The Taiwan Cultural Center in Tokyo will host an exhibition featuring 25 ink-color paintings that depict Taiwan's landscapes and people from March 15 to April 14. The artist behind these paintings is Katsuyuki Fujii (藤井克之), a Japanese painter who created them in memory of his daughter, who had a deep interest in Taiwan.
Those present at the opening ceremony on March 14 included Taiwan's Representative to Japan Frank Hsieh (謝長廷), Taiwan Cultural Center in Tokyo director Alice Wang Shu-fang (王淑芳), House of Representatives, and distinguished guests.
Hsieh stated that the artist transformed his longing for his daughter into artistic creation, which not only extended his daughter's love for Taiwan, but also elevated her short life into a shared memory of the Taiwan-Japan friendship.
Member of the House of Representatives of Japan Kikuta Makiko conveyed her fondness for Taiwan and shared her personal story of losing her husband two years ago, adding that the story of Fujii and his family gave her a lot of encouragement.
Fujii also shared that the day before the opening of the exhibition is his 40th wedding anniversary. This exhibition not only represents his respect and gratitude towards Taiwan, but also serves as a gift from his late daughter. He hopes to continue his daughter's wish of facilitating exchanges between Taiwan and Japan and contribute to the Taiwan-Japan friendship in the future.
According to Taiwan Cultural Center in Tokyo, the artist's daughter had suffered from depression for a long time. She traveled to Taiwan by chance encounter and fell in love with the country, eventually relocating to Taiwan to teach Japanese. However, she returned to Japan due to her illness and passed away in 2016. To fulfill her wishes, Fujii visited various places in Taiwan to paint the scenic spots where his daughter had lived. He subsequently held an exhibition to exhibit these works, which garnered a great response.