Organized by the Cultural Division of the Taipei Economic and Cultural Office in Germany, the "I am here now / Ich im Hier & Jetzt" exhibition at this year's Kunstfest Weimar will showcase contemporary artworks and live performances by various Taiwanese artists in Holzdorf Manor park, Germany from Aug. 27 to Sep. 12.
Exhibited works include Ting Chaong-wen (丁昶文)'s "Japamala (賈帕馬拉)," Kang Ya-chu (康雅筑)'s "Subconscious Wave (潛織)," and Chiu Chen-hung (邱承宏)'s "The Dust of Time (時光之塵)."
In "The Dust of Time," the work is transformed into a design through the unique habits of plants. With black charcoal, minerals and concrete as sole plates, Chiu carves the plant shadows and outlines, creating the terrain trajectory as a way to describe the species and region.
Kang Ya-chu's "Subconscious Wave" is a work that seven residents of the Holzdorf deaconry are involved in creating. The sleep data of the residents are recorded by using digital watches. Their statistics are transformed into textile patterns, which are often used by Taiwan’s indigenous people, overlapping the meaning and interpretation of different cultural backgrounds.
Ting Chaong-wen's "Japamala" explored the relationship with Weimar-Ehringsdorf, where it is one of the most important archaeological sites in early human history in Europe. In collaboration with Dominique Baron-Bonarjee, Ting will perform at the opening.
With the support from the Ministry of Culture for three consecutive years, Taiwan's contemporary art culture has accumulated a certain degree of popularity in the local area, showing distinct cultural perspectives to the audience of the art festival.
German-based Taiwanese curator Wang Chun-chi (王俊琪) stated that this exhibition focuses on the social practice of the local value of the public art. Conveying the importance of local historical stories, those works not only promote the local culture, but also arouse people’s recognition of local values.
Established in 1990, the Kunstfest Weimar is the largest contemporary art festival in Thuringia, Germany. For more information, please visit Kunstfest Weimar's website.