Fish Traps with Lights Guide People In – Alternative space X Local cultivation

Bamboo and rattan weaving artist Tuwak Tuyaw, and textile artist Chen Shu-Yen (Yenzi) partner in founding PateRongan. It relocated to shore side, somewhere closer to Paterongan which means ‘where a boat is moored’ in Kavarawan, refers to restoration for everything. This shore side space is not only Tuwak’s homecoming base also their stronghold of local culture cultivation. It gradually turns into an alternative space.
 
Different from other alternative spaces’ dissociated and temporary roles in mechanism, PateRongan’s backbone is deep local cultivation. Tuwak Tuyaw and Yenzi wanted to build it as a space for arts education and promotion. Therefore, they hold Sanku’s exhibition and workshop. Kavarawan grandmothers’ banana fiber weaving workshop and local creation exhibitions were coming after that. Tuwak Tuyaw and Yenzi dedicated to make PateRongan a platform for craft arts integration and exchange. Artist could be a medium or a producer in this relationship. It shapes studio an organic space for discourse formation, artistic knowledge production as well as cogitation circulation. PateRongan creates more opportunities for conversation through exhibitions, teaching and village environment touring.              
 
Site production process is usually involved in Tuwak Tuyaw and Yenzi’s mixed media installations. The fish traps lights at PateRongan completely reflect local techniques and material. Tuwak says that in Kavarawan, fish traps are called ‘Sanku’. The basic process is to divide a Useful Bamboo into equal segments, cut them into several strips and tie them with Yellow Rotang Palm then shape a Sanku with bare hands. It takes techniques and more importantly, the creator’s conversance to materials to integrate a Sanku. The quality of bamboo would be different with season’s change. And the material process includes seawater soaking, sunlight exposure and drying etcetera. It is not qualified as creation material until being examined closely one by one.    
 
They are constantly commissioned in recent years. Local productions are actually more challenging for them. For they don’t only have to apply local knowledge also respond to global knowledge and exhibition space with works. Yenzi indicates that there are two aspects of their site-specific works in their concerns. One, how to ably integrate local media into their material and techniques. Two, what kind of subject would echo local cultural and social state. She takes her work ‘Bamboo Nest Tree House’ as an example.
 
They were invited by New Taipei City government making this residency program. For answering the Shuangxi Low-Carbon Life Festival, they did lots of field research and get better understanding about local humanities and culture scenario, and natural materials. There was a security guard at Shanglin Elementary School who is enthusiastic with his job at campus also creative in using recycle objects. “Every child dreams to have a tree house.” Yenzi says. When she decided to make one, she invited all the local as well as the teachers and students of Shanglin Elementary School in this project. They use the recycle woods and leftover trimmed branches and bamboo to structure a platform and a nest on Banyan tree. The aerial root of Banyan tree is well preserved so that it would keep growing with environment.  
 
The big installation mixed with bamboo and textile arts is immersed into the natural scenes becoming a new attraction in Xinshe District. This unexpected outcome is not two artists’ intention. However, it does show that PateRongan’s strong character, experimental innovation of local natural materials, and tight connection with Xinshe community develop lots of potential. Through exhibition and trials on local traditional arts, cultural knowledge production and Taiwan contemporary arts would be more diverse.