Hou I-Ting is participating in the group exhibition "Romantic Route 3" at Long Ying Zong Literary Memorial Museum.: Artist News

Falabidbog

“Falabidbog” is a Hakka saying that means vibrant and colorful.

The coexistence and conflicts between indigenous and Hakka communities along Route 3 resulted in the cultural Hakka scenery and local character. The harsh living conditions along the mountains led to the perseverance, self-restraint, and hard-working qualities of the Hakka people. Its peripheral location, fortunately, allowed the beauty of the past to be preserved in the space-time of Route 3, quietly awaiting its moment to blossom after decades of wind and rain.

Time passes like a river, and the Hakka lifestyle along Route 3 continues to evolve. However, the Hakka personality contained within a time capsule has been decompressed into various new events: the touching stories of the past in Gold Leaf, the energetic shouts in Hakka rock music, classic flavors in Hakka villages, animals residing in the lowlands, and youths that have returned with a mission to open up the mountains and forests, have all allowed the quiet Route 3 to blossom into Hakka sceneries that are distinct from existing stereotypes.

Romantic Route 3 features the cultural diversity of Hakka towns and attempts to inspire new imaginations about Hakka culture, allowing the classics and tradition to transform and transcend. With the help of modern artworks and platforms and through art projects, design, and food culture, the event expands the horizons and encourages the public to witness the abundance of Hakka culture, interpreting a quality of magnificence that is never seen before.

In this 65-day exhibition period that spans 5 cities and counties, 18 towns, and 150 kilometers, we’ve prepared over 90 works and more than 50 artists from Taiwan and abroad, as well as 21 design teams that have forged bonds with local people, connecting with over 45 local restaurants to produce more than 30 new Hakka flavors. Furthermore, 60 road trip routes and over 100 cultural experiences all enable new understandings that are different from existing traditional Hakka culture, searching for infinite imaginations, a sense of belonging, and scenery somewhere in between experimentation and reality, beauty and conflict, and trends and classics.

This summer, set off on the winding mountain paths and encounter Falabidbog on Route 3!

Art｜

from nowhere to now here

from nowhere to now here––About the multi-progression of roads.

The Inner-Mountain Highway – Route 3 (officially known as the Provincial Highway 3), crosses the peripheral regions of several cities and counties in Taiwan. The hilly and mountainous regions in northwestern Taiwan traversed by the highway were traditionally inhabited by various indigenous peoples, including the Taokas, the Pazeh (both are plain indigenous peoples), the SaiSiyat and the Atayal. Since the migration and settlement of the Han people, the consistent increase of the number of migrants resulted in conflicts in relation to geographical areas and everyday lifestyle. Consequently, boundaries were gradually formed, and separated different ethnic communities as time passed. On the other hand, following the changing ways of how people move, “roads” have evolved continuously as well—from the early indigenous hunting trails, the narrow passageways used by the Hakka people for reclamation in inner mountains, the essential routes of commerce and transportation, the trade network of the global forest economy, the military roads during the period of Japanese rule, the nostalgic paths connecting villages, marriages and families, to the escape routes into mountains for farmers and workers involved in resistance incidents and movements, people from different times have traveled through these overlapping and paralleling roads and manifested their will characteristic of their times in dissimilar styles.

The “low-elevation mountains” refers to the environment of low-elevation hills and valleys adjacent to plains—generally speaking, low-elevation mountains are areas easily reached by people and below 800 meters above sea level. Because such areas are commonly a mixture of natural, semi-natural and artificial habitats, they possess a distinctive ecological environment enriched by irreplaceable biodiversity. Therefore, “low-elevation mountains” does not simply indicate a geographical space, nor is it defined by elevation alone. Conceptualizing “low-elevation mountains,” the exhibition emphasizes on the agency of its fluid boundaries, highlights its “diversity” and “internal heterogeneity,” and focuses on others and the surrounding nature so as to foster a practice that brings humanity and nature together as a community of shared life and carry out multi-lateral care in the peripheral regions where different ethnic groups have become intermixed.

