Artists bring driftwood to life in Taitung

Kim Dea Hyean, an artist from South Korea, is engraving totems of traditional Korean guardian deities on a large chunk of cypress driftwood. He said he takes great pleasure in using deadwood as his creative medium. “Driftwood is a natural asset and a valuable material for artistic creation,” he said.

Japanese woodcarver Tomokazu Hamamoto has inscribed the Chinese character “zhou” on a piece of rosewood to highlight the theme of his work, which pays tribute to the spirit of the cosmos — magnificent, prolific and inexorable.

As indigenous people form the bulk of Taitung's population, many aboriginal artists are also taking part in the event. Raheizi Dalifu, a Puyuma tribal artist, said he has long dedicated himself to driftwood carving because the medium is closely related to his tribe and the mountain slopes on which it lives.

“Whenever I pick up a piece of driftwood, a sense of nostalgia tends to well up in my mind. I think to myself: 'this wood used to grow deep in the high mountains. How long did it live? How far did it float and how long did it stay unnoticed in a river valley or seashore before meeting me? Did my ancestors ever encounter it centuries ago?' Such feelings often help enrich my ingenuity,” Lahaitzu said.

His carving for the event is a work featuring tribal people singing and dancing on a beach under a bright sky to celebrate rebirth after a natural disaster.

Meanwhile, in addition to individual artists, eight local universities have organized a total of nine teacher-student teams who are also providing collaborative artworks for the event.

A student from the National Taiwan University of the Arts said he has learned a great deal from this kind of art creation. “The experience of carving a strangely shaped piece of driftwood is extraordinary to me and the event allows me to see for myself how an established artist like A-Sun Wu works, “ he said, adding that he and some of his classmates had been volunteering to work as Wu's aides over the past few days.

As part of the ongoing carving art extravaganza, a collection of prize-winning driftwood-carved personal and interior decorative items are also part of the exhibition.

Since the start of the eight-day festival, many people have visited the park to see artworks being created, Lin said, adding that a 90-minute pop concert that has been held each day from 7 p.m. has also attracted huge crowds.

“I'm gratified to see the enthusiastic public response to the festival... As driftwood carving and driftwood installation art have long been popular in eastern Taiwan, I hope the event will help further boost the art form's development and catapult Taitung into the international limelight as a 'mecca for driftwood art, '” he added.

Speaking at a seminar on driftwood art and living aesthetics that took place on the opening day of the festival, noted writer Gu Meng-ren said cutting and shaping driftwood into artistic works is a form of returning to nature.

“Driftwood is one of the most primitive and simple media for art creation and conforms with the prevailing penchant for environmental protection,” Gu said, adding he hopes measures can be worked out to store more of the driftwood for future artistic creations or other meaningful use.

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