A Haven for Books and the Arts (TAIPEI Quarterly 2025 Summer Vol.40)Post date：2025-06-10
740
TAIPEI #40 (2025 Summer)
A Haven for Books and the Arts
Browsing Through the Areas Around National Taiwan Normal University and National Taiwan University
TEXT Han Cheung
PHOTOS Ray Chang, Vision
▲Leica Store Taipei Qingtian
Neighborhoods around Taipei's universities are often energetic and lively, offering a vibrant selection of affordable food, funky cafés, independent bookstores, stylish boutiques, and intriguing cultural-arts spaces. The areas introduced here have long been a hotbed for new ideas and creative thinking, but many beloved establishments have remained popular for decades, staying relevant as trends come and go.
The Art Scene Around NTNU
Dotted with old-school art supply stores, framing shops, and galleries, the area around National Taiwan Normal University (NTNU) is a favorite haunt for creative types. Among the best-known and long-established art supply shops on Heping East Road are Topline Study Treasures (calligraphy supply expert), Kuo Tai Fine Art Service (wide range of art supplies), and Charleston Art (self-produced paints). Another stalwart of the scene is University Art Shop on Jinshan South Road, its cluttered, narrow aisles offering both Eastern and Western supplies and framing services since 1958.
Head a few blocks east from the University Art Shop, and you can find several art galleries: Piaopiao Gallery on Yongkang Street puts on about 30 shows per year, and many art students make their exhibition debut here. It also has a special interest in contemporary ink brush painting, and hosts exhibitions by painters of different generations.
Sporting a minimalist façade of plain white and glass, the three-story San Galerie sits quietly on narrow Chaozhou Street almost unnoticed. Inside, all walls and ceilings are also painted white. The founder aims to explore the intersection between daily objects and fine art, hoping to make art more relevant to the younger crowd.
Also featuring bright, white tones, Yiyun Art on Qingtian Street explores new ways to redefine contemporary Eastern aesthetics through contrast with the classics and also Western art. From ancient brush painting to modern styles and also daily objects, the gallery has put on diverse shows for years.
Just two lanes to the north, housed in a beautifully restored Japanese-era building, is the Leica Store Taipei Qingtian. It offers a selection of high-end Leica cameras and accessories. Beyond camera gear, the store also has a collection of photography books, and it regularly hosts photography exhibitions.
▲Teh-Chun Art Gallery
Finally, don't forget to check out Teh-Chun Art Gallery on the university campus, on the first floor of the Department of Fine Arts building, if interested in admiring student creations.
Feeling the Intellectual Beat Around NTU
It's probably no surprise that the streets around Taiwan's top center of higher learning are home to many bookstores – both commercial chains and indie gems. While the current roster pales in comparison to when there were more than 40 shops during the area's heyday, the density and variety are still impressive considering the increasingly digital age we live in.
Just across the street from the school's main gate on Xinsheng South Road is the oldest surviving Eslite bookstore in Taipei. Established in 1996, it still retains the original decor and atmosphere of the chain, when it still predominantly sold books and stationery. There's a decent English-title selection and a café on the third floor.
▲Eslite NTU Store
Just a block away, on Lane 333 of Roosevelt Road, head down a narrow staircase and passageway plastered with art, culture, and political posters to find Tonsan Bookstore, a small, unassuming space offering non-mainstream and academic titles focused on the humanities and social sciences. During the 1980s, when Taiwan was still under martial law, the store printed banned books for students, contributing to the push for reform and eventual democratization. It continues to focus on similar pertinent topics with special sections on Southeast Asian immigrants and the Hong Kong protests.
With large maps and historical photos on its walls, SMC Books, on Lane 283 of Roosevelt Road, is all about Taiwan. Established in 1976, the publishing company covers the gamut of topics related to Taiwan, from geography and history to Chinese medicine and botany, with the titles available in a variety of languages. It started by republishing historic tomes in Chinese, Japanese, and Spanish, and later reissued important early Japanese research on indigenous cultures. The founder is an avid collector of old maps, and visitors can leaf through a selection of his bounty, including a comprehensive compendium of charts showing the development of cities during the 1895-1945 Japanese era.
