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Taiwan 2002 |
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The Arts |
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Folk ArtsWhile handicrafts such as paper cutting, knotting, and dough sculpture continue to be fairly common in Taiwan, other apprentice-oriented folk arts are struggling to survive. In addition to the challenge of competing with inexpensive machine-made goods, folk crafts are finding it difficult to attract young people to the professions of woodcarving, lantern making, and other crafts. Few are willing to endure the lengthy period of training, which results in only modest financial rewards. Traditional performing arts--such as puppetry, dragon and lion dances, folk dance, folk opera, and traditional acrobatics--have had an even tougher time competing with TV, movies, and karaoke (see sections on Puppetry, Dance, and Drama).Still, many folk arts have benefited from a revival of interest in the past two decades, with government, scholars, artists, and private individuals joining in preservation and promotion. One of the first steps in government support came in 1980, when the Ministry of Education sponsored a survey of the island's folk arts. The survey discovered 70 types of crafts and 56 types of traditional performing arts still being practiced by some 4,000 artists. In 1981, the Council for Cultural Affairs (CCA) 行政院文化建設委員會was set up to give equal attention to fine arts and folk arts. It has sponsored a number of folk arts festivals, publications, and other projects.
Preserving Folk ArtsThe Cultural Heritage Preservation Law 文化資產保存法, passed in 1982, committed the government to preserve and promote folk arts. The Folk Art Heritage Awards 民族藝術薪傳獎 were set up in 1985 to honor outstanding folk art masters. The prestigious title of Folk Arts Master 重要民族藝術藝師, established in 1989, has provided leading woodcarvers, puppeteers, traditional musicians, and other craftspeople and performers with a monthly stipend and helped them recruit and subsidize apprentices and training programs to pass on their skills. Other government efforts have included recording performances on videotape and transcribing dialogues of traditional puppet plays.One of the most extensive efforts to preserve, promote, and reintroduce folk arts has been the CCA's National Festival of Culture and Arts. In recent years, the annual festival has focused primarily on traditional arts, working in conjunction with private organizations and county cultural centers to organize folk art exhibitions and performances around the island. Festival events have included everything from paper umbrellas and lanterns, to Hakka yodeling songs, drum dances, and carnival skits. Such activities as temple preservation seminars, tea-picking festivals, and folk operas have also been on the festival agenda. Private organizations such as the Chinese Folk Art Foundation 中華民俗藝術基金會 have also been promoting traditional crafts and performing arts. Besides its many local activities, the foundation promotes Taiwan folk arts overseas. In 1999, for example, it sponsored the International Yunlin Puppet Theatre Festival and several other international seminars. Other private efforts include the Taiwan Folk Arts Museum 臺灣民俗北投文物館 in Peitou 北投, which houses an extensive collection of folk arts, Chinese clothing, and embroidery; and the Tzuoyang Art Workshop 左羊藝術工作坊 in Lukang 鹿港, which increases public appreciation of the island's folk arts. To revive and innovate folk arts, the Council for Cultural Affairs founded the Preparatory Office for the National Center of Traditional Arts (NCTA) 國立傳統藝術中心籌備處 in 1996. The NCTA promotes, preserves, exhibits, and researches in various fields of traditional arts, such as traditional drama, music, crafts, dance, and folk acrobatics. It also holds an annual Traditional Crafts Awards 傳統工藝獎 ceremony, sponsors several national seminars, and works on projects to preserve folk arts. Moreover, through cooperation with colleges and local artists, it has developed a means for promoting, preserving, and extending traditional arts to ordinary people.
Temple ArtsNot only have temples been a traditional venue for many folk art displays and performances--particularly lantern-making competitions, puppet shows, and folk operas--but some of the buildings themselves are a repository of some of the most important folk crafts on the island. Examples of traditional stone-carving, colorful ceramic figurines (known as chien-nien 剪黏), and embroidered banners of legendary scenes are just some of the many arts that can be viewed at a well-preserved temple.The most predominant form of temple craftsmanship, however, is woodcarving. From the entranceway to the back altar, nearly every beam, lintel, and other wooden support structure is covered with elaborate carvings of legendary figures and stories from history, literature, and folklore. Also common are symbolic animals, including birds, dragons, and other mythical creatures. The subject matter chosen is often not directly related to the religious function of the temple but tends to promote traditional ethical values such as loyalty, chastity, filial piety, and patriotism. Like most traditional crafts, exquisite hand-carvings are in danger of being replaced by simpler, machine-tooled decorations. Woodcarving, as well as other temple crafts, have gotten a boost, however, through several temple reconstruction projects. One of the most significant has been the 200-year-old Tsushih Temple 祖師廟 in Sanhsia 三峽, which has been undergoing extensive renovation for 50 years and has employed some of the island's top craftspeople. Among those who have worked on the Tsushih Temple was Huang Kwei-li 黃龜理, who died in 1996 at the age of 94. A woodcarver for 75 years and a national Folk Arts Master, he created thousands of carvings for more than 80 temples around the island, with many of his works depicting complex battle scenes from history or literature. Another woodcarver well known for his temple figurines is Lee Sung-lin 李松林, who died in 1999 at the age of 93. His works can be seen at the Tsushih Temple and the Tienhou Temple 天后宮 in Lukang. Among the younger generation of carvers is Chen Cheng-hsiung 陳正雄, who has worked on the Tsushih reconstruction for nearly two decades.
