With the support of the Taiwan Cultural Center in Japan and the National Culture and Arts Foundation (NCAF), an exhibition featuring collaborative artworks of three Taiwanese artists, Hsu Chia-wei (許家維), Chang Ting-tong (張碩尹), and Cheng Hsien-yu (鄭先喻), will be held at the Yamaguchi Center for Arts and Media (山口情報芸術センター, YCAM) in Japan from June 3 to Sep. 3.
Sponsored by the NCAF, the exhibition draws its inspiration from the artwork titled "Crystal Seeding (等晶播種)," which was created using Huwei Sugar Factory (虎尾糖廠) in Yunlin County as a research field and was originally presented at the C-LAB Future Media Arts Festival in 2021.
The exhibition explores the shared history of industrialization and warfare in East Asia, as well as urban memories to serve as the central theme for artistic creation. Combining elements of Ningyo Joruri, a traditional Japanese puppet show, with CG animation, music, and live performances, the exhibition employs a blend of traditional and modern elements, as well as a fusion of reality and fiction, to showcase the commonalities and relationships between Taiwan and Japan.
According to the Taiwan Cultural Center in Japan, YCAM is a representative contemporary art base in Japan. The center has previously collaborated with numerous world-renowned artists, such as Japanese esteemed musician Ryuichi Sakamot (坂本龍一). These collaborations highlight the center's ambition and serve as a testament to its accomplishments in fostering international cross-disciplinary collaborations. This year, the collaboration among the three institutions has successfully promoted the Taiwanese cultural brand for export to Japan, particularly by initiating bilateral exchanges between C-LAB and YCAM.
With Taiwan as the theme, a series of activities will be held after the exhibition concludes, including film screenings, music performances, and thematic lectures.