If you're searching for a bargain, look no further than Yabook, on Lane 76 of Xinsheng South Road, which boasts a dizzying array of used books and magazines in various languages. Treasure hunters can take their time in this brightly lit, pleasant space, looking for unexpected gems.
Fembooks, on Lane 56 of Xinsheng South Road, was one of the first bookstores in the Chinese-speaking world to focus on feminism and gender studies. Launched in 1994 by women's rights activists to make feminism more accessible to the public, its original mission was to carry or print books that were "written by women, written about women, and written for women." Today, it also has a men's studies section and a significant LGBTQ+ component. The store regularly hosts gender-related lectures, workshops, and other activities, and offers many quirky, home-made souvenirs.
Apart from browsing bookstores, you can also enjoy live entertainment around the NTU campus. On the first floor of the Fembooks building is the fabled Witch House, a café and bar where countless well-known singers and bands got their start. Legend has it that, one day in 1996, a rocker showed up unannounced with a car full of stereo equipment, offering it to the establishment and asking to perform, and everything snowballed from there. In a time when the rock scene was male-dominated, Witch House offered a mellower, more feminine space for women to perform. The chairs with bras hanging on them are a distinguishing feature.
©Cros Music
Another live house in the area is Backstage Café, which is located inside the university's sports complex, located at the intersection of Xinsheng South and Xinhai roads. This dimly lit, spacious eatery with a wall lined with guitars is tranquil during regular hours, but up to 300 people fill the place during performances. Other live performance venues close to the university include The Wall Live House and Pipe Live Music.
🔎
Charleston Art | 彩逸美術社
Backstage Café | 後台
Eslite NTU Store | 誠品書店 台大店
Fembooks | 女書店
Kuo Tai Fine Art Service | 國泰美術社
Piaopiao Gallery | 一票人票畫空間
San Galerie | 生活器物藝廊
SMC Books | 南天書局
Teh-Chun Art Gallery | 德群畫廊
Tonsan Bookstore | 唐山書店
Topline Study Treasures | 蕙風堂
University Art Shop | 大學美術社
Witch House | 女巫店
Yabook | 雅博客
Yiyun Art | 異雲書屋
🗺️Click here to see aforementioned spots on Google Map
A Haven for Books and the Arts
Browsing Through the Areas Around National Taiwan Normal University and National Taiwan University
TEXT Han Cheung
PHOTOS Ray Chang, Vision
▲Leica Store Taipei Qingtian
Neighborhoods around Taipei's universities are often energetic and lively, offering a vibrant selection of affordable food, funky cafés, independent bookstores, stylish boutiques, and intriguing cultural-arts spaces. The areas introduced here have long been a hotbed for new ideas and creative thinking, but many beloved establishments have remained popular for decades, staying relevant as trends come and go.
The Art Scene Around NTNU
Dotted with old-school art supply stores, framing shops, and galleries, the area around National Taiwan Normal University (NTNU) is a favorite haunt for creative types. Among the best-known and long-established art supply shops on Heping East Road are Topline Study Treasures (calligraphy supply expert), Kuo Tai Fine Art Service (wide range of art supplies), and Charleston Art (self-produced paints). Another stalwart of the scene is University Art Shop on Jinshan South Road, its cluttered, narrow aisles offering both Eastern and Western supplies and framing services since 1958.
Head a few blocks east from the University Art Shop, and you can find several art galleries: Piaopiao Gallery on Yongkang Street puts on about 30 shows per year, and many art students make their exhibition debut here. It also has a special interest in contemporary ink brush painting, and hosts exhibitions by painters of different generations.
Sporting a minimalist façade of plain white and glass, the three-story San Galerie sits quietly on narrow Chaozhou Street almost unnoticed. Inside, all walls and ceilings are also painted white. The founder aims to explore the intersection between daily objects and fine art, hoping to make art more relevant to the younger crowd.
Also featuring bright, white tones, Yiyun Art on Qingtian Street explores new ways to redefine contemporary Eastern aesthetics through contrast with the classics and also Western art. From ancient brush painting to modern styles and also daily objects, the gallery has put on diverse shows for years.
