Finding Pathways to Temahahoi
- Single-channel HD Video Discovering Hzing: Pswagi Temahahoi 2022 edition colour, sound, audio, duration 12:20min (loop) // Single-channel HD Video Pswagi Temahahoi 2024 edition colour, sound, audio, duration 07:36min (loop)// My Land, Glitched Me Net Art cyberland 2020/2025 editions
- Sound script drawing mixed media 39 x 54cm, Photography I, II, III , digital print series 95.5 x 53.17cm, Ceramic ocarinas hand-built from Nantou/Miaoli region sourced yellow clay (set of 12) size and weight variable. Digital 3D ocarina, candlestick, necklace renders video works x4 editions. 2020—2024
mgluw tuqiy na Temahahoi 找尋迭馬哈霍伊的路徑 《Pswagi Temahahoi》在泰雅族語裡「P」有表示未來之意、「S」則是工具格的字根，「Wagi」是太陽的意思，當他們合起來「Pswagi」就隱含著透過光作為工具，而因為該字有未來式，所以它是一個準備利用「光影」作為工具和即將發生的事情，Temahahoi (女人社) 為帶有酷兒特質的泰雅族群極少被提起的口述故事。此次創作透過田野紀實紀錄影像與行為藝術表演，混合交織形成一件錄像裝置作品，其中還有包括自製的陶笛以及樂譜作為行為表演的一部分，紀實影像中跟隨著泰雅族耆老 Yumin 的 pswagi「光影」知識技術去尋找野生蜂蜜的位置，如此收尋的過程在作品裡再次被轉換成去尋找已經被遺忘的 Temahahoi 的路徑，作品中出現的自製陶製樂器作為招喚 Temahahoi 的聲譜，試圖重新尋找一個沒有具體座標 Temahahoi 的位置。《Pswagi Temahahoi》延續先前的《她可能來至__社》的創作脈絡，口述故事 Temahahoi（女人社），透過創作再次被詮釋與開拓女性和酷兒身體的空間可能性，與此同時預言似地交錯回應環境議題與安靜無聲的酷兒身體之關係、隱喻似地連結氣候危機下的蜜蜂減少與邊緣族群的消失。
Finding Pathways to Temahahoi is an ongoing body of work that began in 2020 when Ciwas started to deeply research and engage with the story of Temahahoi told to her in 2018 by an Atayal Elder. She let the story steep and slowly built up a body of work that seeks to explore, expand and sustain Temahahoi a space of queer historical knowledge and ongoing resistance. Ciwas devotes herself to in-depth futures imaginings and retellings of Temahahoi by combining documentary video with speculative narratives alongside cyberspace, 3D rendered scans of hand-built artefacts and ceramics and sound performance to weave together hybrid performance video installation works.
Temahahoi is an Atayal oral story that tells of a place where only women and gender diverse people live together in community. They communicate with bees, who protect them from outsiders, sustain themselves on steamand smoke and become impregnated by sunbathing on rocks by allowing the wind to enter them. Discovering Hzing: Pswagi Temahahoi (2022 edition) is an experimental documentary video work that follows the path taken by Atayal Elder Yumin, who uses a technique named ‘pswagi’, to trace the locations of wild bees. Alongside, a performance piece with Ciwas’ self-invented ceramic sound sculpture as a way to relocate the space of Temahahoi through collective queer breath. The work is a continuation of Perhaps She Comes From/To＿Alang, which addresses the possibility of re-interpreting and opening up the space of Temahahoi for women and gender diverse bodies.
My Land, Glitched Me, 2025 edition is an ever-expanding Net Art project where Ciwas builds her cyberland driven by desire to reconnect with Ancestral land in the Nantou mountains, aiming to create a queer cultural landscape and hold space in the cloud for Temahahoi. Inspired by Net Art, this land utilizes cross-software open-source coding to first build an online cloud space at https://raxal-mu.glitch.me in 2020. In 2024 the land was rebuilt and participants were invited to contribute their oral stories and soundscapes, forming a rich tapestry that informs the Cyber Mountain. This cyberland, unbounded by physical constraints, serves as a base for resisting heteronormativity by archiving diverse soundscapes. The project is a continuous journey, expanding its cultural knowledge and queer connections beyond the soil into the cloud. Through this cyber mountain, Ciwas and participants create a dynamic and inclusive space to foster a deeper connection as diaspora. By 2026, the cyberland has now migrated to a new home and is developing...
