Since 2019, the Hsinchu Public Hall (新竹公會堂) has been under restoration work as part of the Ministry of Culture's restoration and reuse project. A ceremony to mark the completion of restoration work on the historic building took place on Oct. 22, along with two exhibitions to be held simultaneously - Hsinchu Public Hall Opening Exhibition (百繪詩采‧再現容顏─新竹公會堂開幕展) and Multimedia Interactive Exhibition of Chang Kuang-Bin's Infinited Landscape (張光賓《江山無盡》多媒體互動展).
At the ceremony, National Hsinchu Living Arts Center (NHLAC) director Yeh Yu-cheng (葉于正) stated that a series of activities will be organized on the weekends from now until Nov. 27. Arts groups such as TaipeiQuyi Tuan (台北曲藝團), AmuBwiy Puing Culture Arts Group (傳源文化藝術團), Taipei Youth Choir (拉縴人青年合唱團) are invited to perform; in addition, there will also be 80 booths from different counties in northern Taiwan at the event site.
According to NHLAC, the opening exhibitions are curated by photographer Chiu Wan-hsing (邱萬興) and the host of Daliyi Culture & Art Studio (大里杙文化藝術工作室) Tseng Yang-Hsien (曾仰賢), both are serving as the curatorial consultant and curator, respectively. Artists Lin Yao-tang (林耀堂), Wong Chin-chu (翁金珠), and Hsieh Chia-heng (謝嘉亨) are also invited to interpret the displayed works, including prints that illustrate the faces of Taiwanese veteran poets, fountain pen drawings of Taiwan’s existing public halls, and pottery works created by artists inspired by Taiwan’s steam locomotives from the early days.
Constructed in 1921 during Japanese rule, the Hsinchu Public Hall is the current site of NHLAC. For more information, please visit NHLAC's official
website.