Island Project IV

Silent Bunkers of Formosa 2017-2021

As the sequel to Submerged Beauty of Formosa and Home of the Brave, Silent Bunkers of Formosa continues the quest of documenting submerged infrastructures along Taiwan’s coastline. It also expands on the theme of Taiwan’s military history, but this time, rather than focusing on the history of a particular place, Yang travels the entire west coast to seek out military facilities, particularly bunkers. Also, the series shifts attention from the offensive ambitions to the defensive aspect of these structures.

As a result of the Martial Law, Taiwan entered another period of sea ban in the 1950’s, where coastal activities were strictly banned. The government built bunkers and other fortifications in case of potential attacks from the mainland. The boundary between land and sea was increasingly clear. The distance between Taiwanese people and the sea also grew.

At the same time, as Taiwan excelled economically, more and more industrial parks, trading and fishing ports were established along the coastline, disrupting ocean currents, creating groin effects that led to the receding of land. Not only Taiwan’s geographical area shrank, the international status of Taiwan also waned significantly.

While depicting the titled and fragile constitution of these dispersed bunkers, Silent Bunkers of Formosa takes on the role as the allegory of Taiwan’s fate.

海島計畫 4

沈默堡島 2017-2021

本系列延續〈台灣水沒II-保國護土篇〉的精神，但焦點從積極的「攻」轉為消極的「守」。沿海人造物的形成，從「填海造陸」的農業需求以及「反攻復國」的軍事整備，轉向國家領土的「防禦工事」之上。這裏的防禦工事，指的是沿著台灣海岸線零星分布的軍事碉堡。

受台海兩岸政治情勢的影響，台灣在1950年代隨著戒嚴而進入「海禁」時期。海岸線成為「禁區」，人民與海洋的關係逐漸疏離。政府為防禦對岸的攻擊，在海邊重要據點設置大量的碉堡與軍事設施－台灣島的土地邊界，頓時被凸顯出來。

同時間，隨著台灣經濟起飛，台灣沿海廣設的工業區、商港和漁港，破壞海水原有的流向，造成「突堤效應」，土地逐漸流失，海岸線內縮，形成現在台灣島被消波塊包圍的特殊景觀。當年興建的碉堡和軍事設施，就靜靜的泡在海水當中。不僅自然地理上的國土面積向內縮減，台灣在國際上的地位也逐漸被削弱。

〈沈默堡島〉描繪海岸邊，在海水中載浮載沉的碉堡，除了顯現一種環境變遷的後果（海岸線內縮），更暗喻台灣長久以來的政治困境。