Hualien Lantern Festival artworks draw mixed reactions
花蓮燈會藝術作品引發褒貶不一的反應
| TAIPEI (Taiwan News) — The Hualien County Government on Monday urged the public to respect artistic subjectivity amid criticism of several installations featured at this year’s Lantern Festival.
The Hualien Pacific Ocean Lantern Festival opened Saturday, featuring lantern artworks designed by a team of students and faculty from Tainan National University of the Arts led by architect Cheng Cheng-chi (鄭乘騏), per CNA. The exhibition is organized into nine zones and centers on the themes of mountains, sea, wind, and light. Unlike traditional Lantern Festival displays that emphasize the Lunar New Year zodiac animal, this year’s installations focus on local imagery such as Hualien’s rock-balancing formations and the Tropic of Cancer. Several works have drawn public criticism. The central installation was compared by some visitors to a cake-shaped tower, while another piece — intended to symbolize Hualien’s creativity through fish leaping across a floral field — was likened to salted fish hanging from fishing lines. DPP Hualien City Councilor Chuang I-chieh (莊依婕) said many constituents have complained that Kaohsiung featured the Japanese children’s television character Ultraman as its centerpiece, while Hualien was left with what she described as “salted fish,” per FTV. She called on Hualien County Magistrate Hsu Chen-wei (徐榛蔚) to stop making Hualien “dirty and smelly.” In response, the county government said it welcomes diverse interpretations of the artworks and encouraged the public to engage more deeply with the installations. Addressing criticism of the festival’s budget, officials said the reported NT$19.8 million (US$628,000) cost includes fireworks displays, a month of maintenance, and promotional expenses. During the opening ceremony, Indigenous artist Pa Ta-hsiung (巴大雄) from Ruisui Township performed, per Liberty Times. A brief power outage occurred during his performance, but was quickly resolved. The Hualien Pacific Ocean Lantern Festival runs from Saturday through March 8 along Sunrise Boulevard, from 6 p.m. to 10 p.m. daily. |
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| Medwin Hsu Taiwan News, Staff Writer | |
| 2026-02-10 |
