TAIPEI (Taiwan News) — Taiwanese photographer Huang Chia (黃迦) has won the prestigious Dior Photography and Visual Arts Award for Young Talents, which she has dedicated to Taiwan.
The international competition recognizes students and recent graduates from art and photography schools. This year's "Face to Face" theme showcases 13 finalists, with Huang emerging victorious, according to LUMA Arles, one of the competition organizers.
Huang's winning entry, "Silence Is Speaking," is a documentary photography series combined with amateur drawings. It depicts the lives of two brothers with severe autism, as described by Huang.
For six months, Huang documented A-ce (阿策) and A-zhan (阿湛), capturing the unspoken aspects of their world. While lacking significant verbal communication, the boys express themselves passionately through painting and have filled their home with vibrant artworks over the past decade, per CNA.
Huang's juxtaposition of visual mediums aims to portray the unspoken thoughts and emotions of autistic individuals. Additionally, the work explores the societal pressure placed on families in Taiwan to conform to traditional expectations, and the burden it can create.
Huang's artistic approach focuses on marginalized communities, but she avoids sensationalizing their struggles. Instead, she seeks collaboration, empowering her subjects to share their experiences from a neutral perspective.
Brigette Lacombe, chair of the jury, commended Huang's work for its profound empathy and clear, powerful execution, devoid of unnecessary sentimentality.
While not Indigenous herself, Huang grew up within an Indigenous tribe. Witnessing their cultural practices has fostered her focus on exploring the experiences of uprooted individuals in her artwork.
Huang acknowledges the unique and sensitive nature of Taiwan's sovereignty and identity issues. Her time spent living in France has provided her with a detached perspective to re-examine her homeland.
Driven by these experiences, Huang delves into the complexities of Taiwanese identity, questioning its essence and the aspects that defy easy explanation.
