The artist writes “Taiwan is mainly an immigrant society. Starting from the early Qing Dynasty, for more than three centuries people from the lower classes of society living on the mainland coast continued to brave the sea ban imposed by the Qing government, as well as the strong winds and high waves of the Taiwan Strait – or the ‘Black Trench.’ Who knows how many lives were swallowed by these waters? How many made it against all odds? Eventually, they made it to Taiwan where they started a new life with nothing more than the clothes on their backs and opened a new chapter in the history of Taiwan.”
