| The Mayor's Residence Arts Salon |
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The Mayor salon can be found within the roads of Xu Zhou, within the three foot high fence and 2-3 floor high trees that protect this historical salon from the scorching sun. It’s an escape from the busy streets of Taipei, a place where you can peacefully rest your heart. It’s been preserving the natural environment quietly and beautifully. Thus, because of the long period with no one housing the salon before, it lacks the reorganization, though the house itself holds history from long ago and has instead has given mankind a mystical feeling. It’s located in Taipei and has been refined in many ways, nevertheless still holding the past of how it was found originally.
The Mayor’s official mansion was constructed in 1940 (the Japanese Shiaowa for 15 years), included with ocean mix date type housing and the typical representative; The Japanese housing later came under the western wind influence, which made the construction more western like during the Meiji times. Besides with the room made of bamboo straws (tatami), various halls or the studio tendency was also westernized. The layout of the western-style furniture is also placed more comfortably. The sofas, the book shelves and so on is called “the ocean mixed style” . The construction, of the Mayor’s Salon is located on the Chang An west road by the old municipal government building, (now a generation of the arts museum). According to the scholar Li Ganlang's research, at that time, due to the different rank of the official shed, and from the different graduation, the state county magistrate and the hall county magistrate lists as the first level. Levels 1&2 could both receive areas above 200m2 . At that time, Taipei mayor’s salon was categorized as Level 1, the base is 2640m2, and the constructed area is 990m2.
At this moment, the Mayor’s Salon and the Mayor’s accommodation in TaiDong are the most well preserved Japanese style architectures
Until now some 60 remaining years of life history mayor the official mansion, 83 years before successively held mayor, except Wu BoXiong outside, including Gao Yushu, Zhang Fengxu, Lin Yanggang, Li Denghui, Shao Enxin, Yang Jintsong, Xu Shuide, Huang Dazhou and so on, the duration of term all lives in the official mansion, therefore has the profound commemoration value. When is appointed mayor nearly every time taketing office, can depend on own caret, makes the house inside and outside a change.
During the year 1986, the news bureau for the Mayor’s Art Salon, made a series of lands to survey, and raised the budget. But afterwards they discovered the official mansion’s reconstruction does not conform to the land district used to control rule for the coffee room, and will be unable to obtain the business license, finally accepting the metropolis development bureau the suggestion, will change sets up Wen the Kang center to hand in the application, and will begin to draw up each management to the use of the main point.
Year 1987 in March, the mayor’s official mansion literary art’s center construction and the performance hall constructing project began. The objective was to entrust the Torden jade architect, “Cai Yuan” the good architect designed the plan, and on August 17 it was complete. Solicits “mayor publicly the official mansion literary arts center” held the request management unit.
October 23, the “Mayor’s Salon” opened, and began the activity “veteran new – Taipei Mayor’s Art Salon”, Taipei Municipal government and the Taipei culture foundation sponsors, for eight weeks.
Mayor the official mansion in the spatial plan, some provides the dining service to rest the space, may hold approximately 100 people can attend in the performance halls, the course and the type lecture room, a demonstration of art culture life and art center. The Mayor’s Residence Salon is designed well, because it allows the natural lighting, which makes the exhibition halls more surreal and magical.
In November 2000 this historically significant building was transformed into the Mayor’s Residence Arts Salon. Its facilities include an auditorium, a small conference room, a Japanese-style lecture hall, an exhibition space, a sunlit lounge and a café. From time to time the Mayor’s Residence Arts Salon hosts various educational courses and other events related to the arts and literature. Located in the bustling center of Taipei, it is the perfect place to stop and savor the play of light on the pond, the rustling of bamboo in the breeze, and the quiet tranquility of flowers and trees.