Miniatures in Taiwan

Rose Mansion by Reginald Twigg

The reason I wanted to go to Taiwan was to see the Miniatures Museum in Taipei.  Opened in 1997, this is a private museum built to house the collection of Lin Wen Jen and his wife. They had been collecting miniatures picked up on their travels for years and have commissioned major pieces from some of the world's best miniature artists. There are hundreds of displays of dollhouses, room boxes, historical back street scenes, toy soldiers, fantasyscapes and sculptured dolls. There's a miniature Buckingham Palace and also this enormous pink house called Rose Mansion which believe it or not was the PhD thesis of one Reginald Twigg. (I think I feel another advanced degree coming on).This 1885 mansion was once a Los Angeles landmark, since demolished. Twigg was studying the history of architecture and constructing this house was part of his dissertation. His original sponsors were in a tragic accident killing the husband and seriously injuring the wife, and the Lins stepped in to support the project through its completion. Historical research and construction of the 1:12 scale house took over 4 years. Mr. Lin considers this piece to be the center of the collection, pleased he could have contributed to its creation. It greats you as you walk into the first room of the museum and he uses it in his logo. Just looking at all those exterior wood tiles makes me laugh. I too put them on one by one on the roof of my one room witch's house, a Halloween project. It took me over a year to finish the roof. All my projects, no matter what they are or done in what medium, take forever. It might be called attention deficit.

Halloween Witch's House, since completed. It only comes out for the month of October.

Click on any of these pictures to see a larger, clearer view.

Within hours of landing in Taipei, we were at the museum, and I was beyond thrilled to see included in the collection about half a dozen room boxes created by the American miniaturist Brooke Tucker. I have admired her work for years and years but until now had only seen it in magazines.

This Brooke Tucker boy's room was commissioned by Lin Wen-Jen for his grandson. I had seen it before in a magazine and couldn't believe my eyes when there it was, "live" in the museum.

This miniature miniature train set in the corner actually works!

The first two pictures are where I first saw this room box - I scanned it from a 1998 issue of Miniature Collector magazine. The darker pictures are ones I took through the plexiglass of the museum display last week. My miniature jones goes way way back. I still have issues from 1988 of the now defunct Nutshell News (or Nutcase News as Maristella used to call it, and she'll get no argument from me). However the real beginnings are to be found when I was 8 or so, when I built a two-room apartment on a shelf (room boxes?) for Angelique and Satoochi. I never played with Barbie, only with these 2. They are now spending their retirement on proud display with their 2nd generation buddies from the 1990's. Can't wait for the fad to come around again.

Angelique and Satoochi

More museum room boxes from Brooke Tucker (unfortunately the colors aren't true, lighting and plexiglass not being kind to me, but you get the drift):

This sunken living room scene was the largest room box Brooke had created. It took her a year to complete. Compared to my creations that is blisteringly fast!

Saltwater aquarium. I don't THINK it works! You never know.

I went to Taipei with a half-full carry-on. I came back with a still not full carry-on. This is a first. Usually I have to buy another suitcase for all the loot I buy or at the very least my carry-on is stuffed and so heavy I have to check it. So why? Nothing to buy in Taiwan? Au contraire, I brought home miniatures from the National Palace Museum gift store. It won't all fit in my Treasure Shop so I'm contemplating what kind of new scene this might all fit beautifully in.

Meanwhile here's more pictures of the almost (never) finished Treasure Shop (Little Shop of Treasures).

A Daring Raid on Taipei

The night before we were supposed to leave for Taiwan I was awake almost all night listening to the wind against our windows. A typhoon was passing through to the north making me crazy at the thought of our trip ahead. At 6:00 in the morning, instead of getting in the car as planned to go to the airport, I was on the phone to Philippine Airlines, paying them NOT to fly that day.

The next day was fine however, and off we went, an easy 2-hour flight (Toronto to Halifax, Vancouver to San Francisco). Taipei International Airport wins my prize for the best, by far, immigration process. There were no line-ups. Zero. By the way, the worst, by far, is Istanbul, followed by the non-resident line in Vancouver and Bangkok.

