This piece features lyrics from the 1989 song “The Dull-Ice Flower,” the theme song of the eponymous film. Set in a rural Taiwanese village during the early 1960s, the film portrayed the socioeconomic conditions and educational struggles of the time. The song gave voice to the people of that era, its raw emotion and timeless melody resonating far beyond its release. More than thirty years later, it remains widely sung, a testament to the shared experience of a childhood that cannot be revisited, and moments of feeling lost or unanchored that transcend generations.
Through this work, Chang Tien-chine reflects on the passage of time and the ever-shifting tides of society. The lyrics are brushed in fluid, saturated strokes, allowing the ink to smudge gently across the paper, like a song still lingering in the air, freshly sung, freshly written. The effect captures a fleeting moment, as though time itself has paused. Viewers may feel they are witnessing not just the finished piece, but the very act of writing calligraphy itself.
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