Jointly Created by Jimmy Liao and Aaron Nieh, the Yilan Children's Festival "Spins" into Summer

▲ Jimmy Liao and Aaron Nieh join forces, giving this year’s Yilan Children's Festival an artistic touch. (Photo / Provided by Yilan County Government Cultural Affairs Bureau)

Reported by Chen Tzu-yin / Taipei

The much-anticipated “Yilan Children's Festival” this summer is heating up！This year’s theme is “Spin,” and the organizers have brought together design master Aaron Nieh and beloved illustrator Jimmy Liao to craft the 18th edition of the festival with a strong artistic vibe. Aaron Nieh’s large promotional vehicle also made its first public appearance on the 19th, with the cartoon characters featured on it serving as this year’s “mascots.” Additionally, what you might not know is that well-known picture book author Jimmy Liao is a true “Yilan native,” and this year he has used his artwork for the first time to build a brand-new “Story Kingdom” for the Children's Festival.

The large promotional vehicle designed by Aaron Nieh features seven animal characters: “Selfie Crab, Water Gun Lantern Fish, Seabream Uncle, Pufferfish Brother, Diabolo Dog, Good Shrimp Grandpa, and Snail Tank.” These playful creatures have hopped onto a ready-mix concrete truck, spinning and tumbling along in line with the festival’s “Spin” theme. The vehicle is scheduled to tour the Greater Taipei area on three weekends: June 22, 23, 29, 30, and July 6. Jimmy Liao has also created the “Spin into Jimmy Liao’s Children’s Picture Book Museum,” selecting two books—“The Monster Who Ate Darkness” and “I Can Do Anything!”—as the exhibition themes, allowing visitors to step into the shoes of the protagonists and journey through a fantastical world of picture books.

Yilan County Magistrate Lin Tsong-shyan stated that the Children's Festival is the county’s flagship summer event, and just like migratory birds, visitors from all over naturally flock to it when the time comes. Over the past 18 years, the festival has continually reinvented itself to ensure that everyone leaves with the most wonderful summer memories.

The Yilan Children's Festival will run for over a month from July 6 to August 25 at the Wushuang River Water Park. Pre-sale tickets are currently on hot offer: weekend individual tickets are NT$300, and weekday tickets are NT$200; weekend child tickets are NT$200, and weekday tickets are NT$100. Exclusive cardholder discounts are available through Yushan Bank. The electronic ticketing system will be open for pre-sales until July 5, and tickets can be purchased at the three major convenience store chains: 7-Eleven, FamilyMart, and Hi-Life.

In addition, to make it easier for out-of-town visitors to reach the festival site, the organizers are providing direct bus services from Taipei to the Children's Festival venue, operated by Capital Bus Line 1570 and KGMT Bus Line 1917. Capital Bus has planned a total of 16 round trips, with a one-way fare of NT$120 and a round-trip fare of NT$240. KGMT Bus offers 20 round trips, with a one-way fare of NT$135 and a round-trip fare of NT$243.