Temahahoi is an Atayal oral story that tells of a place where only women and gender diverse people live together in community. They communicate with bees, who protect them from outsiders, sustain themselves on steamand smoke and become impregnated by sunbathing on rocks by allowing the wind to enter them. Discovering Hzing: Pswagi Temahahoi (2022 edition) is an experimental documentary video work that follows the path taken by Atayal Elder Yumin, who uses a technique named ‘pswagi’, to trace the locations of wild bees. Alongside, a performance piece with Ciwas’ self-invented ceramic sound sculpture as a way to relocate the space of Temahahoi through collective queer breath. The work is a continuation of Perhaps She Comes From/To＿Alang, which addresses the possibility of re-interpreting and opening up the space of Temahahoi for women and gender diverse bodies.
My Land, Glitched Me, 2025 edition is an ever-expanding Net Art project where Ciwas builds her cyberland driven by desire to reconnect with Ancestral land in the Nantou mountains, aiming to create a queer cultural landscape and hold space in the cloud for Temahahoi. Inspired by Net Art, this land utilizes cross-software open-source coding to first build an online cloud space at https://raxal-mu.glitch.me in 2020. In 2024 the land was rebuilt and participants were invited to contribute their oral stories and soundscapes, forming a rich tapestry that informs the Cyber Mountain. This cyberland, unbounded by physical constraints, serves as a base for resisting heteronormativity by archiving diverse soundscapes. The project is a continuous journey, expanding its cultural knowledge and queer connections beyond the soil into the cloud. Through this cyber mountain, Ciwas and participants create a dynamic and inclusive space to foster a deeper connection as diaspora. By 2026, the cyberland has now migrated to a new home and is developing...
Credits: Artist, director, editor: Ciwas Tahos (Anchi Lin)
Performed by Ciwas Tahos, Sinkuy Katadrepan & Ai-Lin Wang
Atayal Elder: Yumin Masaw
Sound Design: An Chen
Director of Photography: Jules Kingham
Camera operator: Daniella Romanoo
Film still, video work, photography, sound script drawing 2022 © Ciwas Tahos (Anchi Lin)
Credits: Creative direction, editing, storytelling: Ciwas Tahos (Anchi Lin)
Location: Atayal traditional territory 'Rahaw' (northern mountainous part of Taiwan 桃園復興鄉與新竹山區）
Performers: Ciwas Tahos, Sinkuy Katadrepan, Ai-Lin Wang, Kayla Briët, Yuma Pawang
Atayal Knowledge Mentor: Yumin Masaw
Atayal Cultural Advisor: Apang Bway
Cinematography: Louise Chen
Sound Design: Nina Buchanan
Art Direction: Jules Kingham
First Assistant Camera: Sue Yi Pin
