Looking back over history, since the founding of Taipei 130 years ago, railway transportation—extending from west to east—has gradually become a driving force for surrounding commercial activities and cultural life. Through successive eras of change and the advancement of transportation systems and urban development, Taipei’s railway corridors have borne witness to more than a century of progress, embodying a profound sense of the continuity of time.
In commemoration of the 130th anniversary of Taipei’s founding, this public art initiative aspires to draw upon the city’s historical and cultural spirit, using the development of the railway as its central theme. By tracing the evolution of the city along its rail lines, the project invites citizens to rediscover Taipei’s urban development through the lens of its railway history.
One defining characteristic of contemporary art is its removal of institutional boundaries—dismantling museum walls and opening doors so that art may enter everyday life, move outdoors, and engage directly with people. Taipei is uniquely endowed with multiple park sites located along former railway lines, making them exceptionally valuable cultural assets. Through the integrated planning of this public art project, the aim is to help the public better understand the historical relationship between railway corridors and the city’s urban growth.
This project plans to commission curators with dynamic exhibition experience, or art teams with strong capabilities in environmental integration and public participation. Through diverse yet well-structured curatorial strategies, art will be introduced into the railway park corridors in a “museum without walls” approach—linking collective urban memories and forming a narrative framework through which citizens can recognize and appreciate the value of these sites.
Public art is not defined solely by its final visual outcome. Equally important are the preparatory stages and communication processes, during which artists develop a deep understanding of the local environment and meaningfully incorporate regional elements into their works. By doing so, the artworks gain a strong sense of site specificity and, through innovative artistic forms, foster a deeper sense of identification and belonging among Taipei residents.
Throughout Taipei’s urban history, railways have witnessed the rise of various industries. Branch lines once served key sites such as the Taipei Sugar Refinery, Songshan Tobacco Factory, and Takasago Brewery. Each railway line transported not only goods, but also carried the spirit, context, and lived experiences of its era. From the city’s founding 130 years ago to the present day—amid industrial transformation and the expansion of transportation and urban infrastructure—Taipei’s railways have stood as enduring witnesses to a century of progress.
Because railway transformation embodies the deep significance of temporal inheritance, the 130th Anniversary Public Art Program adopts the theme “Chasing Trains—Tracing Taipei City.” Drawing upon the historical and cultural meanings of the railway, the project responds to the city’s west-to-east development trajectory while engaging with the humanistic context and architectural characteristics of each site. Through a variety of artistic forms, the works will resonate with and connect one another, forming an artistic timeline across space and time, reshaping the experience of the sites and creating a distinctive railway art map that reimagines Taipei City.
Concept
火車追追追・追見臺北城 (Chasing Trains, Tracing Taipei City)
To look back on the development of any event is never an easy task—especially when it spans more than a century. If we were to rewind time and return to Taipei 130 years ago, what would we see?
Guided by this question, the project follows the railway as a pathway through history, tracing Taipei’s cultural memory and urban transformation. By walking along the rail lines, the city of Taipei is invited to travel through time, allowing its past splendor to re-emerge in the present.
This project takes “Chasing Trains” as its central theme, drawing upon the dynamic meaning of “chasing” and combining it with the linear corridors of the railway. Through this approach, spatial elements flow and intersect within the city’s structure, forming a dynamic interaction between history, movement, and place.
The temporal framework of the project is structured into three phases, each representing a distinct imprint of the railway in a particular era. Using historical clues to uncover the city’s evolving landscape, the narrative unfolds as a trilogy:
Tracing Traditional Flavors
Recalling Modernity
Pursuing Future Dreams
Together, these three chapters explore Taipei’s railway stories along the trajectory of its urban development.
(I) Chasing Trains — A Retrospective of Railway Development
Looking back at over a century of railway corridors and urban growth in Taipei, the project divides this history into three stages: early establishment, stable development, and visions of the future. During the journey of “chasing trains” in celebration of Taipei’s 130th anniversary, public art accompanies citizens in reflecting on the relationship between Taipei’s railways and the city itself.
1. Tracing Traditional Flavors (1885–1935)
During the Qing dynasty, Governor Liu Mingchuan initiated the Self-Strengthening Movement, establishing the Military Machinery Bureau, constructing railways, and introducing modern industrial facilities. These efforts laid the foundation for Taiwan’s transportation network. During the Japanese colonial period, this infrastructure was further expanded through the completion of the north–south railway line, forming the backbone of Taiwan’s modern transportation system.
