T he first thing that comes to mind when talking about Taiwan’s glass industry is Hsinchu City. The 2012 Hsinchu City Glass Art Carnival is underway and will run through April 8. The events take place in Air Force Village No. 11 located on Li Pond in Hsinchu Park, the Hsinchu City Glass Museum located at the northwest of the pond, and the Glass Studio next to the museum. The activities follow four main themes: the main glass art exhibition, Glass Art street, live demonstrations of the glass production process, and hands-on activities.
The museum’s exhibition, entitled “Dragon — the Glass Exhibition of the Chinese Zodiac in the year of the Dragon,” displays exquisite glass art sculptures. On Glass Art street, 12 local glass manufacturers promote their glass products, which are at once beautiful and practical.
According to the Encyclopedia of Taiwan, the glass industry in Hsinchu City began in 1925. Given the city’s rich reserves of silica sand and natural gas, which are necessary for the making of glass products, Hsinchu has since become Taiwan’s most important glass manufacturing city, and the industry reached its climax from the 1960s to the 1980s. In 1990 local businesspeople lead the way in promoting and transforming the local glass industry into one specializing in quality glass crafts. Thanks to the efforts of the city government and local businesspeople, Hsinchu City has achieved sustainable development as the city of glass.
(LIN YA-TI, TAIPEI TIMES)
提到台灣玻璃產業，便會聯想到新竹市。「二○一二玻璃藝術嘉年華」已在新竹展開，並持續到四月八日。地點在新竹公園麗池湖畔的湖畔料亭（空軍十一村）、新竹公園西北方的玻璃工藝博物館，以及博物館旁的玻璃工坊展開。活動共有四大主軸，包括主題藝術展、玻璃藝術街、玻璃製作現場示範，以及DIY活動。
玻工館策劃的「龍─壬辰年玻璃生肖展」，展現玻璃精緻藝術。「玻璃藝術街」有十二家在地玻璃業者坐鎮，一同推廣兼具藝術及實用的玻璃藝品。
根據《台灣大百科全書》指出，新竹玻璃產業始於一九二五年，因擁有製造玻璃所需的矽砂與天然氣，讓新竹成為全台最重要的玻璃產地，並在六零年代至八零年代間達到全盛。當地業者於一九九○年率先提倡將產業升級轉化為精緻玻璃工藝，並在政府與民眾的齊力下，讓玻璃之城永續發展。
（台北時報記者林亞蒂）
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