Footsteps - Jotaro's Travels
Taiwan Street Art @ Fangliao Railway Art Village (枋寮鐵道藝術村)
Fangliao, Pingtung County, Taiwan - October 2017
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| Smiling green and pink frogs made from round fishing net weights |
On a cycling tour of Taiwan, our journey took us via the Fangliao Train Station, while there we were most pleasantly surprised to find an art village just at the vicinity of the station. This is the Fangliao F3 Railway Art Village with artwork are placed along Chuyun Street and adjoining side and back alleys. Below are some of the street art we saw while exploring the area. These photos here gives a representation of what I saw; nothing beats going there to see them for yourselves.
Enjoy!
"The Orange Crop" - 1800x1280x300 sculpture of stainless steel core, color-baked coated stainless steel body, fiber reinforced plastic and mastic by Chang Si-Pi (2017).
We were early at the station, and while wandering outside say this distinct tall orange sculpture from afar. Cycling close by to see this was how we were led to the art village.
As we rode towards the orange, we saw this cute little girl wearing dark sunglasses sitting outside a house. Hey! She's a statue!
Hey! She's a statue!
The house she is sitting in front of is actually an art studio, we will come to more of this later.
The little girl was part of a family. At the garden, her brother was picking up some fruits from below a real life tree.
At another corner, their mother was washing up some utensils.
While admiring the larger art pieces do keep a look out for smaller artwork like this owl peeping out from a hole painted in between real cracks on a wall.
Glazed mosaic tiles painted with marine animals and seaside scenes. The mosaic tiles are put together in the figure of a fish.
Colorful mosaic fishes made up from shards of broken glazed porcelain.
A brown owl with a yellow face, carved timber painted statue. Owls are favorite subjects in many Taiwanese artwork and gift pieces as the locals (especially the tribal people) believe the owl keeps an eye on them, protects them and bring them good luck.
The artists who have studios here really put the artistic talent to full use. Many of their studios are adorned with their art pieces. This one is a beaten letter box with a cow's head. It is also a door bell, ring the cow's bell to announce your arrival.
A mosaic blue killer whale (Orca) made from glass tiles. Is this the logo of this studio?
A metal unicorn head hangs from the wall of a studio. I wonder whether it is also a wall light?
A robot made from scrap metal, it feet sits on trolley wheels so that it can be easily pushed around. Next to it, hanging from the red column is a used gas cylinder cleverly converted into a letter box.
A smiling white whale wall mural painted around a studio's window.
A bicycle is turned into a turnstile entrance.
Let's move away from the houses for a while and have a look at the surrounding parks and open areas.
Even highway cones are not spared the artists' creative gift.
A giant greem metal ant "waiter" holding up a serving tray.
A stone bird, one of a pair. It's looking at the other bird which is shown below.
The other stone bird.
Casted stone panel sculptures of marine life. ON the left is a flying fish below a hot sun, and on the right is a sword fish with a sword for its mouth.
Stone sculpture of a mole coming out from its ground tunnel. A blue mosaic shard is placed as its eye.
A water buffalo family art piece by Willie Tai. Their skin are marked with colorful mosaic tile aboriginal patterns.
Some of the lampposts have been turned into art pieces.
Let's go walk along the side and back alleys, there are small pieces of artwork hiding some where there; like this pair of bright blue and orange monkeys almost covered by bushes.
This cute stylized bright ocher baby tiger, secreting itself among potted plants.
These owls seems to have carved themselves into a hole in a rock.
A not-so-shy friendly tiger in period Chinese costume. Wonder what it is promoting?
At one of the main alleys, small stone statues lined the center of the alley. At the front was this bug-eyed owl. It's eyes looking out for any evil that dares to enter.
At a narrower back alley, the snails and slugs have come out to play!
The snails and slugs on a kerb stone. They seem to be happy little fellers.
Below them wide-eyed snails crawl around.
A green creeper painter to wrap around the corner of a house. Snails crawl around the creeper and small cranes are hanging on a pile of red bricks below.
A close up look; suddenly the small birds don't seem so threatening to the snails after all.
Patchwork of hexagonal paintings of insects.
There are several pieces of aboriginal artwork around here too. This one is a small totem carved from a tree trunk. Around the trunk surface aborigines in various poses are carve in panel form. Above them is a statue of a snake.
Aborigine faces with snakes arching over them. The snakes have human faces.
Two large timber aborigine faces both wearing traditional headgear.
A farming aborigine couple is seen in the park.
Some of the back alleys are nicely done up with tiled walkways planted with green shrubs. Tourists comes here often and there are benches here for them to sit and contemplate on the artwork.
Fangliao F3 Artist Village is situated right next to the Fangliao Station and was first established by a group of Fangliao’s local history workers and arts lovers of different occupations with dreams to develop an art village. The dream birthed “Fangliao Living Cultural Association”, and Fangliao Station’s No.3 warehouse was often used by the Association as an exhibition center for various artistic exhibitions and activities. After striving to obtain approval from Taiwan Railways Administration, the Association can finally rent the Station’s worker quarters. The quarters were reconstructed and made into art studios at the same time serving as the foundation of today’s F3 Artist Village. ”F3” is an abbreviation for Fang-Liao and No.3 warehouse combined
The buildings where the studios occupy were once the quarters of railway workers.
Shopfront of one of the studios.
Shopfront of the Hundred Paces studio.
Layout plan of the art village. It's in Chinese, if only they have an English version.
FANGLIAO RAILWAY ART VILLAGE
枋寮鐵道藝術村 (枋寮F3藝文特區)
Chuyun Road, Fangliao Township, Pingtung County, Taiwan 940.
(Click here for Google Street View)
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