Hello there, it’s your host Sharon Lin and welcome back to Come Along. Today’s show is super exciting as you’ll hear from 2 of the curators of this year’s 2023 Taipei Biennial, Reem Shadid and Brian Kuan Wood. This year, the Taipei Biennial will be from November 18, 2023-March 24, 2024 at the Taipei Fine Arts Museum. This is one of the biggest, if not the biggest art event happening in Taipei in 2023-2024. This year the Taipei Biennial brings together over 50 artists from all around the world, including from Palestine, Indonesia, Germany, Lebanon, Spain, Mexico, Sri Lanka, and of course Taiwan, and the list goes on. Trust me, you wouldn’t want to miss it! Make sure to check out the 2023 Taipei Biennial official website and their welcoming page.

In this episode, Reem and Brian will share with us how the team nailed down this year’s theme, Small World, and a bigger picture of what people could expect from this year’s exhibit and programs. Stay tuned for part 2 of our conversation coming out next Monday where we will name drop some artists we’re excited about with you. Stay tuned! And follow us on @rtienglish on Instagram for upcoming interview highlights.

Without further ado, hit play and let’s welcome Reem Shadid and Brian Kuan Wood.

Hey there, it’s Sharon and welcome back to Come Along. For today’s show, I sat down with Alejandra Sánchez Mack, chief curator of the art exhibit, Our Second Home. The exhibit took place at the first floor gallery at Chiang Kai-Shek Memorial Hall in September of 2023. Go follow @oursecondhome.taiwan on Instagram to learn more!

It showcased artworks from 15 artists from Guatemala, Belize, Mexico, Paraguay, and Taiwan. The exhibit is organized by the Embassy of Guatemala in Taiwan, Taiwan’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs, and the Central America Trade Office. Go check out a previous episode on Our Second Home where I interviewed artists from the exhibit.

What brought Alejandra to Taiwan from Guatemala? What informs her curatorial work? What’s the Latin American art scene like in Taiwan now? How could art connect people from different cultures? Hit play and join our chat.

A place hits different when you’re a resident living there vs being a visitor. Today I sat down with Mick, who was born in Taiwan and had spent several years in Thailand during his childhood, about his experience. What is it like growing up in Thailand as a Taiwanese kid? What curriculum did the international school Mick went to offer? What was it like picking up Thai as a foreigner? Mick recently also traveled back to Thailand, a place where he once called home, as a visitor. What is “home?” We also compared some differences between school life in Thailand and Taiwan from our own experiences. Hit play and join our chat.

Hello there, it’s your host Sharon Lin. Today, we’re heading together to the National Human Rights Museum. Currently, there are 2 branches of the Museum open to the public: the Jingmei White Terror Memorial Park, in New Taipei City, Taiwan, and the other branch, the Green Island White Terror Memorial Park, located on Green Island, one of Taiwan’s outlying islands. You can head to a previous episode of Come Along where I introduce you to Green Island.

In this episode, you’ll hear from the museum’s director, Hong Shi-fang (洪世芳). In our interview, he shared with me what visitors could see, unforgettable stories from political victims of the White Terror, educational programs the public could join, and more!

There will be more related episodes coming soon on Come Along and That’s Debatable. Stay tuned!

Check out the official website of the National Human Rights Museum for more information.

Hey you, today we’re picking up where we left off with jazz musician, Roger Lin. Make sure to listen to part 1 if you haven’t. In this episode, we’ll talk more about improvisation in jazz, Roger’s recording his first album“Whisper of the Isolated Ones”in 2020, which was nominated for The Best Jazz Album and The Best Jazz Composition for the 12th Golden Indie Music Award in 2021, the highest award for jazz category in Taiwan, and his experience as a Taiwanese person in jazz in the U.S. Let’s hop right in.

