The Made: Before ‘Made in Taiwan’, There Was ‘Made in Changhua

To understand the formation and evolution of “Made in Taiwan,” one cannot overlook the city of Changhua.
The 2025 Taiwan Design Expo A3 Pavilion, “The Manufacturing Route” — The Made: The Octagon Industry Studies — takes “From the Known to the Unknown” as its curatorial theme, reflecting on how Changhua’s alleyway factories and rural manufacturing laid the foundation for Taiwan’s industrial legacy.

The exhibition is curated by Guo Chung-Yuan of the Intermediary Lab, who led the team on in-depth visits to more than 25 local manufacturers in Changhua — including PX Electronics, CSD, Birzman, and Chiing Hann. Through field interviews and production line observations, the team captured authentic voices from the manufacturing sites, transforming the exhibition into a design-driven interpretation of the human warmth and poetic beauty found in the world of making.

After the war, Changhua leveraged its fertile land to open a new chapter in manufacturing industries such as canned food, textiles, and hardware. The grassroots vitality of the “living room as factory” spirit wove a dense industrial network between towns and fields. The shift from agriculture to industry not only became a key pillar of Taiwan’s economic miracle but also nurtured the very soul of “Made in Taiwan (MIT).”

This steady yet far-reaching energy stems from the unique “collective battle” spirit of Changhua’s small and medium-sized enterprises. More than half of the world’s faucets, high-end bicycles and bicycle components, as well as globally competitive textile and automotive parts industries, trace their origins to this land. Factories scattered across alleyways and farmlands, and family-run businesses nestled in rural villages, are all connected by an unspoken synergy — “one call to restock, one word to ship” — forming the solid strength behind Taiwan’s manufacturing power.

The Made: The Octagon Industry Studies adopts “Octagon” as an analytical lens to observe local industries, distilling eight core DNA traits: Forging Power, Collective Battle, Global Vision, Heritage Path, Agility, Logistics Mastery, Shaping Force, and Manufacturing Spirit. Together, they construct Changhua’s industrial universe. This is a philosophical exploration — each facet a tribute to the spirit of making and a redefinition of local creativity.

Exhibition Highlights

1F Manufacturing Site —— The Octagon Tool Cabinet
Unveiling the manufacturing scene of this city

From brass —— the beginning of all industries, to automotive and motorcycle parts, textiles, bicycle components, and hardware, the eight tool cabinets connect Changhua’s manufacturing DNA.
Each cabinet is equipped with a video screen showcasing the team’s field research; nearby exhibits display materials, components, and finished products, allowing visitors to get close to the manufacturing scenes that are normally hidden from view.

3F Future Axis

The Octagon Conveyor Belt – Runway Select   Showcasing Changhua’s Industrial Diversity through a “Select” Approach
From everyday items like faucets, air pumps, dashcams, and brake systems, the exhibition uses exploded diagrams to deconstruct components, revealing the hidden collaboration and design spirit within factories. At the end of the conveyor, an interactive bicycle bell installation allows visitors to lightly press the bell; the crisp sound triggers multimedia visuals, with flowing abstract images changing in response to sound and rhythm, reflecting the vitality and dynamic pulse of the industry.

Eightfold Axis 88 – Perspective: Reflecting Life and Manufacturing
In collaboration with artist Liao Hao-Che and his team, a metallic installation symbolizing industrial energy is constructed using bicycle frames and brake lines as its skeleton. The structure incorporates 88 dashcams, with lenses pointing in all directions to capture fragments of various landscapes and paths, weaving them into a multi-perspective viewing system. The dense stacking represents the aggregation of strength and embodies the long-standing coordination and tension built up over years within the local industry.

The Octagon Theater – The Human Touch of Manufacturing Romance
“Manufacturing” is not merely processing and production; it is the ability to transform ideas, values, culture, aesthetics, and ways of life into tangible objects.
All manufacturing ultimately revolves around “people.” From starting on farmland and building factories to passing down family businesses through generations, founders transmit not only manufacturing knowledge and skills but also accumulated experience and wisdom. The new generation of successors helps expand the family business, enhance quality, and even explore cross-industry ventures, leading the industry toward a future that evolves with the times.

We’ve included our official website below and look forward to more opportunities to collaborate with you in the future
https://midroomlab.com

[ Curatorial Team ]
Curated by | Intermediary Lab
Curator | Guo Chung-Yuan
Industry Guides | Chiing Hann: Zhong Wen-You, Birzman Industrial

Exhibitors｜
NUVO, JU YUAN, PX, TAH YANG, Astro, LUHAI, CSD, PAIHO, HUNG CHEN LIN, YU SHIN, Jagwire, Ming Che, CHIING HANN, TEKTRO, GUAN RONG, SHIUN HUEI, DEPO, BI CAST, I JANG, TONG CHUN, Birzman, SDI, Managing, KING YOUNG, HAIN YO (Ordered by the number of strokes in each name)

[ Exhibition Information ]
Advisory Units: Ministry of Economic Affairs, Changhua County Government
Organizers: Industrial Development Bureau, Ministry of Economic Affairs; Various Bureaus of Changhua County Government
Executive Units: Taiwan Design Research Institute, Yanshu Planning & Design Consulting Co., Ltd.
Co-organizers: Department of Commerce, Ministry of Economic Affairs; Resource Recycling Agency, Ministry of Environment; Taiwan Railways Administration
Curatorial Unit: Intermediary Lab
Exhibition Area Number: A3

Exhibition Venue | Changhua County Art Museum 1F & 3F
Exhibition Dates | 2025.10.10 FRI —— 26 SUN