Power, Haunting and Resilience

Curators: An-yi Pan, Yung-jen Liu
Artists: Yuyu Yang, Tsai-Chien Lee, Ming Ju, Su-Chen Hung, Dean-E Mei, Tien-Chang Wu, Shih-Yung Ku, Tien-Yu Hung, Jin-Hua Shi, Cheng-Tsai Chen, Chao-Liang Shen, Hung-Chih Peng, Chien Chi, and Hai-Hsin Huang 
Opening talk: September 7, 5:15pm
Opening: September 8, 5pm

On July 14, 1987 the order of Martial Law was lifted in Taiwan, ending a policy that had lasted 38 years and 56 days. Thanks to this historic turning point, economic development and democracy in Taiwan was able to take off and has continued to progress.

During the period under Martial Law, politics and the operation of society in Taiwan were oppressed and restrained. Many individuals encountered tremendous hardships throughout their lives. From the imposition of Martial Law to the end of it, democracy’s influence has not only affected sociopolitical life but also arts and culture. Due to the transformation of the government system, artists were liberated from oppression and confinement, and allowed to become open and innovative. This freedom has helped nurture artistic potential. For the past few decades, contemporary art in Taiwan has mushroomed, existing freely in all possible forms. Many artists have even been internationally acknowledged and highly acclaimed. Such a phenomenon undoubtedly goes hand in hand with the development of democracy in Taiwan.

The lifting of Martial Law was an important starting point in the discussion of the development of contemporary art in Taiwan. Those lingering nightmares were the result of shadows casted down by politics where even the helpless and confused person could be sent out on a path in search of resolution. After Martial Law was lifted, democratization took its place in Taiwan and the ideological or political purposes were removed from art. Along with the rise in the awareness for nativism, the focus of artistic creation has moved toward a more liberal and open stance in diversity.

2017 is the 30th anniversary of the lifting of Martial Law. In addition to a series of domestic events conducted by the Ministry of Culture, the Taipei Cultural Center (TECO) in New York has also organized special events to memorialize the 30th anniversary of the lifting of Martial Law. Events include contemporary arts exhibitions, film screenings, pop music performances, exhibitions of historical images, and seminars, all of which will take place in New York City along with other U.S. cities, with the goal of initiating discussions on the government’s influence on the development of arts from.

As a part of the initiatives to commemorate the 30th anniversary for the lifting of Martial Law, TECO in New York, Herbert F. Johnson Museum of Art, Cornell University and the Taipei Fine Arts Museum have collaborated on Power, Haunting and Resilience. The exhibition features a total of 14 Taiwanese artists and 19 of their representative works to encompass painting, sculpture, photography, recording, installation, and composite media. The invited artists spans three generations, including Yuyu Yang, Tsai-chien Lee, Ming Ju, Su-Chen Hung, Dean-E Mei, Tien-chang Wu, Shih-Yung Ku, Tien-Yu Hung, Jin-Hua Shi, Cheng-Tsai Chen, Chao-Liang Shen, Hung-Chih Peng, Chien Chi, and Hai-Hsin Huang whose artistic periods include the era of Martial Law to the contemporary era. The selected exhibits transcend time and space, where the representative works in visual arts ranging between 1975 and 2014 created by modern and contemporary artists in Taiwan were selected to offer a discussion on the radicalism, dazzling totems, boycotts, high spirits, spiritual exploration, and painting of the dialectical truths.

Sponsor: Minister of Culture of Republic of China (Taiwan)
Organizers: Taipei Cultural Center, TECO-NY, Herbert F. Johnson Museum of Art, Cornell University, Taipei Fine Arts Museum