Until The Sun Rises
Open Access DepositedTaiwan, also known as Formosa (Portuguese for “beautiful”), is located west of the Pacific Ocean. Surrounded by sea and mountains, its rich marine and forest resources, as well as its important geopolitical location, have made it an island that the great powers have long sought after. After being colonized by the Dutch, the Spanish, the Chinese Ming and Qing dynasties, and Japan, Taiwan went under 37 years of martial law, a period known as the “White Terror,” when the Chinese Nationalist Party, the KMT, fled to the island after being defeated by the Chinese Communist Party. For nearly four decades, the Taiwanese people were silenced, disappeared, and lived under constant surveillance and fear. Not only did the KMT’s occupation erase the people’s languages and identities, but it also led to a divided sociopolitical landscape on the island that remains to this day.Through reclaiming the sun, the symbol of the KMT party, Until the Sun Rises envisions a world with accountability, reparation, hope, and strength. Joined by Taiwanese artists Galen Chen and Sean Wang, Vanessa Chen presents multimedia work that invites viewers to reevaluate traces of oppression in daily life and stand together against injustice. As the Mandarin idiom “旭日東昇” goes, the sun will rise from the east one day. Suffering will pass at last, and a new day will eventually come.
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