To allow the public to learn more about the life aesthetics of Taiwan's Paiwan people, the National Tainan Living Art Center (NTLAC) collaborated with the Sandimen Township Office to launch a dual exhibition.
From now until August 2, the exhibition will showcase the creations of two Paiwan artists, Pakedavai Zepule (包梅芳) and her son Dabillyan Aliss (潘泓). Inspired by their past tribal memories, they created the works with the theme of "SAMILING," a Paiwan term that describes the ultimate pursuit of life and beauty of the Paiwan people, and conveys the cultural connotation of "LAKARAU," which is a traditional flower headdress of the Paiwan tribe. It conveys their hopes to revive the essence of traditional patterns. Pakedavai Zepule's works include four series of paintings that she created in recent years. Through the display of the traditional flower headdress and the ecological knowledge of the Paiwan people, she re-examines how this handcraft reflects the significance of the tribe’s existence, continuation, and regeneration.
On the other hand, Dabillyan Aliss's exhibited works are mainly umbrella paintings. He painted the intricate patterns of the Paiwan people on the umbrellas in a concise manner.
The exhibition specially invited Manray Hsu (徐文瑞) from the Taipei National University of the Arts (TNUA) to serve as a curatorial consultant. He has put in a lot of effort in organizing the exhibition with his students – from arranging exhibits, to writing introductions and setting up the exhibition, among others. Hsu also personally mentored Adruway (潘洵), who is the curator of the exhibition. In addition, the Council of Indigenous Peoples, Southern Region Water Resources Office of the Water Resources Agency of the Ministry of Economic Affairs, and Indigenous Peoples Cultural Foundation also participated in the exhibition.