First Half of 2021

"Exploring the Concept of 'South' from a Southern Perspective"

As an art space located in the south, Absolute Space For The Art continuously contemplating the potential energy we can harness as individuals in the southern region. When "Global South" became a widely discussed keyword, how should Absolute Space For The Art, situated in the south of Taiwan, contemplate our relationship with the concept of the south? Therefore, we continuously engage in decentralized introspection and implementation, propelled by the southern art community, pushing ASA Salon's focus from Tainan towards the broader "south."

Indeed, "south" refers to a geographical direction, so Absolute Space For The Art in Tainan aims to maintain a continuous concern for this city through the "Tainan Local Culture Project." We closely follow and reconsider the ongoing possibilities and necessity of the highly debated urban and cultural heritage issues of the past two years, such as the eastward relocation of the railway and the Nanshan Cemetery, using the perspectives of imagery and material culture. Furthermore, we invite conservators from a conservation studio to reacquaint us with the stories of Tainan's door gods and temples from the field of cultural artifact restoration.

Beyond the geographical aspect, "south" embodies a re-discovery of unique political arguments and subjectivity. In addition to inviting local artists from the south for solo exhibitions, Absolute Space For The Art also plans the "Southern Art Project" to contemplate a more marginal, diverse, and dynamic cultural value, as well as an extension of subjectivity. For example, HSU,YUAN-TA discusses the theme of the "Southern 119 County Art Community" from his curatorial experience, and film festival curator HUANG,PO-CHIAO reflects on the changes and direction of the "Southern Film Festival." Finally, we invite SU,YU-HSIEN from "Your Bros filmmaking group" to approach the topic from his personal experience and creative process, questioning what exactly constitutes the "south."

The end of the first half of the year, in conjunction with Absolute Space For The Art's Thailand exchange and exhibition project, and in response to the wake-up call of the pandemic's impact on the art environment, a special "Post-Pandemic Era and Southeast Asian Art" program is arranged. Through critic Indra's insights into Southeast Asia's imagination of the "post-pandemic" and further analysis of the state of art communities in the Southeast Asian region. Additionally, not forgetting the situation in Taiwan, we invite WU,TA-KUN to share the art exchange situation within Taiwan since 2020. Finally,KE,NIEN-PU, an assistant researcher at the KAOHSIUNG MUSEUM OF FINE ARTS, discusses the practices and exchanges between contemporary Taiwanese art and Southeast Asia from the perspective of institutional curation and research.

(Planning by SHIH,YU-CHIEH, Design by YEN,PEI-SHAN)

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