Everyday Maneuver

News report I: World War III? Japanese tourists alarmed by Wanan Air Raid Drill in Taipei. (March 17, 2015) 

News report II: The streets of Kaohsiung were evacuated yesterday (April 21, 2016) during the Wanan Air Raid Drill No. 39. Bystanders reported an unexpected sighting of a dinosaur brazenly jaywalking. Investigations revealed that the dinosaur was a man who donned the dinosaur costume as a prank.

The Wanan Air Raid Drill began in 1978 and continues to be implemented annually, despite the lifting of martial law in 1987. Encompassing the whole of Taiwan and its outer islands, the purpose of the drill is to mitigate damage in the event of an air strike, and to serve as a reminder of threats from across the strait. For contemporary Taiwanese youth, these temporarily deserted urban landscapes, like scenes from a movie, have become perfect backdrops for selfies.

This work was primarily shot in the half-hour period between 1:30 and 2:00 pm on the day of the drill. Five aerial cameras, placed above the middle of five main thoroughfares in Taipei, present a bird’s eye perspective. The cameras move in straight lines, creating footage that resembles a scanning of the urban landscape in surveillance. Taipei’s congested streets are instantly transformed into a deserted cityscape at the sound of air-raid sirens. The surreal spectacle is a part of Taiwan’s routine drills.