This talk invites three Taiwanese photojournalists to share their experiences and reflections on navigating between news reporting and personal art projects.
As photojournalists, what challenges do they face in the field? In the ever-changing work environment, how do they view the potential tensions between journalistic ethics and creative expression?
And as creators, does long-term work in journalism unintentionally shape their visual language and creative approach? Has their experience in news reporting subtly changed the way they engage with art?
On Sunday afternoon, we invite you to join us in exploring how one might find their own place between professional photographic work and creative expression, and how to speak through images with an authentic voice, as seen through the perspectives of these three photojournalists/creators.
▌Speakers
｜Ann Wang
Ann Wang is a photojournalist with Reuters, with over a decade of experience in journalism and documentary photography.
She has long focused on social and political issues across Southeast Asia and Taiwan, and prior to the pandemic, she was primarily based in various countries across Southeast Asia. In recent years, after returning to Taiwan, she has continued to document the people and stories of this land through visual narratives.
Her focus includes cross-strait tensions and broader geopolitical dynamics, women’s issues, and environmental topics such as the conservation of endangered plant species, the work of “plant hunters” in the field, and the survival challenges facing Taiwan’s Formosan black bear and other wildlife.
｜Tso-Hsin Tang
Tso-Hsin Tang was born in Tainan County and now lives in New Taipei City. She graduated from the Department of Sociology, National Taiwan University, and she is a contributing photojournalist at Initium Media and The Reporter, balancing freelance assignments with part-time jobs. She has participated in the anti-forced eviction movement in Daguan Community, and was an author of Daguan: Once Our Home. Recently, she focuses on exploring the relationships between people and places, as well as how stigmatized groups recover and fight for themselves in various contexts.
｜Yu-Chen Cheng
Yu-Chen Cheng was born in Taipei and now lives in Taipei. He graduated from the Department of Journalism and Communication, Fu Jen Catholic University. After completing an internship with the photography department of the China Times, he joined The Reporter as a contributing photojournalist and now is a freelancer. He focuses on issues related to cultural psychology, social challenges, and personal emotions, and his work primarily adopts a humanistic perspective to explore moments where history, culture, and emotions intertwine, inspiring viewers to reconsider their connections with their surroundings.
▌Moderator
｜Ying-Hui Wu
Graduated from the Art Theory Division of the Master’s Program of the Arts and Design Department at the National Taipei University of Education, Ying-Hui Wu used to be the chief convener of Artco Monthly, associate director of the Culture Division of China Times, and senior specialist at the National Culture and Arts Foundation. Her publications include Taiwan Contemporary Art Series: Technology and Digital Art (2003) and Family Gallery: Body, Variation, Ku Fu-Sheng (2024). She is also the leader of the research project Women Photojournalists in Taiwan. Her writings are published in Par: Performing arts redefined, the “Art Weekend” column of Liberty Times, Fountain, etc.