Taiwan Today

Nantou County’s rich handicraft traditions arise from its vibrant cultural landscape.

On a morning in March, indigo dyeing artisan Tang Wen-chun (湯文君) takes a group of university design students on a tour of her studio at the National Taiwan Craft Research and Development Institute (NTCRI) in the central county of Nantou. As the visitors wander around her spacious workshop, Tang fields questions on her signature craft, explaining in an amiable and practiced manner how she imprints intricate indigo patterns on clothing, wallets and a variety of other goods.

The group from National Yunlin University of Science and Technology in western Taiwan is one of dozens to have visited Tang’s studio at the sprawling NTCRI compound. The institute in Nantou’s Caotun Township is a mecca for design and handicraft students. Tracing its origins back to 1954, the facility now operates under the Ministry of Culture (MOC). Besides residency studios, it hosts exhibition venues as well as training courses in disciplines ranging from bamboo weaving and ceramics to stone carving.

Tang is one of six current resident artisans. She is also a product of the institute’s instructional programs, launching her career after signing up for a fabric dyeing class in 2003. To the artisan, the facility is the most prominent symbol of her home county’s cultural vibrancy. “Nantou possesses a rich variety of handicraft traditions for visitors to explore,” she said.

According to NTCRI Director Hsu Keng-hsiu (許耿修), the institute is Taiwan’s foremost center for the promotion and preservation of traditional handicrafts. “We also work to expand knowledge of these crafts abroad by periodically inviting foreign artisans to collaborate with their Taiwan counterparts at our facility.”

In addition, NTCRI arranges for local artisans and design studios to attend overseas exhibitions. In March, it sent a delegation to the 2017 International Furniture Fair Singapore, where the Watersource Cultural and Educational Foundation—an indigo dyeing studio in central Taiwan’s Taichung City—won the Best Decor Award in the handcrafted and handicraft category. Tang has served as chief instructor at the foundation, known for its Taiping Blue product line, since 2008.

Handicraft Capital

“Nantou is the handicraft capital of Taiwan,” said Lin Rong-sen (林榮森), director-general of the county government’s Cultural Bureau. According to the official, the county is primarily associated with three disciplines: bamboo weaving, lacquer art and pottery.

Many prominent masters in these fields call the county home, including Wang Ching-shuang (王清霜), Huang Tu-shan (َ黃塗山) and Li Rong-lie (李榮烈). Wang and Huang are renowned for their achievements in lacquer art and bamboo crafts, respectively. Li is celebrated for his pioneering role in reviving a discipline that combines bamboo basket weaving with lacquer painting.

To preserve the nation’s intangible cultural heritage, the MOC has designated 30 individuals and organizations around Taiwan as important preservers of traditional crafts and performing arts. With four, including the three aforementioned artisans, Nantou boasts more recipients of this title than any other region in the nation.

Of Nantou’s signature handicrafts, pottery is perhaps the most visible to visitors. “Several towns in the county are among the largest clusters of ceramics artisans and traditional kilns in Taiwan,” said Chang Min-hao (張敏浩), director-general of the Nantou Pottery Art Association.

Nantou’s pottery sector has undergone a major transition over the past decades. Many traditional ceramics centers were already struggling to make ends meet when a 7.3-magnitude earthquake struck central Taiwan Sept. 21, 1999. Following this tragedy, in which more than 2,400 people lost their lives, several pottery hubs experienced an unexpected tourism revival, Chang said.

Today, facilities including Tian Xing Kiln Ceramic Art Village in Jiji Township and Shuili Snake Kiln Ceramics Cultural Park in Shuili Township are helping preserve the county’s pottery-making traditions. These cultural parks offer tours of old kilns, introductions to traditional tools and production methods, and hands-on pottery sessions. They also host exhibitions of artworks by ceramists from around Taiwan.

Indigenous Traditions

Nantou’s diverse handicraft expertise derives from the varied cultures that have influenced its development. The county is home to members of the Atayal, Bunun, Sediq and Thao, four of Taiwan’s 16 officially recognized indigenous tribes. In total, indigenous peoples comprise 5.7 percent of Nantou’s population.

One of the most prominent local groups involved in indigenous heritage promotion is the Bunun Cultural Association. Based in Sinyi Township, the organization is the other Nantou recipient of the MOC’s important preserver of traditional crafts and performing arts designation. It is credited with keeping alive the Bunun custom of Pasibutbut, an eight-part polyphonic song typically performed in February to pray for a good millet harvest. Owing to the Bunun Cultural Association’s promotional activities, Pasibutbut has grown into one of the most widely known and celebrated indigenous traditions in Taiwan.

