徵求海外作品 International Call for Artworks
Longing, Yearning, Where am I –
The 228 Incident after the 60-Year Cycle of Tragic Destiny
The 2005 Ninth Annual International Creative Arts Exposition Commemorating the 228 Incident
Taiwan is an immigrant society. For four hundred years, the forebears of Taiwan risked their lives crossing the dark straits to develop the
beautiful new world. To establish their livelihood, they shed their sweat, and even blood and tears, and built resilient island characters.
Taiwan is a tragic island. Over the four hundred years, the powers that ruled Taiwan changed frequently, causing its inhabitants to lose their identities. The deeply rooted homeland identity of the immigrants constrained the adaptation to the island environment of Taiwan. Moreover, it hindered the establishment of the value system adapting to the island culture, causing harm by judgment using inappropriate experiences. As a perpetual encumbrance, Taiwan is unable to escape its tragic destiny.
Taiwan's tragedy is rarely seen in human history. The 228 Incident in 1947 and the ensuing 40-year Martial Law “Post-228” Era is the final manifestation of this tragedy. Its cruelty is like the genocide of Hitler; its terror surpasses the military dictatorship of Argentina and Chile's Pinochet. The contradiction and conflict arising from the pursuit of Taiwanese self-identity is comparable to the endless struggle of the present-day North Ireland. The tragedy of Taiwan is an unfortunate agglomeration of the tragedies of the world.
Taiwan's internal contradictions impede the pursuit of self identity to this day. In the past, the ethnic problems in Taiwan were inflamed and manipulated by its tyrannical rulers. Today, even the despotic China with its frequent verbal intimidation and threat of 600 missiles cannot resolve the mistrust between Taiwan's ethnicities. The chasm in the self-identity of the people further causes weakness in the will of self-protection, causing them to ignore the cruel truth that Taiwan is an international orphan with almost no just assistance. Why is this so?
Taiwan's tragic destiny is coming again. During the Japanese colonial occupation, unfair treatment caused the Taiwanese to be homesick and develop “fever for the fatherland”. All at once, it confused the cultural value system of Taiwan and China, resulting in the great conflict of the 228 Incident in 1947. The political exclusion after 1949 obstructed the transmission of this experience of blood and tears of the 228 Incident, which can avert future disaster. Today, after 60 years, the same homesickness is ensnaring some who do not know of the harms of the 228 Incident to develop “China fever”, a replica of the “fever for the fatherland”. Events similar to the precursor of the 228 Incident happen recurrently; Taiwan seems to be stepping ever closer to the abyss of another 228 Incident.
The empathy of the international community and the sincere work of artists can end the cycle of tragic destiny. In recent years, with the economic opening of China, the corruption lying beneath Chinese society is rapidly spreading and threatening the world. Artistic exploration, both structural and rediscovery, of the 228 Incident and the roots of Taiwan's tragic destiny can stimulate the thoughts of the Taiwanese people. It is of value today as an important element in ending Taiwan's tragic destiny. At the same time, uniting the power of reflection on the 228 Incident across nations contributes to the stability in the international community, by forcing the Chinese government to move in the direction of a modern society that respects individual rights.
We invite everyone to bring together the power of reflection to alter Taiwan's 400 years of tragic destiny. In 2005, sixty years after Japan announced its unconditional surrender, we seek to go hand-in-hand with international artists to deeply explore the roots of the illusion of “fever for the fatherland”. Why does the originally noble trait of homesickness of an immigrant society cause the Taiwanese people to once again fall prey to “China fever” and beliefs similar to those of the 228 Incident after 60 years? Taiwan needs the sincere feelings and expressions of each artist, to awaken the people of Taiwan and the world, and kindle the power of empathy and support to end Taiwan's 400-year cycle of tragic destiny.
Today, because of the international community's concession to China in the pursuit of economic interests, the people of Taiwan are struggling for their survival. We take this opportunity to sincerely invite each esteemed artists to deeply explore and resolve the political situation in Taiwan through art. Together we seek to alter the tragic history of Taiwan by humanity, justice and empathy and through the connectedness of the Internet.
The Foundation of Ocean Taiwan
Format
of the Artworks
1. Place and Time: The Kaohsiung Municipal Art Museum (February 25 ~ May 1, 2005), Tainan (May 1 ~ Mat 29, 2005), Ilan (June 2005). Except for the Kaohsiung Municipal Art Museum and the Tainan City Cultural Center, the place, time and format of the Ilan exhibition has not been determined.
a. Domestic and foreign artistic organization or individuals.
b. Digital artwork readable by with Microsoft Word.
c. Submission date: now until February 10, 2005
a. Description of artwork, biography of artist and the most appropriate form of presentation. (In Microsoft Word readable format).
b. Digital file of artwork. (Under 10MB)
c.
Agreement of publication and exhibition.
4.
Submission Format: Power Point, Cord
draw, Adobe Illustrator 10.0, Adobe Photoshop
7.0, Flash4, other digital file of artwork readable by Microsoft Word
(still images and motion video)
5.
Compensation:
a.
US$100, 5 copies of Exhibition Book,
and 5 copies of CD-ROM to each exhibitor selected for exhibition provided
by the sponsor.
b.
Planned for exhibition in Kaohsiung Municipal Art Museum and
exhibition halls of related topics; also on Website, art publication,
Exhibition Book and CD-ROM.
6.
Responsibilities:
a. Exhibitor is responsible to obtain copyright protection. The sponsor shall not be held responsible for any legal liability or compensation in the event of copying or plagiarism.
b.
The sponsor will use photographs, videos, and publication of the
exhibitions to promote the exhibition.
The exhibitors agree to participate in such promotions.