Drone Operation: Tayaw Bway
Gaffer: Cha Tsai
Temahahoi na Tirosen
- Single-channel HD Video, colour, audio, duration 15:18 (loop). Research, concept, narrative and Touch Designer editing by Ciwas Tahos (Anchi Lin), Voiced by Inbis 陳秋燕, Sound Design by 林子寧, Touch Designer glitch-effect technical support by 吳承儒
- 田調訪問對象：
Inbis 陳秋燕
Inbis 尤威仁
Vukin Takalomay 吳俊霖
Alak Akatuang 段洪坤
台南官田雅麗絲髮廊
這件藝術作品背後藏著一段小故事: 2019年，我有幸參與了位於臺南麻豆的總爺藝文中心駐村計畫。某個晚上，一位熱心的在地文化歷史文史工作者叔叔帶我前往附近的「三元宮」。他熱情地向我講解這座廟宇的歷史，帶我看前方的漢式建築，接著引導我走入後方，展示了一座微型的 Kuva（西拉雅族傳統祖靈公廨）。
因緣際會下，我們正好遇見正在進行儀式的尪姨（Inbis）陳秋燕女士。文史工作者大哥告訴我可以拍照紀錄，然而，當我後來整理檔案時，卻發現我的 Sony 攝影機錄下的畫面全數出現了嚴重故障與錯訊（glitch）。當時我嚇了一跳，當場便將所有檔案刪除，這是祖靈阿立祖拒絕被鏡頭記錄，於是便把這份記憶默默收進心裡。
直到 2024 年，我在一份歷史文獻中看到一段記載：荷治時期曾有一大批尪姨被流放到［諸羅山］（Tirosen，現今嘉義地區 ， 其確切位置至今仍不明，有人推測可能是山區）。這段歷史一直懸在我心頭，直到某個夜晚，我夢見了被流放的尪姨在深山中與 Temahahoi 女人相遇。
2026年，我終於再次拜訪尪姨陳秋燕女士，向她分享了當年發生的事（影像當機），並再次與阿立祖溝通，邀請她為這部影像作品進行旁白配音。此次計畫算是我與阿立祖第一次相遇後，經歷多年後的一種和解。我邀請尪姨朗讀我所撰寫的文本，融入這場充滿故障錯訊的歷史實驗中。在這裡，我將這些［故障錯訊］（glitches）想像成被流放的尪姨與 Temahahoi 女人相遇的模糊交界與臨界空間。
因緣際會下，我們正好遇見正在進行儀式的尪姨（Inbis）陳秋燕女士。文史工作者大哥告訴我可以拍照紀錄，然而，當我後來整理檔案時，卻發現我的 Sony 攝影機錄下的畫面全數出現了嚴重故障與錯訊（glitch）。當時我嚇了一跳，當場便將所有檔案刪除，這是祖靈阿立祖拒絕被鏡頭記錄，於是便把這份記憶默默收進心裡。
直到 2024 年，我在一份歷史文獻中看到一段記載：荷治時期曾有一大批尪姨被流放到［諸羅山］（Tirosen，現今嘉義地區 ， 其確切位置至今仍不明，有人推測可能是山區）。這段歷史一直懸在我心頭，直到某個夜晚，我夢見了被流放的尪姨在深山中與 Temahahoi 女人相遇。
2026年，我終於再次拜訪尪姨陳秋燕女士，向她分享了當年發生的事（影像當機），並再次與阿立祖溝通，邀請她為這部影像作品進行旁白配音。此次計畫算是我與阿立祖第一次相遇後，經歷多年後的一種和解。我邀請尪姨朗讀我所撰寫的文本，融入這場充滿故障錯訊的歷史實驗中。在這裡，我將這些［故障錯訊］（glitches）想像成被流放的尪姨與 Temahahoi 女人相遇的模糊交界與臨界空間。
This artwork carries a little story behind it: In 2019, I had the opportunity to participate in an artist residency at the Tsung-Yeh Arts and Cultural Centre in Madou, Tainan. One evening, an enthusiastic local cultural historian took me to a nearby temple called Sanyuan Temple. He passionately explained the temple's history, showing me its Han-style architecture at the front, and then led me to the back to reveal a tiny Kuva (a traditional Siraya ancestral shrine). By chance, we ran into Inbis (spiritual medium), whose name is Chiu-Yen Chan, who was conducting the ritual. The local historian uncle told me it was fine to take photos and document the moment.
However, when I went to organise my files, my Sony video camera’s footage was entirely glitched. I was so startled that I ended up deleting all the files on the spot (interpreting it as Alid, the ancestral spirits, refusing to be filmed, so I kept this memory quietly in my heart. Later in 2024, I came across a historical document mentioning that during the Dutch occupation period, a large group of Inbis was exiled to Tirosen (its exact location remains unknown). Some said it could be the mountain area.
