Marking its 30th anniversary, the 2026 Kaohsiung Award continues to respond to social change and shifting artistic practices, while reflecting the evolution of contemporary art in Taiwan. This year, 358 artists from across the country participated. Following its established framework—category-based preliminary review and an open final review—the jury selected three Kaohsiung Award recipients: Liang-Hsuan Chen (Hensan Pear Trees & Hosui Pears), Chen-Wei Chang (Volkswagen Transporter T5.gltf), and Jie-Huai Yang (Working Holiday). The HOPAX Sustainable Environmental Special Award was presented to Li-Yun Chien (Diverging Scenarios: On Forgetting and Inscription), and the HCS Calligraphy and Seal-Engraving Special Award to Juan-Ti Chi (Late Autumn). From 27 shortlisted works, five artists—Ting-Huan Li, Bing-Chi Wu, Ching-Hao Wen, Hsuan Hung, and Po-Yuan Juan—received Jury Special Awards for their potential and ongoing development. Together, the selected works demonstrate a younger generation’s critical engagement with reality, addressing relationships between humanity and nature, history and labor, and image and power.