From 1992 to 1997, the New Taipei County Cultural Center initiated a reform of the “Taipei County Art Exhibition”—a chapter of experimental art often described as “the greatest carnival of the late 20th century” and emblematic of the “wild 90s,” paving the way for a series of avant-garde art movements such as environmental art, noise art, post-industrial art, trash art, and religious art festivals. These localized artistic actions, rooted in the spirit of reform, served as a continuation of the social movements of the 1980s.

If the 1980s saw art engaging with society, turning it into an opportunity to nurture a democratic and pluralistic public space—thereby integrating art into the social sphere—then the 1990s were defined by a contemporary spirit imbued with rebellious, plural modernity. This era sought to dismantle the constraint of the art establishment, and pioneer new avenues for artistic experimentation. It was during this time that the 1990s opened up new possibilities, allowing art, the environment, sound, and vernacular belief to coalesce, facilitating a contemporary context grounded in locality and the relational field. This shift resonated with the spirit of Western movements from the 1960s, such as environmental art, conceptual art, land art, boundary-pushing art practices, and cross-disciplinary integration. The development of the relational field in the 1990s marked a new phase in contemporary art, shaping a new cultural landscape that intertwined environmental, ecological, and local dimensions.

This exhibition takes a research-based approach, presenting archives from pioneering exhibitions in New Taipei County, works from the museum collection, and newly commissioned pieces. It brings together artists who respond to the historical context of New Taipei’s avant-garde exhibitions of the 1990s, including Wang Fujui, Wu Mali, Lin Chi-wei, Yao Jui-chung, Kao Jun-honn, Huang Ming-chuan, and Liu Chen-hsiang. Their works evoke the radical spirit of the 1990s from a 21st-century perspective, revisiting the cross-disciplinary, diverse, and internationally connected practices of that era.

The polluted riverways back in the day came to stand as visible ecological traumas. The exhibition history of the 1990s beckons us to look back at the cultural terrain of this land. It is through archaeology, geology, geography, anthropology, and curatorial practice that Taiwan began to reflect on the land upon which humanity depends—tracing the history of rivers, the civilizations that flourished along their banks, and the cultural geography they etched, ultimately discerning the historical signs of a collective process of self-naming.

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關係場域：90年代新北文化地景
Relational Field: The Cultural Landscape of New Taipei in the 1990s

｜Curator｜ WANG Pin-hua
｜Artists｜ WANG Fujui, WU Mali, LIN Chi-wei, YAO Jui-Chung, KAO Jun-honn, HUANG Ming-chuan, LIU Chen-hsiang
｜Oral Archive Providers｜ Sisy CHEN, CHIEN Ming-hui

｜Supervisor｜ Ministry of Culture, New Taipei City Government
｜Organizer｜ New Taipei City Art Museum
｜Research Sponsor｜ Spring Foundation