The Sugar Factory — Dulan, Taiwan.
A repurposed space full of artistic and cultural fresh air.
The Sintung Sugar Factory in Dulan was built in 1916 by two Chen brothers from Kaohsiung during the Japanese Colonial Era and mainly produced brown sugar. During World War II it produced alcohol for Japanese fighter planes, consequently leading to its bombing by the US military during the war — halting production for a number of years and eventually leading to temporary closure.
In the 1960s, Mu-Shui Huang from Xinzhu invested money to rebuild the factory. Throughout the 1970s, the factory became the number one privately run brown sugar factory in Taiwan. In 1991 the decline of the domestic sugar business forced the factory gates closed for good and smoke billowed from its towering chimney for the final time.
The factory now houses a thriving artistic community that co-operate the space
Strolling into the sugar factory, you can see well-maintained Japanese wooden houses, offices and vibrantly coloured walls of corrugated iron. Ancient buildings from the Japanese Colonial Era are now part of a café at the Dulan Sugar Factory. In the afternoon, the aroma of coffee permeates the air.
The factory now houses a thriving artistic community that co-operate the space — what used to be an office is now an exhibition space for artists to display their paintings, photography, and sculptures. The upper parts of the main factory building are now makeshift music studios and rehearsal spaces. Here you can see local indigenous musicians and a handful of Western ex-pats collaborating on various projects.
I read somewhere that the pronunciation of Dulan is what put it on the map.
All across Taiwan we encountered a huge amount of support for music and the arts from local institutions, with cultural centres and interesting creative spaces popping up all over the island.
I read somewhere that the pronunciation of Dulan is what put it on the map. Du is a verb which means poke. Lan refers to the male sex organ in Taiwanese language. Dulan means poke male’s sex organ, which you can interpret as you please — but for the natives, it’s generally a way to express their feelings toward something or someone they dislike. It’s all very much at odds with the warm nature of the locals and the bohemian, easy-going feel of the town.
Maybe that was the namers ballsy attempt to keep people away from this little gem?
On weekends the live music scene comes to life with the locals performing concerts and dances, along with special guests from Thailand, South Korea, Indonesia, Malaysia and Japan. I celebrated my 28th birthday in Dulan, rounding off the evening sitting around a fire, chanting along to classic songs from Pur Dur’s seminal ‘Ho-hi-yan Ocean’ album. In the company of best friends, fuelled by the locally brewed lemon & ginger beer that was a lethally sweet 9.5% — I couldn’t have been happier.
