A-Ma Knows Best

In a traditional Taiwanese family, the grandmother “A-Ma” represents the role of cultural inheritance and is considered a walking textbook of life experience and wisdom. Since the wisdom of the early ancestors has only been passed on orally, the publication “A-Ma Knows Best” records the knowledge of the grandmothers of the 1930s and 1940s in three highly detailed books covering the cultural history of “diet”, “art” and “belief”. The books are handbound and screen-printed to express the feeling of nostalgia. On the inside, the topics are connected by a wide variety of illustrations, materials and information on traditions and practices, providing a realistic insight into the history of these cultural assets. Picture stories, real objects and tactile elements, including different papers, thread stitching and a handmade wooden box, turn the topics into an experience that is also sensually tangible, inviting to a dialogue between generations.