Taiwanese American Art Projects

作者䈎郁如

Introduction:

The process of immigration provides a chance for Taiwanese Americans to reflect and revaluate our cultural heritage. What evolves is a distinct subculture-a blend of Taiwanese and American. The art projects will not define, but rather reflect such process.

Professor Ya-Yen Lee Memorial Library sponsored the art projects, which commenced in 2002, and which welcome participants from communities of Taiwanese Americans.

台美人的生活方式就是咱兮文化。

再過 50 年後，那有金頭毛的囝仔講：”I am 1/4 Taiwanese.” “Who are the Taiwanese Americans?”伊有什麼所在去找伊1/4的台灣根？有什麼所在去找，咱當年台灣留學生來美國，打拚出頭天、建設咱台美人社區兮歷史過程。Houston Taiwanese Community Center仔2004兮過年時，貼出「台美族，子孫福」就有全款兮意思。

什麼是台美人兮歴史文物？

台美人來美國只有半世紀，有什麼古物？

文物的價值是代表咱自己兮價值觀念，恁那看咱Houston鄉訊，有日文、有中文、有台文、有英文。咱係「三代人講四國話」兮特殊族群。

拿咱兮鄉訊和台灣兮媒體比起來，恁就看出咱己經發展出咱台美人的新文化了。就像Hawaii兮第二代日裔，講古早兮日本話，和現代兮日本話不全部仝款。

從文物管展出的台灣車牌，咱可以看出台美人第一代移民，對故鄉的愛心。從文物管展出兮台湾傳統木匠兮工具，可以看出咱台湾人順應時代的傅統。

文物的價值，是代表咱的傳統。

Professor Ya-Yen Lee Memorial Library and the historic archives of Taiwanese Americans

Featuring rotating displays and permanent collections of cultural artifacts, photographs and books in both Taiwanese and English, the Ya-Yen Lee Memorial Library in Houston has been the first Taiwanese American instillation, which publicly collect and display the historic archives of Taiwanese Americans.

For more information regarding the library and its* collection process, please go to www.houston-taiwanese.org/Librarv. or check library reports in TAA Journal, Houston Texas.

Project-1:

Taiwanese American Family Quilt

(Group art made of fabrics collected from communities of Taiwanese Americans)

As an art form, quilt is not a Taiwanese folk art, but as a concept, quilt making is rooted in the Taiwanese tradition of conservation.

The process of this group project resembles the creation of the Taiwanese American communities.

The process of producing group art, one such as the Taiwanese American Family Quilt, called for the immigrants to revisit their past, and state for their future. They will need to take a piece of useless fabric from their past, and let it morph into the group art which will be the memorial of their immigration.

The true beauty of the quilt is more in the process of producing than the final pieces itself. The phrase “ Taiwanese American Family Quilt” is a metaphor for the history of Taiwanese American.

(We didn’t identify ourselves as simply Taiwanese or American, but we choose the name, which includes both. Like wise, we didn’t hold on to our old fabric nor did we trash it, rather we make a group art out of it.)

Our ancestors in Taiwan, with the tradition of conservation, might had cherished pieces of rag or rice, with the changes of time, what we cherished today are the piece of ourselves, or even the idea of conservation itself.

在 Houston Taiwanese Community Center 的 Professor Ya-Yen Lee Memorial Library. 從2003年以來，用many projects 來提供台美人一個為自己兮時代留一個記錄的機會。

Quilt是用一小塊、一小塊布縫起來兮手工藝術品。大致兮構想是：有意要留一個移民紀念，想要參與project的人，請提供布料。義工將收集大家的布，鏠製成一塊Quilt,把你的台灣布、台灣名、台灣心一針一針地，縫在一齊，製成Taiwanese American Family Quilt.。你提供布料的記錄，名字，將和Quilt—齊留存下來。掛在文物館裡，以後，這就是你在台美人兮厝兮紀念。

咱用many projects來提供台美人一個為自己兮時代留一個記錄的機會，只要你記得哪一塊布是你當年提供的，你都可以來指給你的兒孫看，如何簽名，解說/note（100字），隨人喜好。若是顧到個人隠私，要以無名的方式提供也可以。捨不得把衣服切一塊下來的同鄉，也可以提供自己舊的衣服就好。（舊的Neck Tie, or even 參加活動的舊T-shirt也可以).

