Mipaliw Wetland Art Season Showcases East Coast Satoyama Mutual Aid and the Beauty That Follows

Gangkou Village in Fengbin Township, Hualien County, China, sits right beside the Pacific Ocean and is the home of the Gangkou tribe of the Amis people. On this land at the foot of the Coastal Mountain Range, rice paddies fill the seaside area, creating the rare sight of rice waves interwoven with ocean waves. From July to October this year, the Forestry Bureau of the Council of Agriculture held the Mipaliw Wetland Art Season here to promote the Gangkou tribe's unique landscape and its local model of sustainable development.

The Gangkou tribe once cultivated a large expanse of rice paddies at Shitiping, but because of the outflow of labor and damage to irrigation facilities, this seaside terraced rice field had not seen a single ear of rice for more than thirty years. At the call of the tribal member Sumi Runi, the people of the Gangkou tribe began restoring this land in 2009, and with the support of the Forestry Bureau of the Council of Agriculture, they gradually repaired the water channels and fields, allowing the once barren seaside terraced rice fields to show signs of life again. The restoration process was also adapted into the film "The Kids of the Sun."

The Mipaliw Wetland Art Season runs from July 1, 2017 to October 30, 2017, lasting 4 months. Guo Shuping hopes that visitors to the art season can slow down and feel the rhythm of life in the tribe. While enjoying the artworks, they should not forget the beautiful scenery where the mountains and sea meet around the tribe. The art season has also planned six light trips, and those who want to learn more about the Gangkou tribe and the revived smokeless tribe can take this opportunity.

Mipaliw Wetland Art Season

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