In September of last year, I came across a limited edition postmark: “40 years of Doraemon” postmarked September 20.

It occurred to me that postmarks could be quite whimsical. I googled some background information and found out that typically, the inked stamp not only marks the time and date, but may also contain an illustration that marks and commemorates an event.

At around that time, there was a palpable and growing atmosphere surrounding the approach of the National Centennial. I was taken by a mood of retrospection that triggered a desire to pluck out specific memories that I could use to participation in this celebration; for instance, a recollection of the sea of national flags that were hung outside every building for every holiday and festival when I was growing up.

Though I lack the passion for discussions about topics of national imagination such as “identity,” I do feel passionate about phenomenological thoughts and descriptions relating to the “Republic of China,” and the parenthetical ( ) that belongs to me.

"Phenomenon Tracing - Happy Birthday Republic of China" was inspired by 10 limited edition post office postmarks commemorating events related to New Year's activities. The illustrations within the postmarks were digitally reproduced and then output onto tracing paper and intuitively replicated, transferred or re-drawn in an attempt to show some understanding of phenomenology.


In the work "Phenomenon Flag", I used a hand-painted postcard depicting a flag, and a limited edition postmark as the main text. On the bottom right corner of the postcard is the word “Taiwan” in Braille, to express the tangible, though unspeakable nature of the parenthetical in the prevalent wording "Republic of China (Taiwan)" seen in marketing materials.

For me, "postcards" are a quotidian object used for communication – both with oneself and with others. A simple, neat, discrete and unobtrusive method of inscribing immediate sentiments, it is a sketch that occurs at a specific juncture where axis of an individual life intersects the space-time dimension.

The value of a postmark is in the cancellation of a postage stamp. The postage stamps depicting the pandas “Tuan Tuan” and “Yuan Yuan” were a main component for postmarking. Postage stamps issued throughout this calendar year, and my digitally-created personal commemorative stamp for the Year of the Rabbit, have been used here to collect and present all of the limited edition postmarks for the year.