LOCATION: In the windows at Landskrona Stadsbibliotek MAP
MAZU, presents a series of postcards written to Mazu1, the sea goddess who arrived Taiwan from the Chinese mainland three centuries ago. Today, the Taiwanese see her not only as a protector of the island’s fishermen and sailors as a guardian deity of the entire island of Taiwan. During periods of geopolitical instability, most recently during prominent US politician Nancy Pelosi’s visit to Taipei, the postcards asked for her protection.
The photographs printed on the postcards document his personal in-vestigation into the impact of Pelosi’s visit, not only on the cross-strait relationship but also on himself and other Taiwanese. The post-cards combine Wei-Lun´s images and messages as one prayer to Mazu, channelling uncertainties about the unpredictable future of his homeland into a form of religious practice.
The project also uses Mazu as a symbol to address the complicated identity dilemma Taiwanese people face: are we “Taiwanese” or “Chinese in Taiwan”? Seventy years after the Chinese Kuomintang government’s retreat to Taiwan in 1949, this question still plays a vital role in Taiwanese civil society.
Lin Wei-Lun is a London-based photographer and visual artist from Taipei, Tai-wan with a Master degree in Photojournalism and Documentary Photography from the London College of Communication. Lin Wei-Lun is the winner of Landskrona Foto & Breadfield Dummy Award 2024.
1 Mazu is an important religious figure in China and Taiwan and Chinese state media in the 1990s and 00s used her to emphasise shared cultural roots to promote unity across the Taiwan Strait.