Sketch of Archilife Study Tour, February 2017
2017年2月份見識之旅縮影 ![]() For the study tour of February 11, 2017, Ms. Lu Ming-yun led 39 ARF interns and their parents on a tour to the ancient city of Lukang and experienced its traditional crafts. At the start of the day's activities, team leader Ms. Lu Ming-yun reminded everyone about things to note and what to observe, and provided the interns some general background knowledge. ![]() The day's itinerary was centered on the Lukang area and guided by a local culture-history research worker. During the Qing Dynasty, Lukang was a busy trading port with a deep and wide harbor, ranking second only to Tainan City. At the end of the Qing Dynasty, it started to decline as sediment built up but many cultural artifacts remained intact, including ancient relics, tablets and banners. The tour began with a visit to Lungshan Temple. Despite numerous partial and full renovations, it remains Taiwan's well preserved Qing Dynasty structure. Following the tour guide, everyone entered through the sanmon, passed the Five-door Hall, bagua caisson ceiling and into the rear hall. The tour guide provided a detailed explanation of the temple architecture and symbolism of the carvings, sculptures and paintings. The temple's intricate design and exquisite workmanship makes it the epitome of Taiwanese folk art. After leaving the temple, everyone walked to the Nine Turns Lane as the guide explained the reason for the turns of the lane and their functions. The guide also introduced the Shiyi Hall, which used to be the gathering place for writers and poets, and Ai Gate, which symbolizes the boundary for war. The tour guide integrated many folk stories into his explanation to enliven it, making a deep impression on the interns. ![]() After lunch, everyone visited the Lugang Mazu Temple. The wood and stone carvings, and paintings, are the handiwork of master craftsmen. As the rear hall is dedicated to the Jade Emperor, its dragon pillars feature a single circling dragon holding a pearl in its claws, which is a rare five-claw design in Taiwan. The tour guide also introduced the Goddess Mazu statute built with gold donated by followers, and it is one of the only three in Taiwan. The final leg of the tour was Guihua alley Artist Village, where many artists stay. The first place visited was the tour guide Mr. Chen Shih-hsien's studio – Lukang Image Gallery. Through his old photos, everyone learned about the development and changes in Lukang's economy and culture in the early years. The next place visited was the Taiwan Lion Craftsman workshop. Master craftsmen skilled in lion head making introduced the differences between the Taiwanese lion and lions in the north and south, and the symbolisms of these lion-head faces. The interns also had fun painting the lion heads. At that point, the day's itinerary came to an end. Everyone returned to home after taking a group photo and looked forward to the next study tour. |