I carried this piece of history in my mind for a while, until one night, I dreamed of the exiled Inbis encountering Temahahoi women in the mountains. In 2026, I finally visited Inbis Chiu-Yen Chan to share what had happened and invited her to narrate the videowork. This project serves as a way of reconciling my encounter to Alid. I invited Inbis to speak my text for my glitched historical experimentation where I imagine glitches as the liminal space where the exiled Inbis and Temahahoi meet.
However, when I went to organise my files, my Sony video camera’s footage was entirely glitched. I was so startled that I ended up deleting all the files on the spot (interpreting it as Alid, the ancestral spirits, refusing to be filmed, so I kept this memory quietly in my heart. Later in 2024, I came across a historical document mentioning that during the Dutch occupation period, a large group of Inbis was exiled to Tirosen (its exact location remains unknown). Some said it could be the mountain area.
I carried this piece of history in my mind for a while, until one night, I dreamed of the exiled Inbis encountering Temahahoi women in the mountains. In 2026, I finally visited Inbis Chiu-Yen Chan to share what had happened and invited her to narrate the videowork. This project serves as a way of reconciling my encounter to Alid. I invited Inbis to speak my text for my glitched historical experimentation where I imagine glitches as the liminal space where the exiled Inbis and Temahahoi meet.
Video stills, 2026
Short excerpt Temahahoi na Tirosen, full duration 15:18, 2026 © Ciwas Tahos (Anchi Lin)
生 ⇆ 熟 ⇆ 福 Raw ⇆ Ripened ⇆ Happiness
- Dual-channel HD Video, colour, sound, duration 20 min 12 sec, x6 wooden stamps (sizes variable), Red ink pad, Clay/mud (locally sourced), Paper map of Taiwan 110 x 70 cm, Kinetic machine (1st edition) wooden, wooden stamp, dimensions variable, Wooden crate, Kinetic machine (2nd edition) steel, motor, wooden stamp, dimensions variable, 2019—2026
《生⇆熟⇆福》作品的創作靈感來自於尋找日據時期的家族戶口名簿，其過程中的反思以及體感表現，面對國家認可的身份得依賴殖民時期的邏輯思維與文件感到反感與被傷害，但也不得以地需要透過這些文件重新發現疏遠的宗親脈絡，此作品結合平面作品、動力裝置和行為藝術的表現試圖提問強勢的「刻印文化」與「沒有文字」的少數族群所帶來系統性的隱形傷害。生、熟、福等歸類用語初至於中國清朝政府至日據時期，來歸類原住民族的同化程度。透過《生⇆熟⇆福》作品去探討被標籤化的邊緣身體。生、熟、福，三個字刻印在一顆有重量、政府官員所使用的木製印章上，安裝至動力裝置上，我的身體躺在一個白色的展台上，有如在博物館裡，原住民的身體和女性的身體一同在父權主義下的觀看模式被標本化，我的身體被動地被動力裝置上的印章開始往我的身體烙印蓋章，直到我全身通紅，像是受傷後的身體，這個行為表演的過程隱喻著世代一直被標籤化的過程，印章是強勢文化，也是刻印文化的顯性代表，它是權力賦予標籤化的合法性。
Raw ⇆ Ripened ⇆ Happiness encompasses a series of works that contemplate disconnection resulting from colonisation. Stamps traditionally identified a person and determined assigned categories by brandishing a mark onto official documents created in the colonial tongue. These documents often removed Indigenous lineages and addresses. Through this action, entire generational identities shifted to suit the colonial whim as families were forced to relocate. These actions reflect cultural and physical disconnection. Often, traces remained buried, scarce, and faint. This is seen in the faint traces left behind during the action of stamping with mud and ink. In both live and digitalised performances Ciwas uses their body as a stamp, with a handheld stamp, and also has their body stamped by a kinetic machine that brandishes a mallet head repeatedly down onto Ciwas's body. The kinetic machine brandishes the seal onto the body as Ciwas is silent. By stamping repeatedly on both body, paper and maps, Ciwas seeks to acknowledge past actions in order to navigate the future.