Follow Roger Lin’s work: https://www.rogerlinmusic.com/

Roger Lin is a jazz guitarist, composer, and improviser from Taiwan. He’s currently based in Brooklyn, NY, in the U.S. Roger has performed in many venues in and around Brooklyn, Massuthusetts, Japan, and of course, Taiwan. He's played with musicians Simone Wilson, Moshe Elmakias, and Phil Grenadier. Today, he’ll share with us his time at Berklee College of Music, jazz composition, his debut album in 2020 “Whisper of the Isolated Ones" and what's next for him. Stay tuned for part 2 coming out next week!

Follow Roger Lin’s work: https://www.rogerlinmusic.com/

Hey there, if one of your childhood dreams is becoming a marine biologist, this episode is for you. On today’s Come Along, we will be talking to marine biologist, Dr. Aziz J. Mulla, who’s been working in Taiwan for nearly 10 years. What was the spark for him to step into this field? Furthermore, Dr. Mulla is a coral reef ecologist. How is it like doing research on corals? How much time does he spend in the lab vs in the ocean as a marine biologist? What does scientific diving entail? What are some fascinating traits about the waters surrounding Taiwan? This is an episode you wouldn't want to miss. Hit play and let’s find out!

Dr. Aziz J. Mulla is originally from the U.K. and has been a postdoctoral scholar at Academia Sinica and is currently working at National Taiwan University. He’s also been a scientific diver for many years.

Follow Dr. Aziz J. Mulla's work: Twitter @AzizJMulla and Instagram @zeezymulla

Make sure to check out Instagram accounts @sharonlin_human and @rtienglish for more highlights! Also check out this episode on my other show That's Debatable where Dr. Aziz J. Mulla talks about human's impact on the ocean.

Hi there, it’s your host Sharon Lin. On September 8, I went to the opening of a wonderful exhibit, Our Second Home, an exhibition of Guatemalan and Latin American Artists in Taiwan. It will be on till September 19, 2023, at the first floor gallery of Chiang Kai-shek Memorial Hall. The exhibit showcases artworks from 15 artists from Guatemala, Belize, Mexico, Paraguay, and Taiwan. The exhibit is organized by the Embassy of Guatemala in Taiwan, Taiwan’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs, and the Central America Trade Office. In this episode, you’ll hear from the chief curator, Alejandra Sanchez, and artists: Mar Zavala (Mexico), Randy Carcamo (Belize), and Javier Leon (Guatemala). Make sure to check out our Instagram @rtienglish for more highlights! Also, head to their Instagram @oursecondhome.taiwan for more content about the artists.

Huge thank you to everyone who spared some time chatting with me that day. Hope you enjoy this episode.

The artists featured in Our Second Home are as follows:

Guatemala: Jonathan Ardon, Carlos Lopez Ayerdi, Javier Leon, Daniela Davila, Jerusha Sanchez, Alejandra Laguardia

Belize: Karina Bol-Torres, Taylor Bood-Usher, Randy Carcamo

Mexico: Raúl Gasque, Celina Hoyos, Marcos Monroy, Mar Zavala

Paraguay: Nathalia Balmoriz

Taiwan: Johnny Chen

Hey you, it’s your host Sharon Lin. Welcome to part 2 of my interview with curator Huang Yulun (黃郁倫) of the National Museum of Prehistory in Taitung. Make sure to listen to part 1 of our chat in case you missed it.

We’ll have a closer look at the Museum’s Austronesian Hall, curated by Yulun, and learn about the stories behind several powerful displays visitors could see. We also touched on Taiwan’s role in the communities of Austronesian languages. Enjoy!

Hey you, it’s your host Sharon Lin. Today, we’re heading to the National Museum of Prehistory in Taitung (on the east coast of Taiwan). I’m joined by one of the Museum’s curator Huang Yulun (黃郁倫), who’s here to tell us more about the new look of the Museum after their major renovation earlier this year. What’s the significance of the Museum's current location? (Hint: It’s related to important archaeological discoveries nearby!) What exhibits and collections can visitors see? Let’s find out. Stay tuned for part 2 coming out next week! Check out latest news from the National Museum of Prehistory on their official website.

Make sure to check out our Instagram @rtienglish for more photos and videos of the National Museum of Prehistory.