By / MOOK Scenic Spots Editorial Team
Chiayi City’s prominent public art piece “Song of the Forest” has regained its original splendor thanks to the efforts of its original creator, artist Wang Wen-zhi, and his 20-person team over the past three months after being closed for renovation since November 2017.
“Song of the Forest” has won the “National Excellence in Construction Award” and is a popular photo spot for visitors. (Photo / Forestry Bureau, Chiayi Forest District Office; the same below)
The overall artwork evokes the imagery of Alishan, allowing visitors to stand by the windows to watch and listen to the trains of the West Coast Main Line entering and leaving the city, as well as the appearance of the rattan corridor, imagining the sight of trains entering and exiting tunnels in Alishan. Crafted from materials such as wood, railway tracks, steel, cast bronze, rattan, and stone, it offers visitors an immersive natural experience and establishes a new landmark for Alishan’s forestry village.
Visitors can sit inside the artwork and enjoy a moment of tranquility.
“Song of the Forest” blends the beauty of traditional wooden architecture with that of Western classical buildings. Through reflections on sculpture, architecture, art, culture, and history, it marks a distinctive landscape art that reflects Chiayi City’s heritage as the hometown of timber, along with its natural forestry and cultural history.