Excerpt from Preface: In terms of its identity, the Taiwan Pavilion is not considered an official national pavilion of the Venice Biennale: this situation precisely reflects Taiwan’s ambivalent standing in the international political arena. In the past, the pavilion provided a platform and opportunity for Taiwan to connect and converse with the world. A valid strategy for its exhibition was to present, in its broadest scope, the diverse visages of arts in Taiwan and to explore issues associated with life in contemporary society. The development of contemporary art in Taiwan has now entered into a new era. The Taiwan Pavilion aims to introduce the works of a single artist, exhibiting mature artworks in their dynamic plenitude and showing how his or her works and
life respond to universal themes of time, the environment and the planet, and how he or she obtains nourishment from the soil of Taiwan. For this reason, Tehching Hsieh
is selected as the participating artist in the 57th Venice Biennale, through a vigorous selection process and upon the recommendation of nine respected scholars on the jury.
Tehching Hsieh grew up in Taiwan, jumped ship in America, and made his name in the international art scene. His life duly reflects domestic political issues in Taiwan and international political contexts during the postwar era. In a time in which people were subjected to a high degree of institutionalization, Hsieh used his body and its performativity to search for the values of being, as a resistance against rigid institutions and relations. His art continuously sheds light on the essences of time, labour and existence—at the same time it manifests his position on the politics of life.
For this exhibition we are happy to have Adrian Heathfield as curator for the Taiwan Pavilion. We expect this launch to open up dialogues internationally, and to promote
interactions with and participation in the international art communities. Heathfield’s long-term observation and study of Hsieh’s works are especially valued, and, together
with Hsieh’s own intervention, they will generate new interpretations of his existing archive of events.