The National Taiwan Craft Research and Development Institute in the central county of Nantou is the country’s foremost center for the preservation and promotion of traditional crafts. It actively seeks both international cooperation on educational projects and is a source of soft power to promote Taiwan.

In recent years, NTCRI has launched many cooperative projects through funding from the Ministry of Culture’s National Branding Program, launched in 2017. The funding initiative was designed to assist national museums and other MOC cultural institutions to build relationships with counterparts around the world, in a comprehensive use of national culture as a branding tool to enhance the country’s visibility.

One example is “Fiber Links—Taiwan and ASEAN Fiber Craft Online Co-creation Project,” jointly conducted by ASEAN Handicraft Promotion and Development Association and NTCRI last year. The initiative was designed to unlock the full potential presented by fiber materials and techniques.

The collective venture brought together 24 designers and craft communities from Taiwan and ASEAN member countries including Indonesia, Malaysia, the Philippines and Thailand. They connected through creating ­24 pieces spanning clothing and accessories, home decorations and lighting fixtures using materials such as bamboo, pineapple leaves, ramie, rattan and rush.

According to Yau Jen-kuan, technique section chief at NTCRI, domestic crafts have a rich history and a vibrant present. Propagation through embracing the new and pursuing sustainable development is a major part of the equation to keep crafts both relevant and ­desirable to contemporary sensibilities.

The section chief said that promoting Taiwan as the best place to produce, collect and learn about contemporary craft can realize economic benefits associated with a strong craft sector. To this end, international cooperation on an equal basis is the key and working with outstanding overseas artisans can foster a global network.

Yau considered the launch of the Fiber Links project in partnership with AHPADA a model of mutually beneficial cooperation, bringing together artisans and ­designers from different countries to engage in ­virtual dialogue about their indigenous cultural aesthetic principles. NTCRI anticipates that follow-up events will ­center on commercial and international marketing for crafts. (E) (By Kelly Her)

(This article is adapted from Going Global in the July/August Issue 2022 ;of Taiwan Review. The Taiwan Review archives dating to 1951 are available online.)