ISSA Hualien / Pacific International Stone Stacking Art Festival

The 2026 Pacific International Stone Stacking Art Festival officially opened on the morning of the 1st at the 

Blue Sky Plaza of Qixingtan Scenic Area in Hualien. Visitors from across regions, together with international 

artists, gathered to take part in this global art symposium that integrates natural landscape art with public 

participation.

This year’s festival invited artists from five countries—Sweden, Spain, Iraq, Japan, and Türkiye—who 

collaborated with local creators. Through traditional stone stacking techniques combined with interdisciplinary 

artistic concepts, they initiated a cross-cultural and transregional artistic dialogue along the Pacific coast, 

generating diverse and dynamic creative expressions.

Hualien, endowed with exceptional natural resources, provides a setting where mountains and ocean coexist

 in harmony. The art of stone stacking merges driftwood, stone sculpture, and land art, transforming simple 

pebbles into a vivid “ocean waltz” that resonates visually and aurally. Each artwork seems to softly “sing” 

in the sea breeze, embodying a sense of life and rhythm.

This year’s symposium has been officially recognized by the international stone stacking community as 

one of the three major stone stacking activities in the world, alongside those held in Hualien ,

 Edinburgh (UK), and Texas (USA).

During the preparation phase, the festival also established a cooperative relationship with the European 

Land Art Festival in Scotland, aiming to use Hualien as a starting point to elevate the symposium into a key art 

platform in Asia.

In his opening remarks, curator Lin Liren noted that participating artists, working amid the wind, rain, blazing 

sun, and the sound of waves at Qixingtan, have embedded their deep affection for Hualien into each stacked

 stone. He expressed his gratitude to both domestic and international artists for their collaboration, which 

has elevated stone stacking land art to new dimensions. He emphasized that this symposium represents 

the collective realization of shared positive energy and artistic aspirations.

Contributed by: Lin Liren, ISSA Commissioner

Editor-in-Chief: Liu Qin

English Editor: Sun Ya'nan

Legal Advisor: Tao Ran'ting