Artists breathe new life into an old settlement in southern Taiwan’s Tainan City.
In southern Taiwan’s Tainan, architectural relics help tell the story of the island’s oldest city. As part of the metropolis’s cultural preservation efforts, Japanese-style houses sitting idle off Gongyuan Road were repurposed and transformed into Lane 321 Arts Village, a platform for people in the cultural and creative industry to share ideas and interact with the public.
Constructed between 1925 and 1935, the structures were originally dormitories for high-ranking officers of the Japanese Imperial Army. When the government took over the properties after the Japanese left in 1945, some of them became homes for personnel at a neighboring factory that manufactured military vehicle parts, while others served as residences for the faculty of nearby National Cheng Kung University (NCKU).
The inhabitants of Lane 321 moved out in the mid-1990s when the factory closed and ownership of the properties was transferred to the city government. The buildings were designated historic sites by municipal authorities in 2003, refurbished for use as artistic enclaves and renamed Lane 321 Arts Village in 2013.
One of the 10 refurbished houses was home to painter and NCKU professor Kuo Po-chuan (郭柏川) and so was turned into a memorial space showcasing his works. The rest are open to applications from individuals or workshops in the cultural and creative sector. Tenants can occupy the spaces rent-free, and are responsible for upkeep and utility bills.
Currently, the village has 11 resident artistic groups such as the Tainaner Ensemble theater troupe, installation and visual arts team 3.5sqft. Studio, and exhibition organizer Blue Dragon Art Company. By installing public artworks, organizing exhibitions and staging outdoor plays, they have created a new atmosphere in the old settlement.
—by Jim Hwang
The village’s Japanese-style houses were built between 1925 and 1935.
Local photographer Chira Tu documented an abandoned military factory in his outdoor photo exhibition “Exist and Vanish.”
“Frame Go Away” by Yin Zi-jie
“Trumpeter and Kitten” by Raining Universe
“House 321,” created by Liou Shuenn-ren and Lin Chien-fan, symbolizes Lane 321’s past and present.
Wall decorations created with abandoned bicycle parts by 3.5sqft. Studio
One of the photos in Chira Tu’s exhibition “Exist and Vanish”
“The Elegance of Woodblock Printing” by Chen Jun-xian, Hu Rei-wen, Lu Kai-ping and Zhong Yao-ting
The structure at No. 33, Lane 321, serves as a showroom and workshop shared by four artists.
“Happiness/Calling” created by Huang Pei-ying and Shih Chang-ze