White Fungus, no. 18

White Fungus is an art magazine and project based in Taichung City, Taiwan.

Founded by brothers Ron and Mark Hanson in Wellington, New Zealand, in 2004, as a quasi-political manifesto, copies of the first issue were produced on a photocopier, wrapped in Christmas paper and hurled anonymously through the entrances of businesses throughout the city. Now a magazine featuring interviews, writing on art, new music, history and politics, White Fungus takes a dialogical approach to the work it covers. The name of the publication comes from a can of “white fungus” the Hansons found in their local supermarket in the industrial zone of Taichung City. Each cover of White Fungus is derived from a scan of the can.

The 18th issue of White Fungus features an 80-page interview with New York poet and novelist Eileen Myles. The conversation traces several chapters of their life, including becoming a poet in 1970s New York, reading at CBGB, and writing the cult classic Chelsea Girls. Myles discusses their mainstream crossover in 2015, their involvement in the hit television show Transparent, overcoming alcoholism, their writing process, and many other topics.

The issue also includes an epic feature on Hilma af Klint and the suppressed occult roots of modernist art. Taipei artist Yao Jui-Chung contributes a photo essay documenting animatronic depictions of the Chinese concept of hell, as seen in Daoist temples in Taiwan and Singapore. Yan Jun reflects on the life of Taiwanese noise music pioneer Dino (Liao Ming-He), who passed away in 2022. Also featured is an interview with artist Pavel Pepperstein on the influence of children’s literature and hallucinogenics in conjuring his surreal futuristic landscapes—a style he calls “psychedelic realism.”