Artist Szu Han Chen was recommended by Bamboo Curtain Studio (BCS) to participate in the Khoj International Workshop, Refracting Room, hosted by Indian artist groups The Good Artist Pune and TIFA Working Studio. The workshop took place from February 15th to March 1st, 2015 at Hotel Wellesley in Downtown Pune, India. 20 artists were invited to share their thoughts and experiences at the workshop, resulted in site-specific works that were exhibited at Open Studio held on the final day of the workshop (March 1st). On the other side of the world and a few months later, Rajyashri Goody, the artist recommended by The Good Artist Pune, arrived BCS at the beginning of August.
Chen made two video pieces, Tambat Ali and Ka-I during her time in Pune. Tambat Ali is a coppersmith community in which the ancient craft has been passed on from generation to generation. In Tambat Ali, Chen utilizes methods of documentary as well as narration to examine the vanishing traditional lifestyle and the change in local manufacturing structure. The video was shown at a local community temple. Ka-I is a collaborative piece between Chen and an Indian artist Vaibhav Raj Shah. The Hindi word “Ka-l” stands for “yesterday” and “tomorrow” at the same time. This double entendre inspired Chen and Vaibhav to think about the relationship between languages and life, and allowed the two artists to investigate philosophically the perception of time in Hindi as well as the deep-rooted religious practices in Indian culture.
Indian artist and ethnographer Rajyashri Goody focuses her research on the identity of Taiwanese youth during her residency at BCS. She has obtained information mostly concerning Taiwan’s political status when typing in keywords such as “Taiwan,” “Youth,” and “Identity” on the internet. The search results have led Goody to begin her investigation on her own identity as a 25-year-old woman from urban India. At the same time, she is curious about what young people her age in Taiwan are like in real life, and how these 25 year-olds think about their identity and its representations on the World Wide Web.
BCS is celebrating our 20th anniversary this year (2015). We have developed our practices from concerns for culture and creativity, and extended our care to sustaining a well-rounded society and environment. We provide assistance to the so-called “Creative Talents” from around the world, offering a variety of resources and connections to facilitate the production, exhibition, research, and exchange of ideas in the arts. A deeper connection between artist communities and the society can thus be established and fostered.
