KOON Wai Bong
46 x 46 cm each
Shimendong, [lit. meaning “Stone Gate”], which is an arch formed by erosion from the sea, stands on the north coast of Taiwan above the Kaizaijiao-Tai Second Provincial Highway. It is a landmark of Shimen in New Taipei City, Taiwan. It is said that during the Japanese colonial period, Japanese people were amazed by the peculiarities of the mountains and rocks, so they named this place "Shimen Zhuang," which is still in use as the local name to this day.
Millions of years ago, the Datun volcano erupted, and volcanic debris mixed with lava was deposited in a chaotic manner. After being washed by heavy rain, it was piled up on the coast to form rock layers and eventually became a small mountain. Later, due to the compression of the geological layers, vertical joints called "joints" were formed. Then, under the attack of the northeast monsoon and summer typhoons, the waves beat against the rock layers for many years, causing erosion and eventually leading to landslides and rock fractures, forming the present-day sea erosion cave of Shimen. However, the height of the Shimendong is now more than ten meters above sea level due to recent crustal movements. If you look closely at the rock layers, you can see clear textures and a layered structure. Sand, gravel, and volcanic debris are mixed together, and they are of different sizes. This indicates that when the rock layers were deposited at that time, there were landslides and ground cracks, and the speed of the debris flow was extremely fast, so that the fine sand and large stones did not settle one by one, but rolled to the foot of the mountain and formed the present-day geological landscape. In the first month of the year of Guimao, I settled in Taipei. Two months later, I traveled with friends along the north coast, from Tamsui to QingShui Bay, Houcuo, Laomei, Shimen. We visited Houcuo Fishing Port, Zhilan Park, Green Stone Groove, Shimen Cave, Shimen Arch Bridge, and then to Yehliu, admiring the peculiar stones of the geological park, such as Queen's Head, Playful Princess, Candlestick Rock, and Lover's Rock. It was then that I saw the unique geological landscape of Taiwan and enjoyed the trip very much. After returning, I drew this and wrote about it.
In the first month of the guimao year, I settled in Taipei. Two months later, I travelled with friends along the north coast, from Tamsui to QingShui Bay, Houcuo, Laomei, Shimen. We visited Houcuo Fishing Port, Zhilan Park, Green Stone Groove, Shimen Cave, Shimen Arch Bridge, and then to Yehliu, admiring the peculiar stones of the geological park, such as Queen's Head, Playful Princess, Candlestick Rock, and Lover's Rock. It was then that I saw the unique geological landscape of Taiwan and enjoyed the trip very much. After returning, I drew this album leaves and recorded it.
