October 31–November 3, 2014
Taipei World Trade Center
Area B C D
Hours: October 31–November 2, 11am–7pm;
November 3, 11am–6pm
ART TAIPEI 2014, a grand event, an intimate encounter with art
ART TAIPEI, the most eminent art fair in Asia, will take place from October 31 to November 3 at Hall 1 of the Taipei World Trade Center. Galleries that take part in the fair for the first time include several major galleries from Asia, including Ota Fine Arts from Japan, with Yayoi Kusama as main artist of representation; Park Ryu Sook Gallery from Korea, with a long history of more than three decades; Beijing Art Now, which represents several major Chinese contemporary artists; as well as the renowned Yavuz Gallery from Singapore…etc. Artists that catch the most attention this year include renowned Chinese masters of abstraction Zao Wou-ki and Chu The-chun; Sanyu, who also belonged to the first generation of Chinese-born artists living in France and has cast a great influence over the recent history of Chinese modern art; master of ink painting Liu Kuo-sung; controversial artist Ai Wei-wei, who challenges restrictions of speech and thinking imposed by Chinese communists…among others.
The fair will feature other artists of highlight. Asia Art Center will bring major Chinese contemporary artist Huan Zhang’s series, “Era When I Was Born No. 2.” Having made his work a topic of discussion worldwide through his action art in the 1990s, the artist has released peace doves to passersby on the streets of New York with himself dressed in a costume made with beef, and also has stayed in a public toilet in Beijing with his naked body covered with honey, attracting swarms of flies. Such radical approaches attempt to remind us to reflect upon issues of existence. The artist has become a monk as early as 2005; most of his works are made with incense ashes, suggesting strong Buddhist ideas. Liu-ming Ma, one of the 11 artists (including Huan Zhang) who together realized the project titled The Anonymous Mountain Raised by a Meter in 1995, will be represented by Hakgojae Gallery from Korea with his work No. 2. Specializing in new media art, Chi-Wen Gallery from Taiwan will bring a series by photography artist Chien-chi Chang, who has been interested in the lower class of the society. In 1999, his photography piece revolving around clandestine immigrants in Chinatown in New York was featured in Times magazine and won the first prize in the “Daily Life Story” category of World Press Photo. In 2001, Chien-chi Chang became the first Taiwanese photographer officially engaged by Magnum Photos.
Uncanny epoch: representing the collective anxiety in Asia
2014 is an eventful year for Asia. There was the Sunflower Movement in March in Taiwan and the anti-Chinese movement in May in Vietnam; a coup d’etat took place in Thailand and put the country under curfew. Through various catalysts, a series of social and economic tumults exploded one after another. Art is taken as a means of statement and the artists, by means of their unique points of view, come to interpret and read internal feelings or observations of the external world.
1335 MABINI will bring Philippine artist Kiri Dalena’s “Erased Slogan,” a series of photos that document scenes of large-scale manifestations on the eve of the announcement of curfew imposed by dictator Ferdinand Marcos in 1972. Through a certain post-production process, the artist obliterates one word after another on the board, as a denouncement against the government which altered history and distorted the truth of collective memory in an imperceptible way. Richard Koh Fine Art from Malaysia will bring Thai artist Natee Utarit’s Optimism is Rediculuous. Utarit has been interested in cultural and social issues; the series of Utarit is his satirical discourse on Asian identity and Asian art. Galerie Paris-Beijing, which participates in the fair for the first time, will show a photo series titled “Hiding in the City” by Chinese artist Liu Bo-lin. As a kind of protest, the work represents ordinary citizens’ thoughts under the oppression of communists.
ART TAIPEI, as a connection between Northeast and Southeast Asia, also has the honor of inviting several renowned artists to attend the event. Tomio Koyama Galley will invite Shintaro Miyake, artist of the new generation who has grown rather popular recently, to create live at the venue. Besides, ARTCOURT Galley, also from Japan, will bring the large-scale installation titled Space Memory by Kozo Nishino, a master of public art, who will also show up at the venue. ART TAIPEI this year presents excellent pieces and programs that one should not miss.
