Tainan to Taipei
Taiwan was never a
place that I would have thought to travel to. I knew very little about the
country or the people. However I felt like this trip would be once in a
lifetime. So with the small amount of knowledge that I had gathered from a few
short class meetings, our group of fourteen set off for San Francisco airport.
I couldn’t say that I was excited to start this journey just a few days after
finals, or maybe it was the fact that I was terrified of the three weeks in a
completely unknown place. But I am so glad that I did.
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| Tainan National University of the Arts |
It’s
a weird feeling to leave the airport and not know the time of day, date, or
able to read anything around you. If it wasn’t for the help of Shinyu, I’m sure
we would have never made it to the school.
Upon
arriving at Tainan National University of the Arts, I immediately felt at home.
Everything around me seemed so alive and green. I wanted to explore the campus
and the area around it. Some of my first thoughts were thank god there are
other trees than pine. Walking to and from the studio you had to always watch
you step or you would crush family of frogs or an over sized snail.
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Working
in the graduate studio was a nice change as well. I felt a big push from
everyone around me. I had no idea what to make and I often felt intimidated by
the skills sets of other artists. Going to the lectures really helped these
feelings. The professors have a very different outlook on the world, and
different way of making art. I felt they were sharing grand secrets with us.
This trip made me really question why I make what I make. I realize that I need
to change my body of work quite a bit.
I was very interested in the media
and advertizing in Taiwan. Women ware long pants and try to cover themselves so
that they do not darken their skin. Skin whiteners are sold in beauty stores
ect. When our culture wants to be golden tan, Taiwanese women want the
opposite. I think it is always interesting to see the media in other cultures.
My
two favorite things about Taiwan were the night markets and the views. The
night market is a place for kids to hangout as well as shopping and dinner for
the family. Walking through the first time was overwhelming. The smell of
stinky tofu filled the air. Other than that I felt like a child wanting to
taste everything without meat. I grew quite commutable with this space. People
are so helpful and kind, its hard to have a bad day. Then the views. There was
a point that I was sitting on top of a mountain looking into a valley filled
with jungle. I watched a bird in the distance flying in a sea of green. This
was probably the most beautiful thing I have ever seen. Now it feels like it
was just part of an amazing dream.
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