Taiwan Fine Arts Exhibition


The Taiwan Fine Arts Exhibition, also referred to as the Taiwan Arts Exhibition, Taiwan Exhibition, or "Taiten" for short, was Taiwan's first large-scale art exhibition. It was held ten times from 1927 to 1936 and was organised by the Taiwan Education Association, an external organisation affiliated with the Cultural and Education Bureau of the Governor-General of Taiwan under Japanese rule. In 1937, it was expected that the Government-General of Taiwan would take over organizing the exhibition. However, it was postponed due to the Marco Polo Bridge incident between China and Japan. In 1938, the Government-General of Taiwan origanized its first exhibition, and six total exhibitions were held by 1943. The exhibitions held by Government-General of Taiwan was called Governor-General's Art Exhibition, or "Futen" for short.

History

The magazine Taiwan Times then published an article by Japanese painter Tōho Shiotsuki, which mentioned that he, and other Japanese artists including Gobara Koto, Kinichiro Ishikawa, discussed the preparation for the Taiwan Art Exhibition near Taipei New Park.
The government's desire to intervene in art exhibitions had important political implications. Since the Taiwan Education Association hosted the Taiwan Exhibition, it was evident that for the colonial authorities, the exhibition was an educational tool. Minister of Culture and Education Hidehiko Ishida wrote an article before the first Taiwan Exhibition, mentioning the exhibition "provides hobbies and promote interests for islanders". To the authorities, the exhibition was a way to "enhance" the cultural standards and tastes of Taiwanese people, ultimately leading to their "assimilation". Promoting Japanese tastes and aesthetic through art exhibitions was essential for Taiwanese people to be "trained" to become people useful to the homeland of Japan. It is also a meaningful way to promote Japan's colonial achievements to the world.

First exhibition (1927/Shōwa 2)

Oriental Painting Department
Many famous painters at that time, such as Tsai Shiue-Shi, Lu Tie-Zhou, Li Xue-Qiao, and Kunishima Suiba, were rejected. Only Chen Jin, Lin Yushan, and Kuo Hsueh-hu were selected among the Taiwanese painters, who were young and unknown at the time. The trio were later known in history as the "Three Youths of Taiten".
This year's special selection, The Ghost Festival in Keelung by Hideo Murakami, depicts Taiwanese local customs, but its art style looked like an extension of the Japanese ukiyo-e. Others, such as Relaxed and Cool by Suda Anzai and Dance of a Hundred Butterflies by Tsunehisa Tokoharu, all show Japanese paintings' characteristics of line drawing, delicateness, and heavier application of paint than dyeing.

Second exhibition (1928/Shōwa 3)

Oriental Painting Department

Third exhibition (1929/Shōwa 4)

Kuo Hsueh-hu continued with his subtle style of painting from previous exhibitions in his work Spring. Kuo's mentor, Tsai Shiue-Shi, had been unsuccessful in the last two exhibitions, so he decided to swallow his pride and ask Kuo Hsueh-hu for advice. Tsai's Autumn Day and Yuanshan was then selected in this exhibition, which became a hot topic at that time.
Shi Yushan's Festival of Chaotian Temple followed the popular theme of folk activities and had attracted considerable attention for its unique representation of perspectives and its depiction of modern elements. Lin Yushan's Chou Lien-hsi was one of the few works that uses traditional ink wash.