Interpreting historical memory through contemporary aesthetics: Grandma’s House – Women’s Rights Museum on Dihua Street

▲ Grandma’s House – Women’s Rights Museum has become the most striking landmark on Dihua Street (Photo/Netizen)shengming_wu(Please do not reproduce without permission to avoid copyright infringement.)

By Peng Huaiyu / Comprehensive report

On Taipei’s Dihua Street stands a century-old Western-style building. The bold Chinese characters for “Grandma,” calligraphed by artist Dong Yangzhi, and reeds illuminated by light that appear to sway in the breeze form the most eye-catching signboard in the area. This is the “Grandma’s House – Peace and Women’s Rights Museum.” Since its opening last year, the museum has remained free of charge, relying on voluntary donations from visitors to support its operating expenses.

▲ Grandma’s House – Women’s Rights Museum officially opened in full on March 8 (Photo/Netizen)vivianlee627(Please do not reproduce without permission to avoid copyright infringement.)

“Grandma’s House” is Taiwan’s first memorial dedicated to the topic of “comfort women.” It showcases historical materials about Taiwan’s comfort women human rights movement, survivor life stories, artifacts, as well as the artistic creations of the grandmothers. As time passes, “comfort women” is no longer just a historical term but represents individual stories of resilience, love, and courage. Through the preservation efforts of the memorial, more people can learn about this painful chapter of history.

▲ “Song of the Reed” is a major highlight of the exhibition, not only photogenic but also deeply meaningful (Photo/Netizen)aboutwu(Please do not reproduce without permission to avoid copyright infringement.)

Spanning two floors and 150 ping (approximately 496 square meters), the main exhibition area is located on the second floor, featuring permanent exhibits, a memorial space for the grandmothers, and a women’s empowerment space. The “Song of the Reed” installation art is a major highlight—aside from being very photogenic, it also carries deep meaning. The artwork consists of 2,000 transparent tubes symbolizing reeds and 59 metal lamps, representing over 2,000 unidentified Taiwanese comfort women and 59 known ones. When you place your palm under one of the metal lamps, the name of a comfort woman is projected onto your hand through the light. Visitors are encouraged to try this.

▲ The AMA Café on the first floor interprets historical wounds with modern design aesthetics (Photo/Netizen)jimmychang(Please do not reproduce without permission to avoid copyright infringement.)

The AMA Café on the first floor is surprisingly unique, inviting visitors to explore further. Its décor interprets modern design aesthetics using both sides of metal and perforated techniques. Light filters through variously sized dots between copper panels, creating one side patterned with birds and the other with fish. Drinks such as coffee range in price from NT$70 to NT$130.

▲ The café on the first floor uses metal and perforated techniques, allowing light to filter through dots and faintly display patterns of birds on one side and fish on the other (Photo/Netizen)vivianlee627(Please do not reproduce without permission to avoid copyright infringement.)

There are currently only three surviving comfort women grandmothers in Taiwan. They strive to compose moving melodies with their life stories through their creative works. While visiting, one can empathize with the trauma brought by history but can’t help but admire the strong resilience of the grandmothers. “Grandma’s House – Peace and Women’s Rights Museum” also states that the establishment of the museum is not meant to stir conflict, but rather to turn historical wounds into foundations for peace, in pursuit of a future built on respect, equality, and freedom from violence.

▲ “Tears of Pearl” expresses the silent tears of the grandmothers through reeds and transparent bottles (Photo/Netizen)xox162(Please do not reproduce without permission to avoid copyright infringement.)

Grandma’s House – Peace and Women’s Rights Museum
Address: No. 256, Section 1, Dihua Street, Datong District, Taipei City
Phone: 02 2553 7133
Business Hours: AMA MUSEUM 10:00–17:00; AMA Café 10:00–18:00 (Closed on Mondays and the day after national holidays; open as usual during national holidays and consecutive holidays)