Efforts to preserve Thao culture have similarly achieved impressive results in recent years. The Thao is among the smallest indigenous tribes in Taiwan, with only about 200 members now residing in their traditional lands around Nantou’s Sun Moon Lake, one of the nation’s foremost scenic attractions. In 2015, the tribe’s Lusan festival, staged in summer in celebration of the Thao New Year, became the 18th and latest entry on the MOC’s list of important folk customs.

“Although our traditions are seriously threatened by booming tourism in our territory, inclusion on the list bolsters our conservation efforts,” said Hudun Lhkatanamarutaw, a board member of the Thao Culture and Development Association. “With this new designation, it’s easier to apply for government funding to preserve our culture.”

Hakka Heritage

Hakka residents, who account for some 16 percent of Nantou’s population, add further vitality to the county’s cultural landscape. “Located right in the center of Taiwan, Nantou was the primary destination for those who chose to relocate from communities established after the initial wave of Hakka immigration from southeastern mainland China,” explained Lin, the Cultural Bureau director-general.

To foster greater awareness of Hakka culture, the local government is preparing to launch the Six Star Hakka Communities project in the second half of this year. This initiative will work to promote tourism to majority Hakka communities in six Nantou townships through a range of promotional measures and renovation projects. In Guoxing Township, for example, where Hakka people comprise nearly 80 percent of the population, efforts will be undertaken to transform the old street into a hub for design studios and cultural and creative enterprises.

The county government’s hope is that this program, alongside similar efforts, will help build broader awareness and appreciation of the county’s cultural tapestry. “Intangible legacies passed down from older generations to a great extent set Nantou apart from other regions in Taiwan,” Lin said. “Protecting and promoting these assets is our primary objective.”

Showcasing Nantou’s Unique Historical Assets

Though most widely celebrated for its natural beauty and intangible cultural heritage, Nantou County also possesses a variety of little-known yet unique historical assets. Foremost among these is the Batongguan Historical Trail, the only nationally designated historic site in the central county.

Completed in 1875 during the Qing dynasty (1644-1911), the trail was built to boost interactions between authorities and indigenous tribes living in the mountains. Located in modern-day Yushan National Park, it was the first pathway traversing the Central Mountain Range, starting in Nantou’s Zhushan Township and ending in Yuli Township of eastern Taiwan’s Hualien County. Stretching over 152 kilometers at the time of its completion, much of the trail has since become overgrown, though parts of it have been maintained.

The county government has also designated 14 locations as historic sites, including three temples and three classical tutorial academies. One of the most well-known attractions on the list is the Glutinous Rice Bridge. Built in 1941 during the Japanese colonial era (1895-1945), the structure spans Peikong Creek in Nantou’s Guoxing Township. It is named for the fact that glutinous rice was used as an adhesive in its construction.

Not far from Peikong Creek is the Stonemasonry Cultural Park. The former quarry and masonry facility, which supplied the raw materials for the bridge, was transformed into a tourist attraction “to allow visitors to explore the wisdom of the local Hakka people in promoting the sustainable use of available resources,” said Lin Rong-sen (林榮森), director-general of the county government’s Cultural Bureau.

Nantou’s rich cultural heritage is also on display at the Chuping Archaeological Site in Renai Township. Located at an altitude of some 750 meters, this prehistoric settlement was discovered in 1980. The local government is working with several central government agencies to design an archaeological park at the site where excavated relics, currently stored at an academic institution in Taipei City, can be exhibited.

Such efforts to expand Nantou’s cultural facilities have accelerated in recent years, with Yu-hsiu Museum of Art the most prominent recent addition. A private institution opened in January 2016, it is the first and only fine art museum in the county. “Its goal is to strengthen fine art education while helping Taiwan artists gain exposure overseas through exchange projects with foreign institutions,” explained museum director Lee Chu-hsin (李足新).

Located in Caotun Township, the museum building is itself a work of art. The structure, designed by Liao Wei-li (廖偉立‬), won the top honor at the 2016 Taiwan Architecture Award, a prize granted by Taiwan Architect Magazine annually since 1979. Admission to Yu-hsiu Museum of Art is free and by appointment only. 

—by Oscar Chung

Write to Oscar Chung at mhchung@mofa.gov.tw