Themed on “Travelers in Low-elevation Mountains,” the exhibition not only showcases the geographic characteristics of the inner mountains and scenes of the everyday Hakka life, but also points to the unique fluidity emerging from the diverse and intermixing ethnic groups and their migratory culture along the Route 3. Thus, the exhibition responds to people’s multi-progressing actions and rates in the low-elevation mountain regions that have shaped the complex and abundant history of life involving the Route 3. With various subtopics, namely “Low-elevation Mountain Ecology,” “Intermixing Ethnic Groups,” “Fluid Memories,” and “Pathways of the World,” the exhibition unfurls multi-narrative threads that are unfamiliar to people, addresses deep-seated differences sociologically, and explores the plural histories of the Route 3, the unseen Hakka-ness in the contemporary era, the past and present cultural stories, and the codependent ecosystems in nature, co-constructing a more palpable epistemology of the Route 3 collectively with local inhabitants, artists, experts from different fields, and all other participants.

The ethnic groups inhabiting the low-elevation mountains introduce multiple yet invisible pathways through their experiences of continuous migration and diaspora before their eventual merging and taking roots. They have learned to reconcile with the distress caused by historical conflicts, coexist with nature, and find themselves in others so that a “we” that could progress with history could finally take form. On the Romantic Route 3, no matter where you are from, we are all on the same road.

Keywords: characteristics of low-elevation mountains, plural histories, cultural diversity, coexistence with nature, diaspora and merging, fluid landscape.

Design｜

Aesthetic Design Enters Hakka Villages: A Century-old Legacy

Hakka villages along the Route 3 —— the way into the future lies in the past

The life and environment of Hakka villages has changed greatly from the past. Facing the disappearing settlement culture, the project aims to reshape the human-environment relationship and preserve the cultural spirit. Through the implementation and translation of aesthetic design, the long-forgotten history and cultural memory get to reemerge.

The rich cultural heritage accumulated in the century-old traditional Hakka towns is the most precious treasure to be found along the Route 3. Aesthetic Design Enters Hakka Villages, the 2nd Romantic Route 3 Art Festival, goes deep into the settlements, consult the residents, explores the history, culture, beliefs, and life while seeking to strengthen local identity. Presented through contemporary terms, stories of the past are weaved into unique daily scenery. Innovative solutions are sought to the challenging issues of the Hakka towns, simultaneously giving them a brand-new look. As the Hakka history being retold, a beautiful imagination of the future is also constructed.

Through design-inspired transformation and renovation, a more sustainable mechanism is expected to develop and last, bringing out different aspects of the Hakka villages. Furthermore, a cultural axis crossing separate administrative districts can be formed, giving new and persistent momentum that nurtures flourishing diversity of contemporary Hakka settlements.

Food｜

Hakka Hang Out

“Food” not only satisfies the basic needs of visitors during the exhibition but is also an excellent intermediary that pulls people closer together. In this art festival, food culture becomes a shortcut for people to learn about the communities, cultures, and languages of local ethnic groups. Through this art event, we are constantly thinking of ways to assist an industry.

Themed “HAKKA HANG OUT,” the interdisciplinary cultural experiment reinterprets the everyday cuisine of the Hakka community from different perspectives. This time, we have gained inspiration from the imagery of “mountains,” imagining further possibilities for Hakka cuisine.

Cultures are manifestations of life, and cultures evolve throughout life. If “produce preservation” is a form of cultural preservation, then perhaps the techniques involved also evolve with time? Centered around “food preservation” in Hakka culture, the event combs through the local produce, catering professionals, processing and manufacturing, and dining experiences along Route 3 to preserve the memories, crafts, cultures, and tastes of Hakka culture.

As borders open as we enter the post-pandemic era, the Hakka culture is sending a “Hang Out” invite to the world through the Route 3 art festival. The event redefines the traditions and innovations of northern Hakka food culture, which is added with the kindness along the Inner-Mountain Highway, inviting visitors from different cultures to reinterpret the thoughtfulness, wisdom, and hospitality of the Hakka people.