Art and Entertainment

Freddy Lim: Meet Taiwan’s new rock’n’roll lawmaker

Ponytail-sporting ‘black metal’ singer defies the odds to win seat in parliament

The Independent
Date: January 20, 2016
By: Adam Sherwin

With his leather trousers, ponytail and facial tattoos, Freddy Lim certainly

Freddy Lim at an election rally in Taipei Getty Images

cuts a dash among Taiwan’s legislators.

The frontman of Asia’s leading “black metal” band has just won a seat in Parliament following an election which swept pro-democracy candidates to power.

Standing for the New Power Party, Mr Lim, the lead singer with Chthonic, defeated Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) member of parliament Lin Yu-fang, who had held his seat for two decades.

Mr Lim, who wears facial corpse-paint depicting the “eight generals of hell” in Taoist lore on stage, intends to combine the band’s international festival appearances with his legislative duties.

The election ended seven decades of KMT dominance, handing control to the pro-independence Democratic Progress Party (DPP). Tsai Ing-wen, the DPP’s candidate, will become Taiwan’s first female president, sealing the historic transfer of power, which has raised tensions with China. One of five New Power Party legislators elected to the new parliament, Mr Lim capitalised on his popularity among the nation’s youth by staging a 20,000-capacity concert in Taipei’s landmark Liberty Square on Boxing Day. [FULL STORY]

S Korea website ‘hacked’ over Chou Tzuyu Taiwan flag row

BBC News
Date: 9 January 2016

A South Korean company at the centre of a row about a flag waving pop

Image copyright Youtube – JYP Entertainment
Image caption JYP has been accused of coercing the teenager into issuing an apology

star says its website has been hacked.

JYP Entertainment represents 16-year-old Taiwanese pop star Chou Tzuyu, who recently made a video apologising for waving a Taiwanese flag on S Korean TV.

The company denied coercing her into saying sorry to appease angered Chinese audiences, a key market for JYP.

The row erupted on the eve of Taiwan’s election, which was won by pro-independence Tsai Ing-wen.

Taiwan has ruled itself since breaking away from mainland China in 1949 – but China sees the island as a breakaway province which it has threatened to take back by force if necessary. [FULL STORY]

Charity solo exhibition gets underway in Hsinchu

Taiwan Today
Date: January 19, 2016

A charity solo exhibition by Yang Yin-chai opened Jan. 13 in Hsinchu

Yang Yin-chai poses with one of her colorful abstract oil paintings on show until Feb. 14 at Museum of Fine Arts in Hsinchu County. (UDN)

County, showcasing the octogenarian artist’s signature works and industrial-influenced painting techniques.

Featuring 63 oil, pastel, traditional Chinese and watercolor pieces, the event offers a fresh take on Yang’s innovative use of glass, gravel and sawdust in her creations. It runs until Feb. 14 at Museum of Fine Arts operated by the Cultural Affairs Bureau under Hsinchu County Government.

CAB Director-General Tsai Jung-kuang said Yang is a trailblazer in experimenting with various materials and modern techniques. “The graduating, multilayered effect in her paintings appeals to art lovers from home and abroad. Her works reflect the color and vibrancy of a lifetime in Hsinchu County.”

Born in 1936, Yang is a self-taught artist who exhibited from 2002 to 2005 at the Louvre Museum and Salon of French Artists, as well as staging 26 solo exhibitions around Taiwan. [FULL STORY]

K-pop agency says did not force Taiwan star to apologize over flag

Reuters
Janury 18, 2016
By: Ju-min Park

A South Korean entertainment agency behind a 16-year-old singer who

A supporter of Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) Chairperson and presidential candidate Tsai Ing-wen holds up a poster of Taiwanese K-pop singer Chou Tzuyu at their party headquarters as they wait for the results of the general elections January 16, 2016. REUTERS/Damir Sagolj

triggered a fresh rift between China and Taiwan by holding a Taiwan flag said on Monday it did not force her to apologize.

Chou Tzuyu, the only Taiwanese member of South Korean K-pop girl band Twice, inadvertently shot to the top of Taiwan’s election agenda at the weekend.

In a video released late on Friday by JYP Entertainment Corp that quickly went viral, Chou said she felt proud to be Chinese and that there was only one China, fuelling suspicion that the agency may have pressured her to apologize to avoid upsetting fans in mainland China, a key market.

The video shows Tzuyu apologizing and bowing. She had held the flag in a TV show. [FULL STORY]

Popular KTV chain in Taiwan to delete songs by Huang An

Taiwan News
Date: 2016-01-16
By: Ko Lin, Taiwan News, Staff Writer

KTV aficionados wishing to request songs or records by Taiwanese singer Huang An are expected to go home disappointed as his labels will be removed from the music library indefinitely, according to popular KTV chain Melody KTV on Saturday.

The company made the announcement on its Facebook page stating that it is rebooting its system for an inventory refresh.