Sample: Sample of display:

Notes from fabric donors

Sample of note:

The Lin Family: Li-Hon, Su-Mei, Steve, Jenny and Henry
The Chang Family: Li-Hon, Su-Mei, Steve, and Henry. We came to the University of Texas in 1975, from Tainan, Taiwan.
Chi-Wen Li, 1933-2001. This fabric was part of her shirt.
This was the favorite dress of our daughter when she was 6 years old.
This is the necktie from my mother-in-law, which I never want to wear, and never dare to throw away.
無名.

If you wish to join the sewing of the Taiwanese American Family quilt (or using the collected fabrics for your project, please contact us.)

*Please mail your inputs (quilt fabric, information, or even your comments) to:

Yu-Ru Huang

Houston Taiwanese Community Center 5885 Point West Houston, TX 77036

Projects-2

“Rice Cooker and Dream Weaver” Project

舊電鍋比赛和徴文

嘴講美國話，胃腸講台灣話兮台美同鄉，每家都有舊老兮電鍋，寫—段這個電鍋兮過去，簡單就好，例如：恁兮名和電話號碼，電鍋兮年代。寫在紙頭上，提供資料給 Taiwanese American Project，看誰兮電鍋最古早，得獎！

徵文也是一樣，有關電鍋、煮米飯兮故事，提供资料給Taiwanese American Project，留下大名，有一天我們收了許多佳作，也可以出版。有問題，Please contact: Prof. Ya-Yen Lee Memorial Library。

Sample:米肚…美國肚(電鍋兮故事)

故事發生仔Sugar Land……

「我1966從台灣來兮時陣，只帶了一個電鍋!」加拿大來訪兮莊教授酒後飯飽，佇Sofa開講。

「行李攏被航空公司弄沒去了，只有電鍋，還好知影電鍋是尚要緊兮，用手拿才沒弄丟。」講到電鍋，和呷飯兮代誌，一群當年作留學生兮台美人，攏有一段好笑、好哭兮經驗。

「古早電鍋用到又老又破，就是不會壞!」

「內鍋會壞!」「當時我是台灣兮查甫囝子，留學生，哪有美國時間煮菜，我把生米、生肉、醬油、作陣丟下去煮，熟就吃，煮到後來，醬油把內鍋蛀了一個洞…….」

同鄉提供資料給Taiwanese American Art Projects,照片、姓名、照片解說 (100字)，或是簽名留念都是-照個人喜好，絕無勉強。若是顧到個人隠私，要以無各的方式提供也可以。

這些project的目的，只是提供台美人一個為自己兮時代留一個記錄的機會，只要你記得哪一張照片、哪一塊布是你當年提供的，你都可以來指給你的兒孫看，如何簽名，隨人喜好。捨不得舊衣服切一塊下來的同鄉，也可以提供舊衣服就好。

用台美人這幾年來參加活動兮T-shirts，或是故鄉帶來兮舊衣服，製作兮 project —定是充滿大家兮紀念性，希望有舊T-shirt兮同鄉嘛提供T-shirts。

Projects-3

Life in Motherland Project-(母國-童年）

(A portrait of the American as a Young Taiwanese)

這個Project是一個收集舊照片的project。記得四年前，文物館兮義工在Sugar Land 展出了 “Childhood Memory of Taiwanese Americans”的台美人童年回顧展。許多同鄉提供他們細漢兮時陣，佇台灣剃光頭打赤腳，或是30年前台灣囝仔兮形象，有同箱提供她母親為兒女照的照片，雖然母親己經遠別了，可是照相機的鏡頭留下她母親當年慈愛的眼神裡攝下來的兒女形象。每年母親節，咱台美人想到自己作囝仔兮童年，想到咱兮母親，咱兮故鄉，把30-40年前的照片，拿來讓文物館兮義工scan，留下一個電子記錄和一段文字的簡介，寶貴的照片原版拿回去不必怕遺失。等收集到一定的败量，我們可以作一個母親節的照片展。

Sample: