“Meet Taiwan” at Washington’s Twin Oaks Estate
The second show, “Meet Taiwan,” runs through the end of June at the Twin Oaks Estate in Washington, DC, which belongs to the Taipei Economic and Cultural Representative Office in the United States. To protect Twin Oaks, a historic Georgian-revival building constructed a century ago, visits to the show require a reservation.
Representative Stanley Kao points out that Twin Oaks is a building of great cultural and historical significance in terms of Taiwan‡US relations. These contemporary works from Taiwan have also breathed new life into that traditional work of architecture. With this exhibition, many artists and collectors who have never been to Taiwan, such as David Furchgott of International Arts and Artists and Jack Rasmussen of American University’s Katzen Arts Center, have come away highly impressed with the creative vitality of Taiwanese contemporary artists.
“Meet Taiwan” will be at the TECRO Culture Center in Gaithersburg, Maryland, from July to November.
The “Future Allegories” exhibit of contemporary Taiwanese art at the Taipei Representative Office in Singapore is running until the end of October. Hsu Yuan-ming, a senior officer at MOFA, points out that the lighting at the venue—like most office lighting—was uneven and overly white, hence TROS specially installed track lights to illuminate the works. Thanks to the grand air imparted by these magnificent pieces of art, what had been a dark and drab corridor has become an elegant exhibition hall.
These exhibitions held at the ROC’s overseas offices and at the official residences of its representatives are serving to introduce and promote Taiwan. Moreover, by displaying Taiwan’s cultural heritage and raising the international visibility of its contemporary art, they also serve to advance the nation’s efforts at public diplomacy.
“Future Allegories,” an exhibition of contemporary Taiwanese art, includes Lin Ching-fong’s Snow White and Cinderella Have Princess Tendencies, a mixed media work of oil paint, spray paint, acrylic and glitter.
Henry M. J. Chen, director-general of MOFA’s Department of International Information Services, believes that works of art are powerful agents of public diplomacy. (photo by Lin Min-hsuan)
The historic Twin Oaks Estate in Washington, DC, exhibited works of contemporary Taiwanese art, fostering a spatial conversation between the classical and the contemporary.