Foreword
Since the inauguration in 1983, the Taipei Fine Arts Museum (TFAM) has organized the Taipei Arts Award (TAA) annually, which has become the museum’s crucial link with Taiwan’s art world, not only nurturing many artists and acknowledging their achievements but also encouraging unique contemporary art creations that embody the spirit of our time. TAA has witnessed the vibrant development of Taiwan’s contemporary art.
There are many local fine art exhibitions in Taiwan, however TAA has always played a leading role that connects with the international art scene. In addition to being held in the culturally flourished capital, the city’s various art universities and colleges are incubators for art professionals and talents. TFAM not only shoulders the responsibility of serving as an interface that bridges Taiwan and the globe, but also introduces Taiwanese artists into the global network to further more exchange in terms of professional knowledge and creative language. This year’s TAA adopts a groundbreaking approach by inviting two international observers to participate in the discussion of the final selection. Both international observers from the Southeastern region are respected curators serving important posts in their respective art institutions. Although they did not have a vote in the final selection, they participated throughout the entire process and brought in international perspectives for this edition. As they conducted in-depth exchange and discussion with the jury committee regarding related issues and international trends, they also pointed out the distinctive features of Taiwan’s art scene, allowing us to step out of the echo chamber of the art circle in Taiwan. Furthermore, they were both pleasantly surprised by the long history of TAA as well as the diversity and abundant creative energies in Taiwan’s art scene.
The finalists of this year’s TAA explored a wide range of issues, including identity culture, national identity, political surveillance, critique of institution, consumption and cultural modes, and cultural exchange between communities, proposing multifaceted questions and analysis to further pursue answers to the fundamental questions: “What is sculpture?” “What is aesthetics?” “What is painting?” The artworks reveal illuminating insights to the relations between life politics and generations, body and the perception of memory, the interconnection between digital interface and subject construction as well as exploration of human and non-human life. TAA offers a stage of competition for artists to express their creativity without restraint. Thus, we have witnessed how the artists have absorbed nourishments from Taiwan and integrated its unique culture, history and geography with their professional training and knowledge to lend a voice to issues they are concerned about before deepening, discovering and transforming it into artistic expression emblematic of their self-value. I am deeply thankful for all the artists for their richly thought-provoking topics and creatively charged works that have filled the entire museum with a sense of honor and pride.
Ping Lin
Director, Taipei Fine Arts Museum
Ｃontents
01 Foreword
└ Tsung-Hsiung Tsai
Commissioner of Department of Cultural Affairs, Taipei City Government
└ Ping Lin
Director of Taipei Fine Arts Museum
02 Juror's Review
└ Song-Yong Sing
Twelve New Forms in Taiwan's Contemporary Art: Notes on the 2019 Taipei Art Awards
└ Sung-Chih Chen
Reading, a Fragmented Letter Home – Observations about the Finalists in the 2019 Taipei Art Awards
03 Grand Prize
└ Teng-Chi Yang (Manbo Key)
Father's Video Tapes
04 Honourable Mention
└ Tsung-Hsun Tsai
The Second Place
└ Pao-Leng Kung
Our Container: Raise,
Unfold, and to Form A
Paragraph.zip
└ Tree Tree Tree Person - Taroko Arts Residency Project
Tree Tree Tree Person - Taroko Arts Residency Project
└ Jui-Chien Hsu
Bathroom
└ Yao-Yi Wang
Two Tigers
05 Selected Award
└ Qi-Heng Xiao
Mt. WuZhi
└ Yunyu "Ayo" Shih
Mending Wall, A Practice
└ Melmel Chen
Mystic River:
Some Debris and Poetry
└ Yi-Ting Wang
Disembodied Posture
└ Sera Chen
Behold the Glass Before
the Cave
└ Jui-Hung Ni
I Thought I Was Special