A solo exhibition by Taiwanese painter Chiu Kuei (邱貴) is open now at the Taipei Economic and Cultural Representative Office (TECRO) in Japan. This exhibition is taking place at the TECRO in Tokyo, running now until Dec. 14.
Originally a composer and music performer, Chiu started painting nine years ago. She recreated her childhood memories through her paintings of rural scenery and folk festival celebrations in early Taiwan.
Chiu said that this exhibition has three focuses, namely the “reunion” of former Taiwanese President Lee Teng-hui (李登輝) and former Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe (安倍晉三); the depiction of Japanese hydraulic engineer Yoichi Hatta (八田與一), Taiwan’s father of irrigation; and rustic landscapes of early Taiwan including scenes of traditional catering culture, ban-doh (辦桌).
Also the chairperson of the Yoichi Hatta Cultural Foundation (八田與一文化基金會), Chiu expressed her aspiration to document the history of the development in the plains of southwest Taiwan through paintings. She hopes to showcase the contributions of Yoichi Hatta, who transformed the wasteland into fertile soil by building infrastructures such as the Wushantou Reservoir (烏山頭水庫) during the period of Japanese rule in Taiwan.
The inauguration ceremony in Tokyo on Nov. 15 was graced with the presence of Shinzo Abe’s widow Akie Abe (安倍昭惠), Representative of Taiwan to Japan Frank Hsieh (謝長廷), Member of Japan House of Representatives Susumu Yamaguchi (山口晉), and All Japan Taiwanese Union President Chao Chung-cheng (趙中正).
Representative Hsieh said that Chiu’s creation is admirable, for she has never received formal education in painting and is yet able to produce excellent works. He added that such works require an acute sense of observation and a high level of spatial conception.