An exhibition called Made in Taiwan (MIT): An Exhibition from the Taiwan Academy of Fine Arts (TAFA), a collaboration between the ANU School of Art and TAFA, was opened in the School of Art Gallery on May 9 with over 200 people present. The exhibition was curated by Professor Liao Hsin-tien, Dean of the College of Humanities at National Taiwan University of Arts (NTUA), and Professor Chung You-hui, also from NTUA. Professor Liao served a 3-year term at ANU as a founding lecturer in the Ministry of Education’s Taiwan Studies program, from 2010 to 2013. The ANU Taiwan Studies program provides a platform for vibrant educational and cultural exchanges between Taiwan and Australia.

In conjunction with this exhibition, the 12-member TAFA delegation held a series of academic workshops and lectures at the ANU. On the day the exhibition opened, Professor Chiang Ming-Shyan from National Taiwan Normal University, TAFA’s vice president , talked about Taiwan’s ink-wash painting and calligraphy; Professor Hsueh Pao-Shia, an oil painting artist from National Tainan University of the Arts spoke about her artist journey and Taiwan’s oil paintings; Professor Lin Hsueh-Ching, a printmaking artist from the University of Taipei, gave a printmaking demonstration and talked about Taiwan’s printmaking history; and the program concluded with a public lecture given by Professor Liao Hsin-tien about Taiwan printmaking master Laio Shiou-Ping.

The visiting TAFA academic artists took the opportunity to visit the various specialist workshops and facilities at the ANU School of Art, including the furniture, textiles, ceramics, gold and silversmith, and glass studios, and possible development of student exchanges between various universities and educational collaborations were also discussed.