Xuexue Foundation Introduction
The establishment of the Xuexue Cultural and Creative Foundation originated from the desire of Taiwanese society for a "Cultural and Creative Learning Platform" during the transformation of humanistic thinking and economic industries. Influenced by this notion, Lin Bo-shih and Xu Li-ling, the couple behind the Shihlin Group, founded "Xuexue." In September 2005, they gathered elites from Taiwan's cultural and creative academia and industry to jointly establish Xuexue, which centers its core values around "culture" and "creativity," and its business activities include "education," "research," "exhibitions," "consultation," and "incubation." Xuexue serves as a bridge for learning and communication among the fields of art, design, philosophy, technology, and economics. The cross-disciplinary exchanges it offers will significantly influence the future of the youth! This reflects the era in which Xuexue was established: from both the living and working sides, people urgently need a rich and nourishing cultural sensitivity—experiencing culture and aesthetics—and businesses are beginning to learn how to utilize "cultural capital" to seek creative opportunities from culture. The name "Xuexue" comes from the most ancient Eastern philosophy of simplicity and human relationships, with its origin in the "Li Ji" (Book of Rites) under the section "Xue Ji": "Although there are delicacies, if one does not eat, one does not know their taste; although there are ultimate principles, if one does not study, one does not know their goodness. Thus, one learns to know one’s insufficiency; one teaches to know one’s difficulties; knowing insufficiency allows for self-reflection, knowing difficulties allows for self-strengthening. Therefore, it is said that teaching and learning mutually promote each other, and it is named 'Xuexue' where each half represents knowledge." The term "Xuexue" implies that "teaching and learning each accounts for half of knowledge." Xuexue envisions that every student in a classroom might be a teacher in another classroom; conversely, every teacher in one classroom might also be a student in another. The mutual learning, connection, and cross-industry collaboration between teachers and students align with the immense demand for "cross-industry value addition" driven by the cultural and creative industries in Taiwan's job market during the industrial transformation. The philosophy of Xuexue not only provides learning in the cultural and creative fields but also offers diverse inspiration through art and design exhibitions. The aim is to share the thoughts and insights of artists and designers. These experiences and creative ideas, integrated within the space of Xuexue, can spark infinite imagination and reflection, encouraging individuals to learn from teachers in different fields and engage in dialogues with art and design. Through the interactions and realizations from interdisciplinary encounters, individuals can gain moments of creative inspiration!
