Travel Weekly / “Fallen Girls” Talk About “The Little Things Beyond the Lens” & Tulip Season Begins

Travel Center / Reported from Taipei

Can’t plan anything for the warming weekend? If you’re thinking of heading outdoors, this week Xingtan Fairy Valley features a rainbow flower field that looks like a colorful palette—perfect for soaking in the romance. The “Fallen Girls” are also holding a photography-themed talk in downtown Taipei, offering a peek into the mysterious world behind the camera. For exhibition-goers, the “Wool Felt Mini Exhibition” and “Envisioning the Netherlands: Future Design” are also taking place this week!

[The Fallen Girls – The Important Little Things Beyond the Lens]

▲ The photographic works of the “Fallen Girls” have sparked a craze in the online world. (Photo / Provided by UDN Media Lion Travel Lecture Hall)

Karren has created a stir in the online world with her series of “Fallen Girls” photography works. With stiff poses lying prone before certain events or scenes, these puzzling actions—just “quirky behavior by young people”? As more works appear, a more comprehensive photographic concept begins to emerge...

Not just behind the lens. By directly engaging with the subjects of their photography, they use an unignorable, rigid posture as a form of social activism, focusing on subjects such as working-class individuals, stray dogs, abandoned cultural heritage sites, and marginalized groups. Due to the uniqueness of their photographic themes and the participatory approach, professionals from various fields—including musicians, tourism bureaus, and social welfare organizations—have actively collaborated across disciplines to help highlight their message, achieving excellent results. Their works have been invited to major exhibitions multiple times, showcasing their forward-thinking and distinctive style. In fact, Karren has co-founded a professional photography studio with expert photographers for three years now, offering customized photography services.

Date: January 12, 2013 (Saturday) 14:30–16:30
Venue: Yongkang Humanities Space (3F, No. 207, Section 2, Xinyi Road, Zhongzheng District, Taipei City)
Fee: NT$300 (includes Americano or tea)

[Xingtan Fairy Valley Tulip Season]

▲ A beautiful and romantic sea of flowers is starting to bloom. (Photo / FromCity Pass)

No need to travel abroad to see tulips anymore. Xingtan Fairy Valley, which cultivates over 2,000 varieties from around the world, has continuously bred and planted tulips for ten years. After experimenting to select the best and eliminate the inferior, they now grow over 60 varieties suitable for Taiwan’s climate. Xingtan Fairy Valley presents its annual tulip season from January to March, earning it the reputation as the “Hometown of Taiwanese Tulips” and even hosting the world’s earliest tulip season.

It’s worth noting that viewing tulips in the Netherlands is a completely different experience compared to the flower fields in Xingtan Fairy Valley. The Netherlands showcases tulips in large, blocky, spectacular fields through mass production, while Xingtan Fairy Valley presents a vibrant, colorful palette of layered fields, displaying the rich diversity of a rainbow flower garden. Small paths wind through the fields, accompanied by flowing water, where visitors can observe realistic scenes of gardeners working, resembling a utopian, idyllic life. Guests immerse themselves among the flowers, strolling along the paths to add even more happiness and romance.

Event Period: December 29, 2012 – March 24, 2013
Event Venue: Xingtan Fairy Valley (No. 1, 8th Neighborhood, 5, Shanggao?, Changxing Village, Fuxing Township, Taoyuan County)
Admission: NT$350

 [“Strange? Not Strange” Wool Felt Mini Exhibition]

▲ Wool Felt Mini Exhibition. (Photo / FromCity Pass)

Without language or fixed scripts, they are peculiar yet real, innocent yet brave, faithfully showcasing the hidden pursuit of freedom, fearlessness of adventure,
and the childlike belief that dreams will come true. They treat the whole world like a colorful circus!

Exhibition Period: December 20, 2012 – January 30, 2013
Hours: 13:00 – 21:00 (Closed Tuesdays)
Venue: 1, Lane 34, Hezuo Street, South District, Taichung City (QI Apartment)

[Made In Brainport Envisioning the Netherlands: Future Design]
The exhibits are divided into six major categories: technology, well-being, environment, agriculture, local culture, and crafts. The works are further categorized into rational and emotional aspects based on their design concepts, presenting the future life and urban blueprint envisioned by curator Zuzanna Skalska: in lush green parks stand giant tulips—“Tulpi” (designed by Marco Manders), the national flower of the Netherlands, resilient to wind, sun, and rain. The blooming petals serve as seats for people to rest on, and when unoccupied, the petals close, not only freeing up space but also keeping the seats dry and clean.

In line with the growing emphasis on environmental sustainability, Philips has created a “home ecosystem” that saves energy and recycles all waste, transforming it back into resources. In a high-tech kitchen, kitchen waste is no longer dirty but is processed in a biodegradation tank to produce biogas, which becomes an energy source for cooking, lighting, and more in the household. The heat generated during the decomposition process is another usable form of energy, and even the bacteria required for decomposition become producers of ambient light—a truly incredible concept.

“Envisioning the Netherlands: Future Design Made in Brainport” showcases the collective design ingenuity of the Brainport region. To date, this exhibition has toured internationally, appearing at events such as Istanbul Design Week, Dutch Design Week, and Munich Creative Business Week.

Exhibition dates: December 4, 2012 – February 17, 2013
Exhibition hours: Tuesday to Sunday, 9:30 AM to 5:30 PM
Ticket prices: NT$50 (full price) / NT$30 (concession)
Exhibition venue: Concept Zone, Taiwan Design Museum