After checking into our (great) little hotel, we hit the sidewalk, off to the Miniatures Museum which was one of our reasons for being there. On the way we decided to look for lunch and ended up in the back street where there were a string of little noodle shops catering to office workers in the nearby buildings. Not a single word of English on any sign, but marvelous sights and smells. We ended up going to the one place that at least had a picture of a bowl of soup in front and ended up having a wonderful conversation with the owner/cooks about what was for lunch. This was the first of quite a few conversations we had where neither party had a single word of the other's language. (I exaggerate. I actually know 2 words of Chinese). Somehow it all just works out and if you're really hopelessly stuck at some point understanding, it all ends up in a shrug and a smile. Kind of like my mother-in-law who is hard of hearing - when she really can't hear after trying mightily, she shrugs, shakes her head and smiles widely. All is well.

Of course, we went to the Botanical Gardens, an oasis in the middle of the city, frequented by retired folk and school groups, in mid-morning.

Malaysian Night Heron at the Taipei Botanical Gardens

The Metro was spotless and orderly and extremely easy to navigate.

Venerable Master Hsing Yun, Monk Caligrapher

Longshan Temple

Another reason we were there was to visit the Museum of Looted Chinese Antiquities, more officially known as the National Palace Museum. In 1949 when the Nationalists were defeated by the Communists in the Civil War, Chiang Kai Shek, as he left for Formosa (Taiwan),  took whatever was left of the contents of Shanghai museum with him, having earlier taken what was in the Beijing palace and museum. The really heavy bronzes remain today in the lower level of the Shanghai Museum. Of course some say that given what happened later with that genocidal bastard Mao Tse Tung and his so-called cultural revolution perhaps the ancient artifacts were protected in their new home on Ilha Formosa (which means "beautiful island" in Portugese).

The National Palace Museum in Taipei was great. They have a lot of fun multi-media stuff. For example, in the Chinese flower painting exhibit where the images are intricately detailed and delicate looking  and don't show all that well displayed under glass, they have set up little screens where you can zoom in on the painting on display (well virtually). You can actually "play" with the art and appreciate it so much more. A gallery like that I'd usually be in and out in less than a minute, not particularly drawn to look closer. Instead, I stayed awhile and had fun. The jade gallery was also amazing - I had no idea there were so many different colors, textures and patterns of jade. The Chinese jade artists (and others) seem to love to carve the most tiny and intricate creations. Miniature astonishments. It was heaven. On their website they have ten pictures from their jade collection on display and when you select one it takes you to a zoom function where you can see all over the detail beautifully.

One day we decided to leave the concrete city and go to a seaside town at the end of one of the metro lines. The town, Tansui or Danshui, is located at the mouth of a river which drains into the Taiwan strait, that separates the island from China. There are a couple of forts there from times past and we climbed way up a hill to visit one of them, Fort San Domingo, prompting me to ask, huffing and puffing, "why do they always have to put forts up on a hill?" (ha ha). A bit of a surprise awaited us. An exhibition about Canada:

Former British Consulate at Fort San Domingo in Tansui

 Yes, Canada=Hockey. No point in arguing. How about those Canucks!

Dr. Mackay, the inspiration for this exhibition, seems to be famous in Taiwan. He was a missionary from Ontario who arrived in Taiwan in 1872 and spent 29 years there. Here's what the exhibit had to say about him:

The first interaction of Dr. Mackay and the indigenous peoples in mountains was direct and friendly, which moved Mackay to start preaching among the indigenous tribes despite the danger and difficulties. The activities of Dr. Mackay and his followers in the Kavalan tribes usually started with visiting ill people from door to door. Then, they stood in a plaza or on the temple stairs and sang the songs of praise. Next, they pulled patients' teeth, gave out medicine, and preached at the end of their charity work. Because of Dr. Mackay's missionary work, he found people who were suffering from illnesses and relieved their pain. He won people's love and friendship for the mission. Hence, the Kavalan people became Christians in less than two decades.

Museum of Tansui fishiegoodies - Fisherman's Wharf

One thing I've noticed in my travels - there is a museum for EVERYTHING.

