SDG12
Experiencing the Charm of “Food as the Essence of Life” — Artist I-Chien Wu Solo Exhibition & Student Co-Creation
To mark the beginning of the new semester, the NCKU Art Center is hosting Welcome to Gourmet Plaza, a solo exhibition by artist I-Chien Wu, along with a co-creation showcase by students from the Visual Workshop. The exhibition runs at the NCKU Art Gallery from now until October 18. Featuring 16 works by the artist and 25 collaborative pieces by students, the exhibition explores food imagery, extending the theme of eating and gastronomy into reflections on daily life, health, and the meaning behind overconsumption.
Artist I-Chien Wu has long focused on the relationship between food culture and image production. She is particularly skilled in collage, integrating printed materials collected from everyday life with layers of acrylic paint and mixed media to create abstract paintings that blur the line between authenticity and illusion. In this exhibition, the “gourmet plaza” becomes a metaphorical framework, where collages, installations, and paintings are re-coded into visual expressions that reveal the cultural and social connotations behind images of food.
The “NCKU Art Center Visual Workshop” invited artist I-Chien Wu to lead 20 students from diverse academic backgrounds on a five-day intensive creative journey. Guided by the theme of “personal food memories,” the artist introduced her collage techniques and helped students transform experiences of festive banquets, hometown flavors, and dining-out culture into more than 20 collaborative works. These pieces not only embody the diversity of Taiwan’s food culture but also highlight the connection between personal memory and local identity.
NCKU President Meng-Ru Shen attended the opening reception and expressed gratitude to the artist. He emphasized the importance of the NCKU Art Gallery as a space that bridges the university and the city through art. “I am thankful to artist I-Chien Wu for not only presenting this exhibition but also for guiding 20 students from across eight colleges to create together, combining teaching with exhibition-making to bring an aesthetic stimulus to our community,” he said. He further invited audiences to reconsider how daily acts of eating shape cultural identity, visual desire, and collective memory.
Art Director Min-Yuan Ma of the NCKU Art Center also thanked the president for joining the opening immediately upon returning from an overseas conference. He reaffirmed the Center’s mission to integrate exhibitions with teaching, bringing art into the campus and classroom. He expressed appreciation to artist I-Chien Wu for leading the workshop, which allowed participants to better understand her creative process. Students described the artist’s guidance as nurturing “like a mother,” and their five-day transformation of food memories into art reflected not only their creativity but also the artist’s dedication.
Curator Hsueh-Yen Tseng, Director of Gallery 188, praised artist I-Chien Wu’s willingness to adapt the exhibition twice within a short time frame to integrate students’ works, calling this show the culmination of her two years of practice. He noted that the works carry the nourishment of her experiences as an artist, mother, and spouse living in Tainan, and embody the Taiwanese cultural practice of sharing food—from casual greetings like “Have you eaten yet?” to the phenomenon of “foodie” culture and online eating broadcasts. He described the exhibition as a dynamic fusion of information and food imagery, generating vibrant creative energy.
According to Curator Tseng, the exhibition comprises four series: food imagery collages from consumer magazines that examine how images construct bodily desire and cultural fantasy; abstractions that merge landscape symbols with food, exploring the relationship between taste and place; book-like installations made from newspapers and flyers that preserve overlooked memories of daily life; and installations crafted from discarded packaging materials that critique the close ties between visual culture and consumerism.
“Food lovers are warmly invited to step into this plaza, not just a place of eating but a gathering ground for social energy and collective exchange,” Curator Tseng remarked. He compared the student works to diners photographing their meals, noting how students sourced their own “ingredients”—texts, images, and materials—to present new artistic flavors within the exhibition space.
For artist I-Chien Wu, this marks her third exhibition in Tainan since 2021, influenced by her child’s studies at NCKU and her own fondness for Tainan’s renowned culinary culture. She explained that while food is often shared enthusiastically on social media, the hidden costs of indulgence—such as health issues and lifestyle concerns—are seldom addressed. This motivated her to create works that reflect on the meaning behind overconsumption.
She added that while making her own art is fulfilling, teaching students through the workshop was equally rewarding. Despite the intensity of the five-day program and the lack of prior art training among many participants, she guided them to embrace trial, error, and creative rebirth. By the end, their evident progress and sense of accomplishment exemplified the pure joy of artistic creation.
The NCKU Art Center warmly invites faculty, students, and the general public to visit the exhibition and experience the intersection of vision, taste, and memory. Through the co-creation workshop, participants became collaborators in the artistic process, sharing personal stories and cultural memories through visual language and transforming the gallery into a generative space of multiple connections. The exhibition will also feature an “Art Knock” Lecture on September 17 (Wednesday) at 3:20 PM, in Room 893S1, Life Science Building South, Li-Hsing Campus, NCKU, where the artist will personally share her creative journey and artistic vision, offering audiences deeper insights into the cultural context of her works.
Artist I-Chien Wu has long focused on the relationship between food culture and image production. She is particularly skilled in collage, integrating printed materials collected from everyday life with layers of acrylic paint and mixed media to create abstract paintings that blur the line between authenticity and illusion. In this exhibition, the “gourmet plaza” becomes a metaphorical framework, where collages, installations, and paintings are re-coded into visual expressions that reveal the cultural and social connotations behind images of food.
