Department of Cultural Affairs

On October 7th, let’s stay up all night at Gongguan together!
“I loved the atmosphere in Taipei last night. Felt like the city was reborn all fresh and turned into a wonderland where everyone desperate to stay. Thank you, Taipei, for giving us such a great night. How nice to live in here!”
In 2016, Taipei held its first Nuit Blanche which attracted over 200,000 participants, a record-breaking success for street art event in Taiwan’s history. On that night at Beimen (the North Gate), the charm of city’s mixed history and urbanity filled the air as the old town memories unfolded, and even the Presidential Palace opened its doors at night for the first time to celebrate together.
This year, the Nuit Blanche will begin at 6pm on Oct.7. Starting from National Taiwan University, the parade will light up art installations along the Royal Palm Boulevard, walk through the university square, and march all the way to Taipower building, the tallest building in Taipei back in the 80’s, to officially kick off the all-night arts festival.
The Grand Art Gala Originated from Paris with 15 Years of History
The nocturnal art event has spread throughout the globe since around the 1980s and 1990s. Ever since the first Nuit Blanche held by Paris in 2002, over 120 world capitals such as Melbourne, London, and Toronto have organized their own Nuit Blanche, while Taipei joined the ranks from 2016. Most of the cities host Nuit Blanche on the first weekend of October to celebrate together with Paris, throwing a grand art gala around the world.
Originated in Paris, Nuit Blanche has three unique characters: all-night events, free for all, and civic engagement. The annual all-night arts festival features performances and exhibitions of various artworks, taking the public to explore urban spaces and rediscover the city they live in. With Nuit Blanche, these major capitals worldwide highlight their characteristics by presenting cultural facilities and activities, architecture, and environmental art to the world.
The main route of 2017 Nuit Blanche Taipei spans from National Taiwan University, down Roosevelt Road, to the Hakka Cultural Park. With nearly one hundred performances and displays from both domestic and foreign artists, and with over 30 museums and exhibition venues open throughout the night, the arts fest is set to combine cross-genre art with avant-garde technology, turning Taipei into a splendid, sleepless city.
Enjoy a Night Out with Art at Gongguan
During Nuit Blanche, the entire Gongguan district will transform into a nocturnal gallery that lights up the city. The art walk connecting National Taiwan University, the streets of Wen-Luo-Ting, and the Hakka Cultural Park perfectly outlines the spirit of the time which shapes Southern Taipei. Walking in between the glowing museums and campus buildings along the Royal Palm Boulevard, through the university square at the front gate that has marked our pursuit of democracy, you’ll get to the Wen-Luo-Ting commercial area, where various bookstores, coffee shops and art spaces interweave with narrow alleys, merging rebellious spirits and sophisticated aesthetics into a unique cultural atmosphere.
Beyond the Taipower building lit by electronic & digital art on Roosevelt Road, and a few more steps along Tingzhou Road, the Hakka Cultural Park awaits for your visit. The big yard at the southern edge of the city was made a recreational park during the Japanese occupation period, but on this night it's the place for you to enjoy the shows on Hakka stage, or to gaze at the winding memories of Southern Taipei from the bank of Xindian River.
National Taiwan University: The Center for Knowledge, Art, and Culture in Gongguan
At the end of the Royal Palm Boulevard in NTU, the curators built the festival’s largest stage -
The Royal Palm Stage, behind which the majestic library glitters with gorgeous colors under the magic of light. Here, Nuit Blanche introduces cross-culture and cross-generation music performances by Taipei Symphony Orchestra and various artists, telling the stories of Taipei in multiple ways.
At Nuit Blanche, the university square in front of NTU’s main gate that has witnessed our journey to democracy will turn into the battle ring for DVJ shows. Get ready to be mesmerized by “BREEZE-SCAPE ” and “Bound[A]ry”, the most fantastic installations of the night designed by Atelier Neo.E, immersed in the music brought by Beats On Eyes and the Golden Melody Award winner Eli Hsieh, and stunned by Fresh Taiwan's animation projected on a 6m length x 3.5m high, eyeball-shaped balloon.
