Atayal students hold 1st forest painting exhibition

2015-01-13

Indigenous Atayal students from Hsinkuang Elementary School’s experimental class in Hsinchu County recently staged a first-ever forest painting exhibition in the mountainous region of northern Taiwan.

Suspended between the trees in a forest near the pupils’ home village of Smangus, the pieces featured mainly images of birds, butterflies, flowers and the Atayal “ancestral spirit eye” rhombus patterns. At 1,650 meters above sea level, the exhibition is also believed to be the highest held nationwide.

The initiative was inspired by visiting Amis teacher Yosifu, whose stint at the school was arranged by Zhi-Shan Foundation, a Taipei City-based nongovernmental organization. “As an indigenous painter, I could help the students connect with their roots and combine Atayal elements into the oil paintings,” he said.

Yosifu has exhibited widely at home and abroad, with his creations purchased by private collectors in such countries as Australia, Brazil, Canada, Singapore, Spain, Sweden and the U.K.

According to the artist, he did not lecture the children on painting but encouraged them to present what they had already learned from their ethnic group. “It is a way of assisting the students to better identify with the community and grow in confidence,” he said.

HKES Principal Yu Zhi-hong said the idea for the exhibition’s forest venue came from teachers seeking an inspirational and unique setting for the event. “The pupils also played a part, using wooden slats to form the characters of the exhibition title and rehearsing introductions of their individual pieces for visitors.”

Given the success of the event, Yu said the school plans on incorporating similar undertakings into the curriculum as a way of providing students with a stage to showcase their creative wares. One such activity in the pipeline is a photography display in the summer.

A total of 49 pupils are enrolled at HKES, with 17 in the experimental class. The latter was established in 2003 after students living in Smangus questioned the wisdom of journeying six to seven hours to the main hilltop campus on the other side of the valley.

Source: Taiwan Today (http://taiwantoday.tw/ct.asp?xItem=226113&CtNode=413)