JOINT PRESS RELEASE ON AUSTRALIA-TAIWAN ARTS EXCHANGE PARTNERSHIP
ANNOUNCEMENT OF 2025 EXCHANGE ARTISTS
AUSTRALIAN OFFICE, TAIPEI
NATIONAL CULTURE AND ARTS FOUNDATION
4 June 2025
The Australia-Taiwan Arts Exchange Partnership program, a collaboration between the Australian Office and the National Culture and Arts Foundation (NCAF) , has entered its third year. The selected Australian artists for 2025 are First Nations artist and fashion designer Grace Lillian Lee and Joshua Hoare, Artistic Director of the South Australian Circus Centre. Ms Lee visited Taiwan in March, while Mr Hoare has arrived Taiwan in June for their respective exchange programs. Representing Taiwan, FOCASA Circus Art's Artistic Advisor Lee Tsung-Hsuan and Truku artist Labay Eyong will travel to Australia in early 2026.
On June 3, Australian Representative in Taiwan, Robert Fergusson, and NCAF Chairman Lin Chi-Yang congratulated and commended the participating artists, expressing hope that their creative endeavours will enrich the diversity of Taiwan-Australia cultural exchanges and further deepen humanistic dialogue and connections between the two regions.
Established in 2022 through a MOU between the Australian Office and NCAF, the Australia-Taiwan Arts Exchange Partnership Program aims to deepen long-term artistic collaboration through residencies and co-creation. Initially planned as a two-year program (2022–2024) with one artist from each side participating annually, the program has been extended and expanded as a result of its success. In 2025, two artists from each side have been selected to further enhance artistic dialogue and interdisciplinary collaboration between Taiwan and Australia.
Grace Lillian Lee is an Australian artist and fashion designer of Torres Strait Islander heritage. She serves as an advisory board member for the Swayn Centre for Australian Design at the National Museum of Australia and is the Founder of First Nations Fashion + Design (FNFD). Specializing in weaving and contemporary art, her works have been collected by a number of leading Australian art museums. Lee is dedicated to community collaboration and promoting Indigenous aesthetics on the global stage.
During her March visit to Taiwan, Lee delivered a lecture at Fu Jen Catholic University's Department of Textiles and Clothing, met with the Council of Indigenous Peoples, and visited key museums such as the Shung Ye Museum of Formosan Aborigines, the National Palace Museum, the National Museum of Prehistory in Taitung, and the Paul Chiang Art Centre. She traveled to Yuma Taru’s village, the Xiangbi Tribe in Miaoli for three days to learn about the eco-system Yuma has created to preserve and support her Atayal culture and community. She also engaged with many Taiwanese textile and fashion artists including Andre Sabra, Aluaiy Kaumakan, Eleng Luluan, Hana Keliw, and Ruby Swana.
Joshua Hoare is the Artistic Director of the South Australian Circus Centre and Cirkidz in Adelaide. Holding degrees in linguistics and circus arts, Hoare focuses on revitalizing endangered languages through creative expression and exploring the body as a medium of communication. He has been active in international performances, co-productions, and artist development for the youth, and is well-acquainted with Taiwan's circus arts scene. Hoare has been recognized as a Future Leader by the Australia Council for the Arts (now called Creative Australia) and has represented Australia for the Ship for World Youth Leaders, Cabinet Office of Prime Minister of Japan.
Hoare's visit to Taiwan from June 3 to 10 includes meetings with FOCASA Circus Art, Eye Catching Circus, 0471 Acrobatic Physical Theatre, Lize Puppet Art Colony, Unique Puppet Theater, Pili International Multimedia, National Kaohsiung Center for the Arts (Weiwuying), and Taipei Performing Arts Centre. He will also meet with puppet theater promoter Robin Ruizendaal.
Lee Tsung-Hsuan, Artistic Advisor for FOCASA Circus Art, began his artistic journey under Lin Ssu-Tuan, Taiwan's first-generation life model and dancer. His training encompasses street dance, jazz, ballet, and modern techniques. After 5 years as a dancer with Cloud Gate Dance Theatre, Lee joined FOCASA, focusing on physical training and leading international exchanges. Since 2025, he has served as the troupe's Artistic Advisor. Lee's creations span dance, circus, and physical theater, adeptly using props and movement to construct stage dynamics that reflect the interplay between humans and their environment.
Lee plans to visit Australia in early 2026 to study contemporary circus development models, with particular interest in professional training systems, community engagement, and international collaboration strategies, aiming to reflect on Taiwan's current state of circus talent cultivation and institutional development.
Labay Eyong, a Truku artist from the Ihownang (Hongye) Tribe in Hualien, works across metalwork, weaving, installation, and video art. She deeply engages with traditional crafts, transforming them into contemporary artistic expressions that embody physicality and cultural depth. Her work focuses on the interwoven experiences of ethnic memory, female embodiment, and identity, viewing weaving as a practice of cultural regeneration and self-identification that connects historical memory, bodily perception, and a sense of place. She has participated in numerous domestic and international residencies program and has twice awarded the Pulima Art Award's Grand Prize.
Labay Eyong is also scheduled to travel to Australia in early 2026, focusing her research on prehistoric rock art. She aims to engage with local Indigenous communities to explore the cultural connections between peoples, mountains, land, and rocks, drawing parallels between Australia's mining development and Taiwan's Truku legend of "Stone-born", seeking cross-cultural insights and self-identity inspiration.