生 ⇆ 熟 ⇆ 福 Raw ⇆ Ripened ⇆ Happiness, Single-channel video, colour, audio, full duration 06:25, Ars Electronica Linz Austria, 2023 © Ciwas Tahos (Anchi Lin)
Paper mud traces, 2019
Aquarium 水族館
- Three-channel HD Video 2026 edition: colour, audio, 17:08/Single-channel HD Video 2016 edition: colour, sound, audio, 05:01. Installation: x2 red stools, ceramic mug, 2016—2026; 2026 edition: Performance: Anchi Lin (Ciwas Tahos, the artist), Hsu Han-Yu, Filming: Lan Wen-Lin, Cho Du-Hsin, Film locations: Shuiwei sacred Camphor tree/Shaliandun area. Commissioned by Taichung Art Museum Taichung, Taiwan, filmed January 2026.
2016 《水族館》 錄像行為創作，隱喻地指涉國家體制的監視與審查系統有如水族館一樣，一種無處躲藏的空間，想說話與呼吸的聲音變成了一系列的靜音與模糊不清的雜音，難以被閱讀。
Aquarium (2026) is a conceptual video performance initiated in 2016. The 2016 edition examines the struggle of lost language and the attempt to learn a new language at the same time. This in-betweenness serves as a state of hidden surveillance within the colonial system. The 2026 edition is grounded in historical research into the colonial impacts of Taiwan’s past. The performance responds to the colonial Tu-Nui ditch, built specifically to enforce separation between mountain Indigenous nations and Han people (Plains Indigenous nations were between these two). Aquarium stands as a direct, embodied response to that unspoken struggle of separation. Before filming, Ciwas spent hours searching for the exact historical site of the colonial ditch. The search eventually led her to discover an abandoned urban land marker, which was engraved with the traditional character 城 for 'city' in an industrial farming area. The performance went from daylight through dusk until the moon appeared.
Aquarium 2026, 1:00 excerpt, three-channel HD video, colour, audio, full duration 17:08 (loop) © Ciwas Tahos (Anchi Lin)
Aquarium 2016 水族館 1:00 Excerpt © Ciwas Tahos (Anchi Lin)
To the Shore 海岸
- Four-channel HD video installation 2025 edition: colour, audio, duration 03:41 (looped), broom, x12 ceramic mortar and pestles, sand. Commissioned by Sharjah Art Foundation.
- Single-channel HD Video 2015 edition: colour, audio, duration 22:12 (looped), Straw broom, audience instruction A4 white paper, black ink, x2 studio floor lamps. 2015—2025
The 2025 edition of To the Shore expands the 2015 edition, which engaged with diasporic notions of fitting-in fatigue, the weight of generational trauma and the quiet resilience that cannot be swept away, but is tempered by meditative actions. The 2025 installation piece comprises four video works surrounding twelve wounded ceramic hand-built mortar and pestles, arranged on the ground clockwise in a sandy circle as a site of healing. Ciwas draws on a remembered childhood Hō-ló idiom: “大水，袂流得石舂臼 Big waves cannot wash away stone mortar and pestle” to evoke meditative resilience. Ciwas uses the sound of sweeping her broom; when recorded, each sweep evokes an ocean wave and brings Ciwas a sense of calm. This durational sweeping performance explores how the body remembers and relates to the shores we travel between. For Ciwas, this is about meditating on being sent solo to Canada to study on unknown shores with an unknown language and falling in love with someone from Southern Hemisphere Pacific shores, to which she is now connected and conducts her central-channel ceramic and sand performance. The left-channel shoreline depicts the Pacific North-western shore and the right-channel the Pacific shoreline of Northern Taiwan filmed during a typhoon. Across from the three-channel series is the single-channel sweeping performance. Here, the broom becomes a ritualised instrument for reflection; the labour behind the sweeping action produces a soundscape mirroring the ocean’s meditative rhythm, transporting the sweeper to their desired shore.
