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Artists in Taiwan are often a bit isolated.
I'm not saying all of them, but a lot of them are.
The teaching system for art in Taiwan comes from abroad, so they are influenced by this.
And after leaving the society, they are unwilling to face it again.
I think because of this trend artists are becoming distanced from Taiwan.
So I hope that by giving artists the opportunity to draw and experience in different environments
maybe they can rediscover certain Taiwanese traits around them.
Artists trained at college have less experience with open environments
so, for artits from this background, being part of the co-operative
has made both their actions and the resulting creations more open.
This is one of the positive aspects.
I think before you explore Taiwan you first need to become open-minded in your thinking.
There are a lot of examples, such as painter Chen Yanming
After being a part of the co-operative he included a lot of Taiwanese symbols in his work.
Previously his work was very abstract and less concrete.
But, I didn't talk to him
He went to more open spaces to find a more accesible language to express himself in.
So he painted bananas, Buddhas or Betel nuts
Jun Liang found me on facebook and asked me
if I wanted to come. He said
that my work was more Taiwanese
because I grew up next to Coffin street in Miaokou.
So all the stores next to the house where I grew up sold coffins
but later on the more traditional stores started to decline.
The specialised funeral companies started to take care of the arrangements
so traditional rites such as "crossing the bridge" started to disappear.
Sometimes when I was doing my military service on the boat
I would think about a lot of things,
particularly my lack of freedom. So I would
try to distance myself from it, to separate myself from it.
That was only my imagination, however.
This represents the future, seeing my retirement from the military service.
Our work...we will never communicate beforehand,
we get to the place and feel out the atmosphere
we don't draw any sketches, we don't care if anyone alters our work either.
and then slowly the picture starts to become your own story.
It might even be raining where we work, but we don't care.
This creates some special textures on the canvas
that look like they want to jump off it, we really like that.
And it might be connected to the local area but not necessarily through symbols.
Like Huwei is famous for its glove puppets, but we won't include them in our pictures.
Maybe we like the locals after talking to them, so it will reflect in the picture.
There are things we can't express, but we still like abstract concepts.
Not necessarily abstract, just bizarre creations.
Like something from another world. And when the time comes, we just stop.
Part of it is the relationship with the environment, but also with each other
Because there are two of us, we communicate with the canvas
So I think it is completely different from drawing by yourself.
Because we are just another variable for each other,
so we pay attention to the canvas all along
We are not trying to finish a piece, but rather to bring the canvas to life.
It's a living thing, that keeps changing until the time comes to stop.
Everyone is very passionate,
and through comments you receive respect and confidence in everyone's work.
This atmosphere encourages a different type of creative output,
a group creativity rather than an individual one.
I think the most different aspect is that before,
it was more about being in the studio by yourself facing your own work.
But in this team, everybody's work is pooled together to become a bigger work of art.
Including our attitude towards life and the way we live.
So I think this is one of the biggest differences.
I graduated two years ago in fine arts.
My name is Chen Taihua
my nickname is A Tai, hello.
In China and other countries
there is a concept called Plebeian Culture
which is a grassroots, more wild and free,
diverse, and open form of culture.
So I personally
I personally really like this kind of thing
I am a part of this movement.
So this happens to fit in with the Taike culture that has been popular for a while.
Traditional culture and Taike culture.
I really like strident, shocking, and slightly vulgar things
Taike culture provokes a certain excitement in me, gets my adrenaline pumping
I like things that create an intense feeling.
So afterwards, whem my work emerges, it's a little illusory, like from a cartoon
because I started off as an animator.
And I take Taike Plebeian Culture
and move it towards a new era
with many new possibilities.
Like elements of electronic music or science fiction source materials.
I redefine science fiction,
I change the coloring.
Using the basic style from glove puppets or from Taiwanese Opera
I transform it by mixing them together
and give form to the imagination inside my head, which I call
an image of "Post Taike" Culture.
Those bright carnival landscapes
are influenced by this culture and its images.
They come together and create fireworks.
For Taiwanese toung people, fine arts creative students
after being educated in fine arts
they have a fixed background.
Teachers transmit their genes, and after
this becomes their brand.
It's their pass
to every cultural sphere.
And after you get this passport, you can't really let go.
You dare not make too many changes.
to do things differently, engaging in an act of jouissance.
I don't follow this at all.
It's like a revolt, a rebellion.
Artists don't dare to overthrow the cultural trends that they have learned
and also, when describing your work
you need to use a lot of academic language
to describe the rationale behind your work.
But sometimes there are problems with doing this,
and you might lose the original nature of your first works.
So, in order to protect my originality,
my system is to honestly face myself.
And whilst honestly facing myself, I am at the same time exploring
the traditional artists and craftsmen found in temples,
this kind of Taike.
After I got to know these kind of people
and dipped into
grassroots Taike culture like music, movies, literature, and dance, etc.
Not to mention
my own background as a born and bred Taiwanese.
What kind of popular culture and traditions am I influenced by,
as a 25 year old artist in 2012 Taiwan
to what extent I have discovered the genuine Taiwan
what heights it has reached.
and where I belong.
No matter whether it's society or Asia
or cultural norms,
so long as you clearly understand where you stand
you will express things clearly and well.
You don't need too many academic words
or methods to help express yourself,
and get people's approval.
It's not necessary.