Beyond that, plenty of art performances and installations will be set along the Royal Palm Boulevard, making the campus a hot spot for art lovers to indulge themselves in treasure hunt. Here you’ll find Hong Kong artist Keith Lam at the Fu Bell presenting his electronic wheel that spins with sound and lighting; Paul Bloas from France improvising his giant painting in front of the historical College of Liberal Arts, filling his panels with distorted lines that resonate with the strings of guitar. As for ECÒL, the Italian architectural experts, they’ll use their magic to cover the boulevard with fluorescent carpets, while Brazilian VJ Suave will be riding his projector-equipped tricycle "Suaveciclo", creating vivid images that hop from buildings to bushes, turning the campus into a wonderland of illusion.
At midnight, NTU Center for the Arts will join the art feast by holding the Swing Dance Workshop and staging NTU Jazz Big Band and A True Love Story. Moreover, museums hidden amidst the campus will extend their hours for the sleepless walkers at Nuit Blanche to discover their rich collections of nature and humanities.
Wen-Luo-Ting District: Foster Independent Spirit with Innovative Art
Formed by Wenzhou Street, Roosevelt Road, and Tingzhou Road, the Wen-Luo-Ting district is a unique art & culture cluster nourished by the spirit of academic freedom from NTU and NTNU. At Nuit Blanche, the former Cirque du Soleil performer Hsing-Ho CHEN will summon island’s best acrobats and DJs to run a marathon of Circus Disco right at the heart of Wen-Luo-Ting - the TaiPower Building. Together with SUPER ADD, they will launch a gigantic light installation, inviting the public to enjoy the all-night carnival with contemporary circus show from indoor to outdoor.
On the other side of square in front of the TaiPower Building, you’ll find French artists Clédat & Petitpierre moon-bathing in their tulle doll suits; Besides, 7 more digital art installations inside and outside the Taipower building, including “Mistily Rain the Trees” and “Brightly Shines the Sun”, will jointly spark a splendid light of art.
Keep walking down Roosevelt Road, you’ll see a series of art installations by AGUA Design, Wang Chung-Kun, and JIANG Huei-jing that turn the arcades into a massive outdoor gallery; Next to the Tien Educational Center, a large animated projection by Russian artist Masha Krasnova-Shabaeva awaits for discovery. Next, in front of the Substitute Military Service Center, the Nuit Blanche Village of Literature and Arts invites everyone to savor the beauty of reading with Alice Wang’s creative art activity that bakes local snacks with flavors inspired by literature. Furthermore, to echo with the independent spirit of Wen-Luo-Ting, the alliance of independent publishers, local shops, and featured bookstores gather at the Moonlight Book Market, demonstrating their belief in cultural diversity, autonomy, and independency.
Hakka Cultural Park: An Art Theme Park to Explore Diverse Culture
At the other end, the Hakka Cultural Park sits at the intersection of Tingzhou Road and Shida Road. As a recreational park during the Japanese occupation period, the place once offered entertainment to thousands of families outside the Old East Gate. Now, it became a big yard in Southern Taipei that connects the Taipei Water Park, Treasure hill, and the relic of Guting Village.
On the night, a great variety of local cultures, communities, and languages are to be mixed and mingled in the Hakka Park: The Glorious Dazzling Stage Truck will make its way to the center square of the park, staging a wide range of performance groups from Taipei Chinese Orchestra to Dazzling Glove Puppetry Show. Besides, various artworks such as “Landscape layout project #03 -Reed” by Any Room studio and “SIAMSIAM” by Akibo LEE are scattered throughout the park, waiting to be found.
As one of the most iconic city in Asia with remarkable cultural treasure, Taipei proudly presents Nuit Blanche, the best place for everyone to experience art and have fun all night long. Come join us and enjoy the night parade of art together with dozens of other cities around the world!