration.
NMP Director Wang Chang-hua (王長華) expressed her gratitude to the indigenous clubs and training programs of high schools and universities for their support. Over the past decade, NMP tried to pioneer a new form of indigenous art education and worked with schools to implement the plan, and it has achieved a certain level of results. Director Wang added that through these years of exchange and cultivation, NMP hopes that the young generations of the Austronesian family will continue to blossom in the new century.
Since 2013, NMP has been hosting the Taiwan Indigenous Youth Arts Festival to celebrate Taiwan’s rich indigenous culture.