To raise the profile of Taiwanese artists in Spain’s arts community, the Cultural Division of the Taipei Economic and Cultural Office (TECO) in Spain collaborated with Homesession, a Barcelona-based visual art organization, to launch a residency program for Taiwanese artists every year. This year, artist Hsu Jia-ling (許家玲) was selected for the program, and her solo exhibition will be held on Oct. 26 and 27.
Titled “Si hoy fuera tu último día (If Today Was Your Last Day, 如果今天是妳的最後一天),” Hsu’s exhibition is the latest chapter of her memoirs. She collects memories of her daily life with her family, reflecting her experience and understanding of “housekeeping” and “homecare.” The exhibition attempts to present what the artist was questioning and thinking.
Born and raised in Taipei, Hsu majored in performance and video production, and gained her Master’s degree in Chicago. Her works are mostly inspired by her daily life experiences, in response to her situations in the family relationship, faith, and love, exploring the connection between freedom and constraint. Hsu employs elements of words, objects, bodies, and movements to translate her indescribable inner feelings into a collage of perceptible expression. She was selected as the artist-in-residence of Tainan’s Soulangh Cultural Park (蕭壠國際藝術村) and Spain’s Hangar and Can Serrat.
With the aim of promoting Taiwan’s arts and culture on the world stage, the Cultural Division of the TECO in Spain hopes to help Taiwanese artists gain more creative inspiration by assisting them in integrating into the local community for cultural exchange. Therefore, since 2015, the Division has arranged for artists from Taiwan to stay at Homesession in Barcelona for a two-month artist residency every year, which has received a positive response from local residents and professionals in the art scene.