《TAIPEI TIMES》 Textile exhibit features works by retired teacher

By Chiu Shu-yu and Sherry Hsiao / Staff reporter, with staff writer

A textile art exhibition featuring 30 works by Atayal artist Yu Chiu-lan （游秋蘭） on Monday opened at New Taipei City’s Wulai Atayal Museum.

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Yu, who is originally from Yilan County’s Nanao Township （南澳）, embarked on a personal mission to pass down the traditional Atayal textile technique after retiring as an elementary-school art teacher, she said.

Specializing in patchwork, she formed a textile association with other Atayal women in her community.

“All of the fabrics [we] wear on our bodies are connected to the land,” Yu said.

The warps and wefts in weaving contain traditional stories from different communities, she said.

Yu has donated one of her works to the museum’s collection.

Special exhibitions at the museum have since last year focused on works created by artists from the city’s Wulai District （烏來）, Indigenous Peoples Department Director Dongi Alin Yang Hsin-yi （楊馨怡） said.

Yu has combined her love of tradition and her sense of mission to create a diverse collection, Alin said.

The museum should not be only a place for keeping old artifacts, she said, adding that it hopes to drive the development of local industrial tourism.

During the exhibition, which is to run until Oct. 28, the museum is to host an activity every Saturday afternoon, when visitors can try their hands at weaving.

For traditional Atayal women, weaving is an expression of identity and status, Alin said.

The museum hopes to educate the public about the historical origins of the Atayal weaving tradition, she said.

新聞來源：TAIPEI TIMES