(Sheltering Sky resident artist)
Council for Cultural Affairs 2nd Public Art Awards / Best Environment Integration Prize

At the side of HuanHe North Road in the Tataocheng District of Taipei City, facing the towering dark grey cement wall of the Danshui River embankment and the elevated freeway, one finds “Sheltering Sky,” an art group of like minded painters led by teacher Po Yin-ping. The artists often got together to discuss the relationship between art and the living environment and found themselves bemoaning the fact that most people passing by outside had no idea the Danshui River was so close. Even they were reduced to staring out over the beautiful riverside vista from a high vantage point in the building. Whereas New York, London and Paris, treat riverside areas as an important focal point for urban culture, in Taipei the riverbank has long been a marginal undeveloped place. It was concern over this state of affairs that led to the idea for the landscape mosaic mural “Re-Appearance of the River.” The artists decided to produce a work of art right outside their own front door and to make the dark concrete embankment wall disappear once and for all.

Po Yin-ping came up with a rough sketch for “Re-Appearance of the River” which depicted a Danshui riverbank landscape of lush trees and grass bathed in sunlight. The sense of perspective inherent in the structure of this work did not take up existing space, but rather transformed the concrete wall into a canvas 27 meters wide and 8 meters high, making it an integral part of visual space. The work involved 474,320 colored mosaic ceramic tiles measuring 1.8cm x1.8cm, produced by a carefully selected ceramic tile factory in Yingge, with Po and the other members of “Sheltering Sky” supervising the work. In this period, Sung Man-ling, Kan Kuo-hui, Wang Shu-ying, Wang Li-ya and Lin Min-hui played a key role in ensuring the success of the project by filing applications, meeting with officials and organizing meetings to explain the development to local residents. Many expressed an interest in the project and the Western District Rotary Club along with countless individuals made donations to show their support. The city government’s Department of Cultural Affairs also offered financial assistance and the Hydraulic Engineering Office was especially supportive when work started, making a major contribution to the completion of the project.At 10:30am, June 21, 2005, the dark wall at the intersection of HuanHe North Road and the end of Nanking West Road was finally replaced by a huge colorful mosaic mural, a pleasant surprise for local residents as well as passing pedestrians and motorists, many of whom were fulsome in their praise. Large red ribbons were hung in front of “Re-Appearance of the River,” guests were invited and an auspicious lion dance was performed as the members of Sheltering Sky and the local community gathered to celebrate the completion of the project. Mayor Ma Ying-jeou was invited to officially unveil the work and in his speech praised “Re-Appearance of the River” for making a major contribution to the beautification of Tataocheng District.

At the same time as the unveiling ceremony, Sheltering Sky held a photography exhibition, displaying images of Tataocheng over the years, with particular focus on the former prosperity and hustle and bustle of the area. Young photographers Chuang Yao-ming and Liao Chien-cheng were invited to capture images of the people and things around the river today, as a way of enhancing images of the local community’s concern for the environment in the “Re-Appearance of the River” mural.

The work was well received in the local media and major newspapers such as the United Daily News, China Times and Liberty Times all ran half page stories on the project. In addition, reporters from Taiwan Architect magazine, major television stations, radio stations and online media reported how Sheltering Sky and a small group of volunteers had infused the landscape with art and extended visual space without taking up any actual physical space. The broad consensus was that this project could be an invaluable point of reference for those involved in drafting public art policy.

Receiving the Best Environment Integration Prize for “Re-Appearance of the River” at the Council at the Cultural Affairs 2nd Public Arts Awards was a major boost for the members of Sheltering Sky and led to a series of mosaic murals for the Danshui River embankment wall, including “Great Bright Sky” “Rebirth of Tataocheng” and “Nature Eternal”. These have helped to transform the landscape of the wharf area, infused the riverside park with an artistic atmosphere more in keeping with local culture and received universal public praise. Today these works are local tourist attractions and the artists continue with their efforts to this day, introducing Tataocheng to the beauty of culture as they showcase the inherent beauty of the environment in which their work is installed.

For more information please see the Sheltering Sky website