“In order to maintain system integrity, and to make up for more storage space, songs and records by Huang An will be permanently deleted from the music library effective January 18, 2016,” it quoted. [FULL STORY]

Talent firm seems to cave in to ‘one China’ pressure

MCCARTHYISM:Singer Chou Tzu-yu’s management said it ‘deeply regretted’ false rumors she was pro-independence, and said that she adhered to the ‘one China’ principle

Taipei Times
Date: Jan 16, 2016
By: Staff Writer, with CNA

JYP Entertainment, the South Korean management company of Chou Tzu-yu (周子瑜), also known as Tzuyu, the only Taiwanese member of South Korean girl group TWICE, has seemingly capitulated to Chinese pressure as it quietly on its Web site changed Chou’s birthplace from “Taiwan” to “Chinese Taipei.”

While the Web site continued to show all the original nationalities of other group members in English, such as “Korea” and “Japan,” only Chou’s was written in simplified Chinese characters, listing her birthplace as “Chinese Taipei.”
JYP Entertainment previously changed the slot “nationality” to “birthplace” in Chou’s profile.

The controversy arose after 16-year-old Chou appeared recently on the South Korean variety show My Little Television holding a Republic of China (ROC) flag.
Chou was criticized by Taiwanese singer Huang An (黃安), who is based in China and has gained an online following there partly because of his strong stance against Taiwanese independence. [FULL STORY]

Huang An Should Suffer Consequences Over Tzuyu Issue

EDITORIAL
Date: January 16, 2016
By: The Publisher of Eye On Taiwan

Let me state up front that I am not a Taiwanese resident or citizen. However, I respect and support the free and independent citizens of Taiwan.

I read about a 16 year old teenager Chou Tzuyu who was recently harassed by

her record company for displaying her country’s national flag. She was coerced into apologizing to the Chinese people for doing it.

Huang An

What upset me most was what a 53 year old Taiwanese singer did to her. The singer is Huang An. He lives in Communist, dictatorial China and is apparently very popular there. He apparently blew ms. Tzuyu in to her record company by protesting her actions. Tzuyu was criticized by Huang An (黃安), who is based in China and has gained an online following there partly because of his strong stance against Taiwan independence.

Huang questioned why Tzuyu had not commented on the Taiwanese media reports, and referred to her as a supporter of Taiwan independence.

In a microblog on Sina Weibo, Huang urged his fans to stand against “anyone endorsed by Taiwanese independence supporters.”

In my opinion Huang An should be barred from ever returning to Taiwan even to attend a family funeral. Furthermore, his passport and Taiwanese citizenship should be revoked immediately. I hope that people will boycott his Mother’s restaurant in Taiwan. He must learn that there are consequences for his disloyal actions to his country. He should be reminded that many soldiers died so he could have the privilege to live in a free democratic country. I say shame on him for he is a traitor.

Container arts festival gets underway in Kaohsiung

Taiwan Today
Date: January 15, 2016

A festival spotlighting the potential of shipping containers as post-disaster

“Recontainer” by a U.K.-based architectural team is one of the more intriguing designs on display at Kaohsiung International Container Arts Festival in southern Taiwan. (Courtesy of Pier-2 Railway Park)

shelters is underway at Pier-2 Railway Park in Kaohsiung City.

The eighth edition of Kaohsiung International Container Arts Festival features 14 works by 10 architectural groups from Taiwan, Australia, France, the U.K. and U.S. It is themed Ark of Tomorrow and organized by the city government’s Bureau of Cultural Affairs.

Bureau Director-General Shih Che said the theme reflects the increasingly important issue of post-catastrophe housing, and the environmental impact of urban development.

“The two-month event offers a platform for architects to devise innovative ways of handling short-term housing crises in the wake of such calamities as last year’s earthquake in Nepal and Typhoon Soudelor in Taiwan.” [FULL STORY]

Director Ang Lee to announce Oscar nominations

Taiwan News
Date: 2016-01-12
By: Taiwan News, Staff Writer

Oscar-winning Taiwanese director Ang Lee will be among those to

Director Ang Lee to announce Oscar nominations.

announce the nominees for the 2016 Oscar awards on Jan. 14.

Lee will join Cheryl Boone Isaacs, president of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences, Mexican director Guillermo del Toro and American actor John Krasinski in making the announcement, the Academy said in a statement on Monday.

Lee and del Toro will unveil the nominees for 11 of the 24 Oscar categories, including Live Action Short Film, at the Academy’s Samuel Goldwyn Theater in Beverly Hills.

“Contrapelo (Against the Grain),” produced by Taiwan’s Liu Pin-chun, and “The Free Man,” directed by Taiwan-based Malaysian filmmaker Quah Boon-Lip, were among the 10 live action short films being considered for final nominations in the category. [FULL STORY]

VIDEO: BTS arrival in Taiwan brings airport to a standstill

SBS
Date: 11 Jan 2016
By SBS PopAsia HQ

BTS is used to being chased by fans, but it seems the Taiwanese press were not quite ready for the mayhem that unfolded when the group landed there on January 8.

While the group was visiting to film the lunar new year episode of “2015 Superstar Red & White Entertainment Awards,” the group caught the attention of local press by the sheer number of fans that followed them around.

The main free-to-air channel Taiwan Television (TTV) reported the phenomenon, focusing on the fans that had camped outside the studio 3 nights prior to the group’s taping of the entertainment show. TTV reported that more than 80 percent of the 12,000 audience members present at the taping on January 9 were fans of the group. [FULL STORY]

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