The 14th edition of the Taipei Biennial 2025, titled Whispers on the Horizon, brings together 54 artists from 35 cities worldwide. Curated by Sam Bardaouil and Till Fellrath, the exhibition features 33 newly commissioned works and site-specific installations that engage deeply with the museum’s unique architecture and context. The Taipei Biennial 2025 amplifies the voices of young and mid-career artists, with nearly half of the participants born after 1984.
Excavating the Many Dimensions of Yearning
Taiwan’s layered history—marked by colonial rule, shifting identities, and political transformation —forms the backdrop of the Taipei Biennial 2025. Whispers on the Horizon explores the notion of yearning, expanding it beyond mere desire into something more
persistent, unresolved and deeply embedded in the human condition.
Yearning is a force that stretches across time and geography. It is the ache of lost homes and forgotten histories, the quiet pull of a future that never fully arrives. It is not simply nostalgia, nor is it hope—it exists in-between, in the suspended space where past, present, and future
collide. Whispers on the Horizon traces this longing as it manifests in personal narratives and collective memory, resonating between reality and illusion, belonging and displacement,permanence and disappearance.
Three Objects, Three Stories: Tracing the Echoes of Memory
The exhibition’s inspiration is rooted in three literary and cinematic objects rooted in Taiwan that carry histories of yearning:
- A puppet – from Hou Hsiao-Hsien’s film The Puppetmaster (1993), a semi-
biographical reflection on the life of the Taiwanese puppet master Li Tien-lu, in times of Japanese colonial rule. - A diary – from Chen Yingzhen’s short story My Kid Brother Kangxiong (1960),
chronicling the aspirations and struggles of a young man who committed suicide in a
politically turbulent Taiwan. - A bicycle – from Wu Ming-Yi’s novel The Stolen Bicycle (2015), where a son searches
for traces of his father through a lost object, and who in the process gets entangled in
Taiwan’s wartime history.
While these objects are not physically present in the exhibition, they instead act as silent
markers of memory, embodying what has been lost, taken, or left behind. They remind us that
yearning is as much about absence as it is about presence, about what we search for and
what we already carry within us.
Dialogue Between Past and Present: Weaving Historical and Contemporary Narratives
In Whispers on the Horizon, contemporary works will engage in a dialogue with early 20th- century paintings from Taipei Fine Arts Museum’s collection — including works by Chen Cheng-Po, Chen Chin, and Chen Chih-Chi. Moreover, the biennial will draw inspiration from artifacts from the National Palace Museum. This adds an extra historical dimension and cultural depth to the meaning of yearning, reminding us that yearning is not merely an emotional
experience, but a reverberation across time, preserved in paint and porcelain, in delicate brushstrokes, and in objects that transcend borders and generations. They act as visual and conceptual bridges, reminding us that longing is not bound to the present; it echoes through centuries, across cultural shifts and political ruptures.
A Yearning That Never Settles
Though this exhibition begins in Taiwan, its themes extend far beyond. Whispers on the Horizon reminds us that yearning is universal, present in every culture and era. It is the ache of migration, the longing for home, the search for identity, the hunger for futures yet to unfold. Yearning, in the Taipei Biennial, is neither static nor resolved. It moves, fragile yet persistent, invisible yet deeply felt. Whispers on the Horizon does not close doors, it does not offer answers. Instead, it lingers. It lives in the space between memory and imagination, between what was and what could be. It does not resolve. It whispers.
Evoking Inner Resonance, Garnering Broad Support, Fostering Contemporary Art Dialogue
With yearning as its driving force, the Taipei Biennial 2025 aims to evoke an inner resonance with audiences and has gained support from various sectors. The CTBC Foundation for Arts. and Culture is committed to promoting contemporary art. To support promising Taiwanese artists, it actively sponsors prominent exhibitions and performances both in Taiwan and abroad. As the lead sponsor of the Taipei Biennial for three consecutive editions, the foundation aims
to leverage the Biennial’s strong influence in Asia to elevate the international visibility of contemporary art in Taiwan, deepen global cultural exchange, and further expand arts education across diverse communities and generations, fostering greater dialogue and discussion. CHANEL supports the Taipei Biennial 2025, fostering a vibrant network of creators and innovators to advance ideas, championing creative audacity for a better future, and extending a
century of commitment to the arts.
Press release from Taipei Biennial
Image: Pamela Phatsimo Sunstrum. SCENE 58. 2024. pencil and oil on wood panels, 140 x 300 cm. Photography by Alexander Edwards. Image courtesy the artist and Goodman Gallery, London
