Abandoned Buses Get a Makeover: Taipei’s Landscape Public Art Festival Kicks Off

▲ Huashan Grassland serves as the main hub for landscape art, inviting three art teams to transform abandoned buses. The image shows the “Street Music Hall – Boom ba la boom.” (Photo / fromthe 2015 Taipei Landscape Public Art Festival Facebook page; the same below)

By Travel Center / Comprehensive Report

You may have heard of installation art, but what about landscape art? Unlike past events that passively waited for public participation with limited interactivity, the“Taipei, Watch!: 2015 Taipei Landscape Public Art Festival,” hosted by the Taipei City Government’s Department of Cultural Affairs, officially launchedon October 7. Additionally, in collaboration with Green Light Theater and the No. 235 bus, a specially designed “Mobile Theater Museum” bus was created to take citizens on a journey through Taipei to explore landscape art.

This year’s theme is“WHEN CITY GOES TO THE PEOPLE”, inviting artists to showcase their creativity. Huashan Grassland serves as the main hub for landscape art, where three abandoned buses have been transformed into the “Street Music Hall,” “Public Kitchen,” and “Citizen Sports Field,” each with its own unique features, attracting numerous visitors to stop and take photos.

Among them, artist Big King, who gained attention in an international graffiti exhibition, created the “Street Music Hall – Boom ba la boom,” combining graffiti art with hip-hop music. It features a vibrant visual of portable speakers, showcasing the potential of integrating Taipei’s street trend subculture, urban landscapes, and citizens’ lives.

▲ A public kitchen in the city – the Urban Garden Bus.

Designed by Ren Xinying, winner of the Taipei Urban Design Award, the “Urban Kitchen – Urban Garden Bus” combines the ideas of an urban farm and an experimental kitchen. Using recycled materials, it presents the concept of “build your own kitchen,” promoting the new idea of “grow your own food” through edible landscapes, bringing greenery into everyday urban settings.

▲ The Urban Garden Bus integrates the concepts of an urban farm and an experimental kitchen, showcasing the idea of “build your own kitchen.”

The emerging spatial design team BY.ARCH created the “Citizen Sports Field – Kinetic Converter,” using the old platform of Huashan Station as a pedal and incorporating urban landscapes into the redesigned bus, transforming how people experience urban environments through sports. Additionally, visitors can climb onto the roof of the bus to enjoy the fun of spatial transformation.

▲ The bus turned into artwork vividly presents citizens’ lives, shown here is the “Citizen Sports Field – Kinetic Converter.”

The Department of Cultural Affairs noted that during the public art festival, art buses transformed into “Landscape-Traveling” performance theaters are available every weekend. Green Light Theater has arranged performances by the Green Light Performance School, planning three routes: the “Yuanshan Line,” “Beitou Line,” and “Wanhua Line,” taking citizens through alleys to explore Taipei’s natural and cultural landscapes.

▲ Green Light Theater, in collaboration with the No. 235 bus, designed the “Mobile Theater Museum” bus to lead citizens on a journey through Taipei and explore its landscapes.

In addition, the organizers have planned a series of rich activities. The opening carnival on October 10 features performances by well-known bands such as Huangs? and others, as well as engaging art workshops and interactive experiences. For more details, you can check theirFacebook page.

2015 Taipei Landscape Public Art Festival
Dates: October 7 – December 6
Location: URS27 Huashan Grassland (No. 27, Linsen North Road, Zhongzheng District, Taipei City, Exit 1 of Shandao Temple MRT Station)
Notes: The main exhibition area at Huashan Grassland is open to the public on weekdays. The interior of the art bus is open to the public every weekend starting October 10 from 10:00 – 17:00.