The 2015 edition explores the notion of immigration across oceans and heteronormative domestic routines. This piece adddresses notions of ‘trapped-ness’ and displacement. The broom serves as an instrument for producing a meditative action and sound, transporting the sweeper to the shore. “Lin’s piece is a video performance using a broom to create the sound of the ocean, attempting to make the seemingly mundane activity of sweeping something that could be described as almost beautiful” (McGrail, 2016).
The 2015 edition explores the notion of immigration across oceans and heteronormative domestic routines. This piece adddresses notions of ‘trapped-ness’ and displacement. The broom serves as an instrument for producing a meditative action and sound, transporting the sweeper to the shore. “Lin’s piece is a video performance using a broom to create the sound of the ocean, attempting to make the seemingly mundane activity of sweeping something that could be described as almost beautiful” (McGrail, 2016).
Four-channel video installation (exhibit view from Sharjah Biennial: TO CARRY 2025), colour, sound, excerpt 01:00, full duration 22:12 © Ciwas Tahos (Anchi Lin)
Installation view, 2015
Canoe 獨木舟
Creative direction: Ciwas Tahos (Anchi Lin), Project assistant/photographer: Jules Kingham, Performances by: 行為表演參與者：廖于宣（Rowbiq Ciwan、慈姆達斯（Vuvutas）、里幸 （Lisin Sizu、崔綵珊（Tsui Tsai Shan、簡慧珊（Chien Hui Shan）、高惠玲（Gao Hui Ling、宋曉仙 （Song Xiao Xian）、芙依絲·莎霧（Fuis Sao Paotawan) ~rest in power
- Six-channel HD Video, color, sound, audio (duration variable), Straw broom, 2017
“獨木舟” 邀請了八名來自各行個業不同年齡的台灣女性原住民，此項目是已非性別歧視的心態歡迎部落各界八位女性來參加連續20分鐘的拍攝，拍攝期間她們將使用台灣家庭中常看到的傳統掃把。
藝術家鼓勵參與者利用想像力使掃把在地上掃出她們心中海的聲音。同時在錄製之前，藝術家也進行了訪談來了解每位參與者的故事，並與她們討論相關原住民議題。女性參與者 廖于宣說到“族群認同永遠來自於自己，先認同自己才能認同族群”，同時來自排灣族的慈姆達斯 提到 ”排灣族的歌謠故事以前有好幾千個，現在只剩下五十多個“。阿美族的 宋曉仙 說到 “原住民在政治領域的參與性，曉先說目前台灣政壇上看不到多數有原住民背景的政治人物“ 同時ㄧ樣來自阿美族的芙依絲關心原住民土地問題，她舉例 有某集團為了商業利益把部落的祖靈墳墓挖出來蓋停車場。芙依絲也非常關心他國原住民土地議題，像是目前正在加拿大西岸發生的油管抗爭事件。
這些受訪行為演出的女性原住民有些還居住在原鄉，但是大部分因工作和學校關係已經離開原鄉已久，面對資本主義和現代化所帶來幾代人所被迫移動，有如在係潮和潑浪上被迫前進的獨木舟，即使在不同社會角落努力也不忘記心中那條看不見和一起前進的獨木舟，而那條看不見地獨木舟就是抽象性地與各表演這所關心各現代原住民性和議題的交叉點。
藝術家鼓勵參與者利用想像力使掃把在地上掃出她們心中海的聲音。同時在錄製之前，藝術家也進行了訪談來了解每位參與者的故事，並與她們討論相關原住民議題。女性參與者 廖于宣說到“族群認同永遠來自於自己，先認同自己才能認同族群”，同時來自排灣族的慈姆達斯 提到 ”排灣族的歌謠故事以前有好幾千個，現在只剩下五十多個“。阿美族的 宋曉仙 說到 “原住民在政治領域的參與性，曉先說目前台灣政壇上看不到多數有原住民背景的政治人物“ 同時ㄧ樣來自阿美族的芙依絲關心原住民土地問題，她舉例 有某集團為了商業利益把部落的祖靈墳墓挖出來蓋停車場。芙依絲也非常關心他國原住民土地議題，像是目前正在加拿大西岸發生的油管抗爭事件。
這些受訪行為演出的女性原住民有些還居住在原鄉，但是大部分因工作和學校關係已經離開原鄉已久，面對資本主義和現代化所帶來幾代人所被迫移動，有如在係潮和潑浪上被迫前進的獨木舟，即使在不同社會角落努力也不忘記心中那條看不見和一起前進的獨木舟，而那條看不見地獨木舟就是抽象性地與各表演這所關心各現代原住民性和議題的交叉點。
'Canoe' is an extension of 'To the Shore' that collaborates with Indigenous women from different communities. A callout was made in Taiwan, culminating in eight Indigenous women from various locations participating. They were invited to speak with Ciwas and share their thoughts on issues they care about and then sweep the museum floor with a traditional broom for around twenty-minutes. The participants were encouraged to think about the issues they had shared with Ciwas and their connection to the shore while sweeping.
