An Examination of Taiwan’s Contemporary Photography Development Traits

”Contemporary art” refers to art belonging in this era and is a product of western art ideology transformation. Although “Taiwanese contemporary art” does not directly derive from western art, its development has long been under its influence; thus could be interpreted as “Taiwanese Art under the influence of western contemporary art”. The concept of western contemporary art is to transcend past the history and core value that the West has previously been built upon and instead focus on bordering and diverse self-expression [1]. For this reason, when we examine Taiwan’s contemporary art, we should start with the discovery of our inner selves. The past of Taiwan’s photography has seen the correspondence of different stages to that of western photography but under the influence of foreign photographic trends, photographers from different eras are experimenting with different images or to express their individuality; or using photography as foreign methods to incorporate and transfer unique images. This has allowed us to acknowledge the existence of “Taiwan’s contemporary photography”. Through the analysis of content and form as well as in-depth interview of the artists, this study examines how representative works of different eras are affected by foreign or local aesthetics in protruding the existing limits of photography. Finally, the study seeks to unveil the traits of Taiwan’s contemporary photography development. Many photographers choose to continue creating works even under the influences of the new era and despite having experienced different phases. In turn, these photographers use their new creations or ideas to influence the new era. This study does not use historic time as benchmark and instead uses the correspondence and connection of a work of art. As contemporary art critic Arthur C. Danto suggested, rather than historical conclusions and narrations, developing a new form of historic interpretation might be more suitable for contemporary art.