A typhoon scourged an indigenous community in the mountains and forced its people to relocate afoot another hill. Amidst the rebuilding efforts, artist Etan Pavavalung creates a new style nurtured by his native culture. A dialogue is formed between visual art, ecology, theology and the lost ancient wisdom of the mountains. A primitive power exudes from the layered patterns engraved in his prints, as they help build dreams, mend souls and propagate beauty recalling the innocence of unspoiled homeland.

Nature has taken her revenge upon destruction caused by human advancement and greed. We are forced to reflect on how we brought ourselves into this predicament. It is high time to re-learn how to live in harmony with the land, so that she will once again bathe us in her fragrant winds. 

Etan Pavavalung, an indigenous Paiwan, was born in 1963 in Davalan (Dashe) Village, Pingtung County, Taiwan. The name Etan means ‘brave’ in the Paiwan language. Etan’s family name, Pavavaljung, was inherited from his father. 

The varied and diverse forms of Etan’s artwork include poetry, prose, news writing, woodblock printing, wood carving, advertising design, installation art, and documentary filmmaking, with the works themselves all sharing a detailed yet simple conceptual style. Etan feels that the further away one moves from nature, the more one might reminisce about the pure and beautiful values it has to offer.

Etan’s theological education gave him the tools to think about the issues faced by Indigenous peoples in Taiwan. He actively participated in the movement to raise Indigenous consciousness, during which he promoted the Indigenous college student literary movement and lent a hand to create original posters and a totem of a lily, which was meant to be a symbol of redemption and resurrection.

*image (left)
Etan Pavavalung
Sweet fragrant mountain wind, 2013
wood plank / block printing ink, 120 x 200 cm
courtesy of the artist