Woodblock PrintingAnother folk art that has benefited from renewed interest is woodblock printing 版畫, which is used to make colorful Chinese New Year hangings. Traditional woodcut prints in Taiwan are of a simple, rural style brought by early immigrants from Fujian Province in mainland China. Common images are the God of Wealth 財神, the Kitchen God 灶神, and Door Gods 門神, who often appear in the form of elaborately dressed and fierce-looking generals. These images are usually printed on red or orange paper in prominent black outlines and then filled in with several colors.Among the handful of woodcut artists left is Pan Yuan-shih 潘元石, who has been a key figure in passing on the art form to children, university students, and teachers. Exhibitions and annual competitions sponsored by the Council for Cultural Affairs also help to keep the art of New Year printmaking alive. These events promote both traditional and modern methods--including lithography, silkscreening, and etching--as well as a wider variety of subject matter.
PuppetryBefore television arrived in Taiwan in the early 1960s, puppet shows were one of the primary forms of entertainment. Nearly every festive occasion, whether a wedding, holiday, or temple festival, called for a puppet performance. Numerous troupes were active throughout the island, and in the early days they often traveled from village to village by foot, carrying their stage, musical instruments, and trunks full of puppets on poles over their shoulders.The styles of puppetry common in Taiwan--glove puppets 布袋戲, shadow puppets 皮影戲, and marionettes 傀儡戲--were brought here by immigrants from southeastern China in the early 19th century. Although the forms have evolved into distinct local styles and have also adopted modern innovations, they still retain many of their original characteristics, especially in their similarities to Chinese opera. As in opera, a puppet's costume and facial "makeup" indicate the type of character portrayed. Specific roles, such as the young scholar, the refined woman, or the fierce general, are also drawn from opera. In glove puppetry, the stage is covered with intricate carvings that are painted gold, resembling the entrance to a traditional Chinese temple. The elaborate setting is ideal for presenting the finely embroidered costumes, exquisite headdresses, and delicately carved faces of the puppets, which stand nearly a foot high. Shadow puppets, which stand one to two feet, are expertly cut out of leather, then engraved, dyed, and painted in bright colors. With joints to allow movement, the puppet characters are pressed against a white screen lit from behind, thus creating a colorful and lively performance for audiences. Marionette puppets, about two feet high and manipulated by 11 to 14 strings, are usually presented in front of a simple backdrop. As in Chinese opera, many of the stories used in puppet shows are adapted from classical literature or ancient legends. Some popular examples are The Tale of the White Serpent 白蛇傳 and Journey to the West 西遊記. As in opera, traditional puppet performances are always accompanied by live music.
Master PuppeteersIn the hands of several masters, puppetry in Taiwan developed along its own lines into a regional style distinct from puppetry in mainland China. This is especially true of glove puppetry. However, among the 200 plus puppet troupes still active around the island, only a handful continue to work primarily in the traditional regional style. One of the most popular was the late Lee Tien-lu 李天祿, whose life was immortalized in Hou Hsiao-hsien's 侯孝賢 award-winning film The Puppetmaster 戲夢人生 (1993, see section on Film). Lee, a national Folk Arts Master, first became famous in the 1950s and 1960s for his serial dramas based on kungfu novels. Lee was especially popular for his innovative martial arts sequences, acrobatic stunts, and use of modern slang mixed with classical Chinese. Along with his two sons, Lee helped set up two children's puppet troupes, the Wei Wan Jan 微宛然 and the Cheau Wan Jan 巧宛然, both of which have been highly praised. In addition, Lee's own troupe, I Wan Jan 亦宛然, performed throughout Asia, the United States, and Europe, winning awards at puppetry festivals in New York and France. The beloved puppet master passed away on August 13, 1998, at the age of 90.Another key figure in glove puppetry is Hsu Wang 許王, whose Hsiao Hsi Yuan 小西園 troupe has also toured mainland China, Japan, Canada, and the United States. Hsu keeps a busy local schedule, often performing about twice a month. The Chinese Folk Art Foundation also frequently invites Hsu to perform at temples and other venues around the island. One more acknowledged master is Huang Hai-tai 黃海岱, whose melodramatic tales of ancient swordsmen full of action-filled battle scenes are highlighted by elegant and highly literary dialogue. Huang's son, Huang Chun-hsiung 黃俊雄, was at the forefront of the 1960s trend to modernize puppet theater for television. Using his father's chivalry repertoire, he added popular music and fantastic lighting and other visual effects to create chin-kuang 金光, or gold light puppetry. The Huang family now runs its own cable TV channel, devoted exclusively to puppet shows. The less common forms of shadow and marionette puppetry have had a much harder time surviving than glove puppetry. Among the more prominent representatives of shadow puppetry still performing today is the family of Chang Te-cheng 張德成. Chang, who died in 1996, was a national Folk Arts Master. Chang's son, Chang Fu-gwo 張榑國, represents the sixth generation in carrying on the family puppet troupe. Shadow puppeteer Hsu Fu-neng 許福能, whose group Fu Hsing Ko 復興閣皮影劇團 has earned two Folk Art Heritage Awards and has toured in Asia, Europe, and North America, has been highly active in efforts to pass on his art, regularly giving lessons and demonstrations to students around the island.
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