The “NCKU Art Center Visual Workshop” invited artist I-Chien Wu to lead 20 students from diverse academic backgrounds on a five-day intensive creative journey. Guided by the theme of “personal food memories,” the artist introduced her collage techniques and helped students transform experiences of festive banquets, hometown flavors, and dining-out culture into more than 20 collaborative works. These pieces not only embody the diversity of Taiwan’s food culture but also highlight the connection between personal memory and local identity.
NCKU President Meng-Ru Shen attended the opening reception and expressed gratitude to the artist. He emphasized the importance of the NCKU Art Gallery as a space that bridges the university and the city through art. “I am thankful to artist I-Chien Wu for not only presenting this exhibition but also for guiding 20 students from across eight colleges to create together, combining teaching with exhibition-making to bring an aesthetic stimulus to our community,” he said. He further invited audiences to reconsider how daily acts of eating shape cultural identity, visual desire, and collective memory.
Art Director Min-Yuan Ma of the NCKU Art Center also thanked the president for joining the opening immediately upon returning from an overseas conference. He reaffirmed the Center’s mission to integrate exhibitions with teaching, bringing art into the campus and classroom. He expressed appreciation to artist I-Chien Wu for leading the workshop, which allowed participants to better understand her creative process. Students described the artist’s guidance as nurturing “like a mother,” and their five-day transformation of food memories into art reflected not only their creativity but also the artist’s dedication.
Curator Hsueh-Yen Tseng, Director of Gallery 188, praised artist I-Chien Wu’s willingness to adapt the exhibition twice within a short time frame to integrate students’ works, calling this show the culmination of her two years of practice. He noted that the works carry the nourishment of her experiences as an artist, mother, and spouse living in Tainan, and embody the Taiwanese cultural practice of sharing food—from casual greetings like “Have you eaten yet?” to the phenomenon of “foodie” culture and online eating broadcasts. He described the exhibition as a dynamic fusion of information and food imagery, generating vibrant creative energy.
According to Curator Tseng, the exhibition comprises four series: food imagery collages from consumer magazines that examine how images construct bodily desire and cultural fantasy; abstractions that merge landscape symbols with food, exploring the relationship between taste and place; book-like installations made from newspapers and flyers that preserve overlooked memories of daily life; and installations crafted from discarded packaging materials that critique the close ties between visual culture and consumerism.
“Food lovers are warmly invited to step into this plaza, not just a place of eating but a gathering ground for social energy and collective exchange,” Curator Tseng remarked. He compared the student works to diners photographing their meals, noting how students sourced their own “ingredients”—texts, images, and materials—to present new artistic flavors within the exhibition space.
For artist I-Chien Wu, this marks her third exhibition in Tainan since 2021, influenced by her child’s studies at NCKU and her own fondness for Tainan’s renowned culinary culture. She explained that while food is often shared enthusiastically on social media, the hidden costs of indulgence—such as health issues and lifestyle concerns—are seldom addressed. This motivated her to create works that reflect on the meaning behind overconsumption.
She added that while making her own art is fulfilling, teaching students through the workshop was equally rewarding. Despite the intensity of the five-day program and the lack of prior art training among many participants, she guided them to embrace trial, error, and creative rebirth. By the end, their evident progress and sense of accomplishment exemplified the pure joy of artistic creation.
The NCKU Art Center warmly invites faculty, students, and the general public to visit the exhibition and experience the intersection of vision, taste, and memory. Through the co-creation workshop, participants became collaborators in the artistic process, sharing personal stories and cultural memories through visual language and transforming the gallery into a generative space of multiple connections. The exhibition will also feature an “Art Knock” Lecture on September 17 (Wednesday) at 3:20 PM, in Room 893S1, Life Science Building South, Li-Hsing Campus, NCKU, where the artist will personally share her creative journey and artistic vision, offering audiences deeper insights into the cultural context of her works.
The NCKU Art Center is presenting “Welcome to Gourmet Plaza” — a solo exhibition by artist I-Chien Wu, along with a co-creation showcase by students from the Visual Workshop. The exhibition is held at the NCKU Art Gallery and runs from now until October 18.
President Meng-Ru Shen of NCKU invites audiences to re-examine the act of “eating” in our daily lives, and to reflect on how it shapes cultural identity, visual desire, and collective memory.
Art Director Min-Yuan Ma of the NCKU Art Center expressed gratitude to artist I-Chien Wu for bringing her exhibition and workshop to NCKU, which allowed art enthusiasts to gain deeper insights into the artist’s creative process and way of thinking.
In the exhibition “Welcome to Gourmet Plaza,” visitors can experience the vibrant energy created as the artist brings together information and food in her work.
Artist I-Chien Wu is adept at using collage as her creative approach, integrating printed materials collected from daily life with layers of paint to produce abstract works that blur the boundary between authenticity and illusion.
The exhibition will be accompanied by an “Art Knock” lecture on September 17, where the artist will personally share her creative journey and artistic vision, offering audiences a deeper understanding of the cultural context behind her works.
