Beautiful trap

Fish Trap House IV is a contribution to the annual Taiwan Lantern Festival, which is very spectacular in Taiwan.

Artist Cheng Tsung FENG applies Taiwa­nese tradi­tional fish traps as the theme of artwork. Invited hundreds of local in Taichung to work­shops to learn weaving the art craft of the fish trap. With them hundreds of fish trap was made and hang bamboo sign with their wishes on it. People surround hand by hand unite toge­ther. Rewrite the precious art craft which is going to vanish into our memory and body.

Recently, Cheng Tsung FENG was invited to create a lantern in the most fabu­lous event — Taiwan Lantern Festival. He began a huge coll­ec­tive work plan for this two-week cele­bra­tion.

During the proces­sing, FENG and his part­ners drove a truck and went to four farmers’ asso­cia­tions in the festival’s loca­tion, Taichung. He found out hundreds of inha­bi­tants who didn’t have any expe­ri­ence for basket weaving. FENG taught them how to weave basket with bamboo and shared the story behind the tradi­tional fish traps.

Feng taught the farmers how to weave baskets and told them the history of traditional fish traps. This is how Fish Trap House IV was born.

They finished over two-hundred basket units and bring these units toge­ther in the loca­tion. Finally, it became a grand instal­la­tion art in public.

After the end of the festival, this grand instal­la­tion art work carefully unpi­cked and took back to their maker by truck. Each basket unit has their own tag which is written down the wish of maker.

These basket weaving item and invi­sible craft skills will keep Inte­grate into their lives. This expo­sure sparks new ideas and possi­bi­li­ties.

Fish Trap House IV has not only been a contribution to the Lantern Festival 2020, it also aims to preserve this valuable culture.

Those tradi­tional craft lesson became into their own personal expe­ri­ence. It inspired those inha­bi­tants in farmers’ asso­cia­tions to make some­thing new. A number of people said they would make a lamp­shade, others would make duck cages, and the others would pile up like a Christmas tree with this bamboo basket units.
Cheng Tsung FENG led and taught people making fish trap hand by hand. People reunite toge­ther as each unit gathe­ring in site. Expect body expe­ri­ence, there’s no text record to preserve those precious hand­made culture.

By this coll­ec­tive work plan, FENG write down these craft origi­nate from Taiwan into our memory. Keep those ancient treasure live in our body for eter­nity.