Industries that developed along the railway corridors bore witness to the rise of Taipei City. In this project, the illustrated picture books and the train installation serve as narrative devices to recall the city’s past. The picture books guide audiences in discovering the historical industries along the rail lines, while the train—modeled after locomotives commonly used in earlier eras—is installed at the Huashan Freight Station. By responding to the site’s unique historical significance, the work creates a contemporary re-enactment of historical space.
2. Recalling Modernity (1935–1985)
The Taipei Railway Workshop, inaugurated in 1935 and originally part of the Governor-General’s Railway Department, was Taiwan’s primary railway vehicle maintenance facility. Although its operational role has now become part of history, the site remains a key witness to the era when railways served as Taipei’s principal mode of transportation, marking a period of urban prosperity.
The project’s works—including the platform waiting shelter, station signage, and railway personnel figures—are created in reference to this era. This period saw the transition from steam locomotives to diesel-electric trains, alongside the flourishing and transformation of industries along the railway lines. These three artworks reconstruct historical station scenes and industrial contexts, allowing the public to experience the inseparable relationship between railways and industry in the past.
3. Pursuing Future Dreams (1985–2035)
The evolution of Taipei’s railway corridors reflects the broader modernization of Taiwan. In recent years, continuous research into the city’s railway extensions—through interdisciplinary collaboration among archaeology, history, and architecture—has deepened our understanding that the west-to-east railway development embodies the trajectory of Taipei’s urban modernization.
Taipei continues to evolve, striving toward a better future. Bridging the past, present, and future requires expressing collective hopes for the city’s tomorrow. In this project, a music video documents contemporary Taipei while reflecting on its railway history, presenting a renewed vitality and vision for the city.
(II) Tracing Taipei City — Railways and Urban Connections
Taipei was founded in 1884. From the late Qing dynasty through the Japanese colonial period, the postwar era, and into the 21st century, the “old city” of Taipei has long existed only in historical records and visual archives. Through archaeological discoveries, unearthed artifacts have gradually reconnected fragments of the past with the present city.
This “invisible old Taipei” begins to speak through remaining architectural structures and fragmented objects. In the early Qing period, north–south transportation in Taiwan relied primarily on maritime routes. It was not until Liu Mingchuan’s reforms—introducing railways and modern industries—that land-based transportation became the main artery. The Japanese administration continued this development, completing the longitudinal railway line that remains Taiwan’s transportation backbone today.
130 Years of Continuity and Transformation
The energy embedded in Taipei’s 130-year history is returned to the city through its railways. The journey of the railway through time resembles a documentary of the land itself. As scenes unfold one by one, we all become travelers through time, returning to moments of prosperity and feeling the living pulse of Taipei.
The Life Chain of Industrial Development
Many railway extensions in Taipei were built to transport industrial resources. Railways at sites such as Wanhua Sugar Refinery Park and Songshan Tobacco Factory were constructed to serve industrial needs. To inspire new perspectives on industrial heritage, public artworks are installed at locations including Huashan Station and the Taipei Railway Workshop, forming an industrial heritage cultural corridor across the city.
Artwork Introduction
1. Design Without Design — Time Station Signs
Taipei Railway Workshop, Songshan Tobacco Factory, Jianguo Brewery, Huashan, Railway Department Park, Wanhua Sugar Refinery
(Six installations in total)
Dimensions:Each piece: 90 cm (L) × 40 cm (W) × 160 cm (H)
Materials:Stainless steel, acrylic, aluminum composite panels, LEGO models
Concept: This project places Time Station Signs at six historically significant locations along Taipei’s former railway corridors, including the Taipei Railway Workshop, Songshan Tobacco Factory, and Jianguo Brewery. Familiar platform signage—deeply embedded in collective memory—is reinterpreted and installed within each site.
Through these familiar yet unfamiliar station signs, visitors are encouraged to connect the sites with railway imagery, gradually gaining an understanding of Taipei’s former railway corridors and branch lines. Each station carries unique historical significance, not only bearing witness to the city’s industrial development but also representing contemporary adaptive reuse and spatial reinterpretation.
QR codes integrated into the installations invite public interaction. By scanning the codes with a mobile phone, visitors can access images and historical information related to each site and its railway connections, deepening their understanding of the relationship between Taipei’s railways and the city’s past.