Ciwas sat down with each participant and listened to their stories and discussed issues that were important to them. For example, Vuvutas from Paiwan Nation mentioned that "more than a thousand Paiwan stories and folk songs in the past have already been lost, now only around fifty remain in people's memories". Rowbiq Ciwan from Truku Nation believes "you have to accept who you are in the first place, then you can accept your ethnic identity". Song Xiao-xian from Amis Nation said, "it's rare to see Taiwanese Indigenous politicians in the current governmental system, hopefully, there will be more in the future". Fuis Sao Paotawan from Amis nation pays close attention to Indigenous people's land rights in Taiwan and overseas and shared how upset she was when "a corporate company that dug out some of our ancestors' graveyards just because they needed to make a parking lot for business purposes". Fuis is also aware of the Kinder Morgan pipeline protest in Canada and has been actively against the pipeline being built. Most of these women have long left their hometowns for better jobs and education in larger urban areas. Decades ago the colonial impact of capitalism and modernity forced people to move, resulting in generational diaspora. Ciwas feels this work is about recalling a canoe propelled forward by the current and waves, steered with difficulty. The invisible canoe in this work represents the intersectional point of each performer's shared concerns regarding contemporary Indigeneity. Ciwas envisions a future extended work where the canoe travels across oceans and is building this slowly... from shore to shore.
~Ciwas was saddened by the passing of one of our dear sisters in 2026 and dedicates this work to her, rest in power with solidarity and strength.
Ciwas sat down with each participant and listened to their stories and discussed issues that were important to them. For example, Vuvutas from Paiwan Nation mentioned that "more than a thousand Paiwan stories and folk songs in the past have already been lost, now only around fifty remain in people's memories". Rowbiq Ciwan from Truku Nation believes "you have to accept who you are in the first place, then you can accept your ethnic identity". Song Xiao-xian from Amis Nation said, "it's rare to see Taiwanese Indigenous politicians in the current governmental system, hopefully, there will be more in the future". Fuis Sao Paotawan from Amis nation pays close attention to Indigenous people's land rights in Taiwan and overseas and shared how upset she was when "a corporate company that dug out some of our ancestors' graveyards just because they needed to make a parking lot for business purposes". Fuis is also aware of the Kinder Morgan pipeline protest in Canada and has been actively against the pipeline being built. Most of these women have long left their hometowns for better jobs and education in larger urban areas. Decades ago the colonial impact of capitalism and modernity forced people to move, resulting in generational diaspora. Ciwas feels this work is about recalling a canoe propelled forward by the current and waves, steered with difficulty. The invisible canoe in this work represents the intersectional point of each performer's shared concerns regarding contemporary Indigeneity. Ciwas envisions a future extended work where the canoe travels across oceans and is building this slowly... from shore to shore.
~Ciwas was saddened by the passing of one of our dear sisters in 2026 and dedicates this work to her, rest in power with solidarity and strength.
1:00min excerpt, Six-channel HD Video installation, color, audio, full duration 17:42 (looped), Canoe, 2017 © Ciwas Tahos (Anchi Lin)