Just two lanes to the north, housed in a beautifully restored Japanese-era building, is the Leica Store Taipei Qingtian. It offers a selection of high-end Leica cameras and accessories. Beyond camera gear, the store also has a collection of photography books, and it regularly hosts photography exhibitions.
▲Teh-Chun Art Gallery
Finally, don't forget to check out Teh-Chun Art Gallery on the university campus, on the first floor of the Department of Fine Arts building, if interested in admiring student creations.
Feeling the Intellectual Beat Around NTU
It's probably no surprise that the streets around Taiwan's top center of higher learning are home to many bookstores – both commercial chains and indie gems. While the current roster pales in comparison to when there were more than 40 shops during the area's heyday, the density and variety are still impressive considering the increasingly digital age we live in.
Just across the street from the school's main gate on Xinsheng South Road is the oldest surviving Eslite bookstore in Taipei. Established in 1996, it still retains the original decor and atmosphere of the chain, when it still predominantly sold books and stationery. There's a decent English-title selection and a café on the third floor.
▲Eslite NTU Store
Just a block away, on Lane 333 of Roosevelt Road, head down a narrow staircase and passageway plastered with art, culture, and political posters to find Tonsan Bookstore, a small, unassuming space offering non-mainstream and academic titles focused on the humanities and social sciences. During the 1980s, when Taiwan was still under martial law, the store printed banned books for students, contributing to the push for reform and eventual democratization. It continues to focus on similar pertinent topics with special sections on Southeast Asian immigrants and the Hong Kong protests.
With large maps and historical photos on its walls, SMC Books, on Lane 283 of Roosevelt Road, is all about Taiwan. Established in 1976, the publishing company covers the gamut of topics related to Taiwan, from geography and history to Chinese medicine and botany, with the titles available in a variety of languages. It started by republishing historic tomes in Chinese, Japanese, and Spanish, and later reissued important early Japanese research on indigenous cultures. The founder is an avid collector of old maps, and visitors can leaf through a selection of his bounty, including a comprehensive compendium of charts showing the development of cities during the 1895-1945 Japanese era.
If you're searching for a bargain, look no further than Yabook, on Lane 76 of Xinsheng South Road, which boasts a dizzying array of used books and magazines in various languages. Treasure hunters can take their time in this brightly lit, pleasant space, looking for unexpected gems.
Fembooks, on Lane 56 of Xinsheng South Road, was one of the first bookstores in the Chinese-speaking world to focus on feminism and gender studies. Launched in 1994 by women's rights activists to make feminism more accessible to the public, its original mission was to carry or print books that were "written by women, written about women, and written for women." Today, it also has a men's studies section and a significant LGBTQ+ component. The store regularly hosts gender-related lectures, workshops, and other activities, and offers many quirky, home-made souvenirs.
Apart from browsing bookstores, you can also enjoy live entertainment around the NTU campus. On the first floor of the Fembooks building is the fabled Witch House, a café and bar where countless well-known singers and bands got their start. Legend has it that, one day in 1996, a rocker showed up unannounced with a car full of stereo equipment, offering it to the establishment and asking to perform, and everything snowballed from there. In a time when the rock scene was male-dominated, Witch House offered a mellower, more feminine space for women to perform. The chairs with bras hanging on them are a distinguishing feature.
©Cros Music
Another live house in the area is Backstage Café, which is located inside the university's sports complex, located at the intersection of Xinsheng South and Xinhai roads. This dimly lit, spacious eatery with a wall lined with guitars is tranquil during regular hours, but up to 300 people fill the place during performances. Other live performance venues close to the university include The Wall Live House and Pipe Live Music.
🔎
Charleston Art | 彩逸美術社
Backstage Café | 後台
Eslite NTU Store | 誠品書店 台大店
Fembooks | 女書店
Kuo Tai Fine Art Service | 國泰美術社
Piaopiao Gallery | 一票人票畫空間
San Galerie | 生活器物藝廊
SMC Books | 南天書局
Teh-Chun Art Gallery | 德群畫廊
Tonsan Bookstore | 唐山書店
Topline Study Treasures | 蕙風堂
University Art Shop | 大學美術社
Witch House | 女巫店
Yabook | 雅博客
Yiyun Art | 異雲書屋
🗺️Click here to see aforementioned spots on Google Map
Gallery
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