Visiting a hilltop creative sanctuary
Discovering the secluded Tsai Ming Liang Art Space amid the mountainous hills of New Taipei City
By Shane O’Reilly / Contributing Reporter
From Banqiao city center, the 30-minute cab ride south runs parallel to the Tamsui River, past the Bitan Suspension Bridge before gradually pivoting and winding southeast.
The road snakes steeply upwards along Zhangchun Rd and into Meitan Village (美潭里) located in the hills of Xindian District (新店區), New Taipei City.
Of course one can’t help but think: Why here? Why is this isolated and neglected site suitable for Tsai Ming-liang (蔡明亮), one of Asian cinema’s great directors, to open an art center?
A vertical photograph of Tsai Ming Liang Art Space’s exterior.
Photo: Shane O’Reilly
As it turns out, both Tsai and his longtime collaborator, actor Lee Kang-sheng (李康生), retreated to this region for health reasons around 2014, finding refuge and respite in a quieter, more natural setting.
Barring the inhabited homes on either side, the atelier is centrally located within a row of dilapidated buildings, ruins really, their hollowed-out shells stained and crawling with vegetation.
The location is strangely evocative, even eerie, and complements the sheer, brutalist aesthetic of the Tsai Ming Liang Art Space (蔡明亮藝術空間), all sharp angles and straight lines.
The author Shane O’Reilly with the director Tsai Ming-liang.
Photo: Shane O’Reilly
It’s easy to draw parallels between Tsai’s cinematic style, often referred to as “Slow Cinema”, and this laid-back environment that perhaps encapsulates or even mirrors his creative pace.
Upon entering, you’re immediately greeted with a coffee shop counter and a handwritten chalkboard menu of beverage options. There’s also an ever-changing menu of Nanyang-style small plates cooked by Tsai himself.
Behind the coffee station, sturdy shelving supports all of Tsai’s awards, including those both he Lee won in 2013 for Stray Dogs (郊遊).
Interior photograph of facing sofa seats with window and daylight backdrop.
Photo: Shane O’Reilly
Speaking of Lee, the two have known each other since 1989 when Tsai gave him a small role in the made-for-TV film All the Corners of the World (海角天涯).
They remain one of cinema’s great enduring partnerships and are now co-owners of this artistic hilltop endeavor.
A compact staircase leads to a second-floor lounge, flooded with light from a bank of windows overlooking various nooks and crannies, accompanied by an assortment of vintage stools and sofa seats.
Photo of the lounge room table surrounded by Tsai’s paintings.
Photo: Shane O’Reilly
The sparse walls are pockmarked with rows of circular holes, remnants of the tools that held the original framework as the concrete was poured, which add a simple but fun contemporary pattern to the surroundings.
Otherwise, the only decoration, beyond the fixed track lighting above, is Tsai’s framed oil paintings, mostly large vertical portraits, a therapeutic hobby of his developed during the COVID pandemic.
People are peppered throughout, murmuring softly. Many are reclining with coffee in hand, relaxing or flicking through one of the many art books strategically placed always within arm’s reach.
The 12-seat cinema at Tsai Ming Liang Art Space.
Photo: Shane O’Reilly
At a large mahogany desk, someone is quietly tapping away on a laptop. Nearby are tasteful, handcrafted side tables whittled from old tree trunks alongside neatly arranged stacks of large film reel canisters.
An Escher-esque circular route leads downward to connecting gallery rooms or around to an entranceway into the cozy comforts of a 12-seat cinema projecting Tsai’s short films on loop.
A third level reveals glossy-tiled flooring and several interconnected rooms of merchandise, miscellaneous items and a broad selection of large-format movie posters for sale.
A photo of the long lounge room wall, its art, seats and reel canisters.
Photo: Shane O’Reilly
Visitors might be surprised to see Tsai himself pottering around, a cheerful, unassuming presence and personification of this isolated hub miles away from the hurried traffic and oven humidity of the city center.
From a seat in an alcove by the wall of windows, watch the outside world of wild, untethered verdancy, with the shadowy blues and neon greens of Tsai Ming-liang’s cinematic universe behind.
Photo of some of Tsai’s movie posters.
Photo: Shane O’Reilly
For your information
If you go
>> Tsai Ming Liang Art Space is located at 152, Zhungchun Rd, Meitan Village, Hsindian District, New Taipei City (新北市新店區長春路152號 ). >> Admission is free, but there is a one-drink minimum charge. The space is open Thursdays to Sundays from 11am to 5:30pm.
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