Wanhua Sugar Refinery (Sugar Refinery Cultural Park) / Railway Department Taipei Workshop (Beimen Station, MRT Songshan Line) /
Huashan Station (Huashan Grand Green Field) / Jianguo Brewery
Songshan Cultural and Creative Park / Taipei Railway Workshop
2. Chasing the Train (AR Interactive Installation)
QR code links; mobile app for augmented reality experiences
Taipei Railway Workshop, Songshan Tobacco Factory, Huashan, Wanhua Sugar Refinery
(Four locations in total)
This project reimagines the Chasing the Train augmented reality experience across four key sites. By utilizing existing AR technology and introducing newly developed 3D imagery, the installation integrates the historical sites with contemporary digital media, recreating the scene of trains moving through station spaces.
Through advanced 3D visualization, each site brings its own dedicated train back to life. Visitors use a mobile app to scan station sign graphics, instantly activating train models within the application. These models are then projected onto the screen through multimedia AR technology, allowing historic trains to reappear within their original environments.
Visitors can interact with the virtual trains, take photos alongside them, and engage in playful, immersive experiences. By incorporating body motion capture, the installation creates visually rich and dynamic images, transforming historical memory into an engaging and accessible contemporary experience.
3. Ren Ta-Hsien — Train
Dimensions: 550 cm (L) × 180 cm (W) × 320 cm (H) (±10%)
Material: Steel rods
Location: Huashan
Since the founding of Taipei 130 years ago, the city has undergone countless transformations, and many buildings have gradually disappeared with the passage of time. Huashan Freight Station was once the primary distribution hub for goods in the Greater Taipei area. The remaining platform today was formerly a train platform where freight trains stopped, bearing witness to the cityscape of Taipei since the Japanese colonial period.
This artwork is inspired by the DT560 freight locomotive. Using steel rods as the primary medium, the artist outlines the form of a freight train that once passed through Huashan Station. Interwoven steel rods construct a structure that blurs the boundaries between solid and void, creating a work that is both transparent and expansive.
Installed alongside the historic platform, the sculpture evokes a sense of movement through time, reconstructing a historical scene and inviting viewers to recall the former presence of Huashan Station and its role in Taipei’s railway history.
4. Hsu Sung-Hsin — Railway Workers
Dimensions:
Height: 165–103 cm (±10%)
Width: 34–130 cm (±10%)
(15 figures in total)
Material:Fiberglass
Location: Taipei Railway Workshop
This series of sculptural figures represents Taiwan Railway workers, whose presence embodies the human dimension of railway history. Installed within the Taipei Railway Workshop, the works recall the labor, dedication, and everyday scenes that once animated this important industrial site, allowing viewers to reconnect with the people behind the operation and maintenance of Taipei’s railway system.
5. Page Tsou — Picture Book
Dimensions: 28 cm × 20 cm (±10%)
Material & Format:
A 12-page illustrated book (including cover), hardcover edition
Printed on 400-pound environmentally friendly paper
Edition:
100 hardcover copies
1,000 paperback promotional copies for public distribution
Marking the 130th anniversary of Taipei’s founding, this picture book is dedicated to the city’s railway history. Through illustration, it allows readers to explore 130 years of transformation and growth along Taipei’s railways. Each station reflects a distinct industrial narrative, revealing how railways shaped the city’s development.
6. Pang Hu – Theme Song “Memories of Taipei” & Music Video
Theme Song: Memories of Taipei
Music Video Duration: 4–5 minutes
This work tells the story of Taipei’s modernization and the railway corridors of the past through a single song. The piece was created by the award-winning Pang Hu Band, winners of the 7th Ocean Music Festival’s Grand Prize, known for their catchy pop-punk style. Their signature sound brings the story of Taipei’s railway heritage to life in a melody that is engaging and easy to remember.
The theme song serves as a connective thread across the exhibition sites and promotional activities. The music video integrates the railways, industrial roads, and stations of Taipei City, tracing the historical development along these corridors. Through music, the emotional resonance of the story becomes more vivid, inviting audiences to experience the city’s past in a dynamic, auditory way.
Concept:
As the city modernizes, the railways that once accompanied our growth have gradually disappeared from the urban landscape. The lyrics of Memories of Taipei intentionally avoid conventional slogans or direct references such as “130 years” or specific station names. Instead, they adopt a conversational tone, evoking disappearing scenes from daily life along the railway.
The melody is catchy and uplifting, while the lyrics encourage listeners to reflect on the gradual disappearance of familiar urban landscapes. The song inspires nostalgia without regret, inviting people to rediscover the places and stations that have been forgotten amid the progress of the city—much like chasing the shadow of a train during childhood.