On our last morning before leaving for the airport we hopped on the Metro a couple of stops to visit the weekend Holiday Jade Market and the adjacent Holiday Flower Market, huge enclosed areas under an overpass. During the week the area is a car parking lot but on Saturdays and Sundays it is totally transformed into eye candy markets. I loved the Flower Market with its neat and immaculate open booths, where Taipei families and couples stroll leisurely along the main walkway, many with dogs on leash, browsing or buying shrubs and flowering plants for their gardens or terraces. The colors, and much more, took my breath away:

Royal Wedding

The last time, 30 years ago, it was 2:00 in the morning when I woke up to join the rest of the world to watch The Royal Wedding, sitting on the floor with my roommate Kelly, glued to the tube. This time, the Manila time zone worked in our favor as it was a most civilized 6:00 p.m. on a Friday evening. Loved it all, of course. Like so many I have a very soft spot in my heart for Her Boys. Much better dress this time too. On the new Duchess, I mean. He looks good too.

The Queen even stole my look in her yellow finery. I was perched on the leather recliner drinking root beer dressed in yellow pedal-pushers, yellow T-shirt and yellow flip flops. (Such is my normal attire in the fierce light of the tropics). I didn't begrudge her. She looked great.

I did notice something a little curious. Among all the clergy (guys) on stage were two women, nuns it would appear. I couldn't help but notice that amidst all the wedding finery, these two gals were dressed in grim, boring gray. The guys, on the other hand, were strutting their stuff in gold and red brocade embellished with ribbon, embroidery, buttons - the whole shabang. I wonder why the nuns get stuck with drab.

A good time was worn had by all.

Princess Beatrice

Flying Colors

Jon Anderson- Fimo clay

The first time I walked on to a Thai Air plane, going from Manila to Bangkok, I flipped out. Visual overload. The cabin was a complete riot of color. The seats and carpeting was a mix of deep purples, fuchsias and golds and the female flight attendants were dressed in gorgeous long skirts of woven silk topped with snug fitted jackets or shorter purple suits with bright pink blouses. I thought I'd died and gone to heaven. It's the colors man. As you land and taxi to the terminal, you are presented with a corsage of 3 purple orchids.

That was almost four years ago, only a week or so after arriving in Asia. Thai Air was my first taste of Thailand and since then Thai design has always blown me away. Even the airport is, well, as wonderful as an airport can be, with heaps of orchids everywhere and huge statues of costumed performers arranged in vignettes of scenes from the Ramayama. I love the gold kineree statues  and the bursts of bougainvillea along the highway on the way in to Bangkok. Once there it just gets better and better with fantastic art and interior design greeting you everywhere you look. Or so it seems.

On this latest trip on Thai Air going from Manila to Vientiane, Laos, I stumbled on to the plane after the usual excruciating airport experience, sat down, fussed with my stuff, pulled out noise-canceling headphones, silk wrap - all the usual in-flight stuff - and it was a full ten minutes before I remembered where I was and looked around at the surroundings. I hadn't even noticed any color at all but there it still was. Oblivious. Am I getting jaded? Am I looking without seeing? (Moron)

I've been visualizing Thailand and Laos as colors. Thailand is vibrant, the brights of the color wheel. Last time I was in Bangkok I ordered dozens of silk pillowcases in a whole range of gorgeousness that I associate with the place and that I completely adore. They are piled on couches and beds and we change them up every month or so, finding that the different hues change the look of the room in interesting ways and highlight certain art pieces differently.

The bed doesn't really look like this, there is SOME editing of color. I collected pillows  from elsewhere to line up for their portrait.

Laos is full of color as well but it is a different palette. Still rich, it is more subtle and, I feel, more connected with the earth. I see Laos as earth-centered, with its mountains and forests and rivers and gardens. Terra cotta and smoke, temple maroon and gold. Laos produces the most outstanding silk weaving and we find outselves collecting beautiful pieces on each and ever trip over these past years. The silk threads used in the weaving are colored with natural dyes in our weavings at least. Turmeric root, rosewood bark, annato seeds, betel nut, breadfruit, ebony tree berries, tamarind leaves, indigo, iron nails and lac insect scum are all used to boil the silk thread into the most wonderful colors.

I've been doing an inventory of our Lao silk weaving collection (along with our other possessions) in preparation for the coming  move and have been photographing each piece. (I'm using what is turning out to be a pretty good inventory program, developed by a guy in northern Virginia, for Mac only, available from him directly or through the Apple App Store). Here are close-ups of some of the wall hangings:

The Colors of Laos...