Alishan artist creates leather workshop, homestay to share her Tsou culture
Alishan artist creates leather workshop, homestay to share her Tsou culture
2026-05-22
Leye Village in Chiayi’s beautiful Alishan has a leatherwork studio founded by local artist Chiu Mei-hui. She’s passionate about promoting handmade leatherwork and allows visitors to try out carving for themselves. Chiu’s assistant is none other than her 10-year-old daughter. After playing in the workshop ever since she was one year old, she was destined to fall in love with the traditional Tsou craft. The family also runs a log-cabin homestay for visitors to experience their culture on a deeper level.
Rhythmic tapping echoes through the workshop as focused visitors hammer into leather. Some are carving animal patterns, or maybe English letters and numbers. Each piece is a unique keepsake.
- Animals, like a chicken, rabbit. Here I put my English name. This way, it makes for a wonderful personalized souvenir.
- The instructor taught us to align the sight markers properly and not to be afraid of hitting our hands.
- Were you worried you’d hit your hand just now?
- Not really.
- I’m more worried about someone else hitting me!
Weaving through this crowd of adults is someone special. She’s not a kid here to experience leather working. She’s the instructor of this class, and all her students are actually prospective school principals from around Chiayi County.
Liang Chun-yen
Local school principal
Most of our prospective principals and teachers are ethnically Han people from the lowlands. They rarely get an opportunity like this to immerse in indigenous culture.
- I started when I was around five years old.
With her youthful face, she demonstrates leather carving with a strength and precision that’s beyond her years. The secret behind 10-year-old Pei-chi’s skill is that she’s the daughter of Chiu Mei-hui, the artist behind this studio in Alishan’s Leye Village.
Chiu Mei-hui
Studio founder
Ever since she was a little over a year old, this was basically her toy box. Every day, she’d dump all the tools out and hammer at random. She kept playing like that, and eventually I said, “That’s your play area. “
Lin Pei-chi
Junior instructor
It’s fun and relaxing. It lets me channel my emotions.
Chiu Mei-hui’s journey into the world of leather working was also an unexpected blessing.
Chiu Mei-hui
Studio founder
I picked up leather carving while I was caring for the kids. I was just at home and the village happened to start a class. I was bored and decided to check it out. I didn’t expect that as I kept going, I’d develop a passion for it.
Beyond helping tourists connect with the land through leatherwork, they wondered if they could take the experience even further. The family therefore decided to create a homestay as well, all from scratch. The Tsou style is immediately apparent in these cozy log cabins. Drawing back the curtains reveals layers of lush mountains, like a painting just outside the window.
Chiu Mei-hui
Studio founder
The decorations in the rooms use a traditional indigenous color palette. My husband built the entire place by hand. We also offer indigenous-style barbecue for our guests. So while offering different things like accommodation, food, and activities, we can also share some of our traditional Tsou stories.
Every year from April to June is firefly season. Mihu Trail just off the Alishan Highway is known as an easy place to see them.
Tang Chin-hsien
Leye Village guide
You can find the Mihu Trail at the 65.8km mark. It’s a super easy place to see fireflies. You don’t even have to walk after getting out of the car. If you’re feeling extra lazy, you can just roll down your window and look.
A trip to Alishan is the perfect escape from the daily grind, inviting travelers to slow down and reconnect with nature.
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#Alishan #leatherwork #leathercarving #artisan #Tsou #indigenous #LeyeVillage #Chiayi #familybusiness #fireflies
嘉義阿里山在地藝術家 創辦”皮雕工作室"推廣鄒族文化
2026-05-22
在嘉義阿里山鄉樂野村，有間皮雕工作室，由在地藝術家邱梅惠創立，力推皮革工藝品和皮雕手作體驗，特別的是，十歲的小女兒也是位皮雕小老師，媽媽笑說，一歲多就在皮雕體驗區玩耍，耳濡目染下，也愛上這項鄒族傳統技藝；一家人還打造小木屋合法民宿，希望讓更多人能更深入認識鄒族文化。
手上拿著槌子，全神貫注，用力敲啊敲，有人在皮革上敲動物圖案，也有壓印英文字母、數字，每條都是專屬自己的回憶。
- 動物，雞啊，兔子，這邊用上我的英文名字，我覺得這樣可以當成我個人的一個紀念品。
- 老師教的準星要對準，還有不要怕敲到手。
- 那你剛有怕敲到手嗎?
- 還好耶。
- 比較怕被別人敲到手。
在這群大人間穿梭，有個特殊的身影，她不是來體驗皮雕的小朋友，而是這場活動的小老師，更有趣的是，來上課的，都是嘉義縣的候用校長。
[[阿里山國民中小校長 梁俊彥]]
“大部分我們現在的候用校長或是老師，他們都是山下的漢人，很少有這樣機會能夠真正來深度地體驗部落的文化”
- 大概是從五歲多吧，開始做的。
稚嫩臉龐，示範皮雕，力道手法完全是專業等級。會這麼熟練，原來十歲的佩琪，就是阿里山鄉樂野村皮雕工作室藝術家邱梅惠的小女兒。
[[皮雕工作室創辦人邱梅惠]]
“她其實從一歲多，這一區就是她的玩具區，她每天就是把工具整個倒出來隨便敲，然後一直這樣子，慢慢玩慢慢玩，所以我說那邊是她的玩具”
[[皮雕小老師 林佩琪]]
“好玩，很紓壓，可以把情緒發洩出來”
邱梅惠說，自己會走上皮雕藝術這條路，也是意外收穫。
[[皮雕工作室創辦人 邱梅惠]]
“皮雕是因為就照顧小孩，然後在家裡，然後部落剛好有開皮雕的課程，那我就覺得很無聊，然後去上一下課，就沒有想到一直上課，上課就蠻有興趣的”
除了讓遊客從皮雕中認識這片土地，還能更深入點嗎? 那就讓更多人住下來吧，一家人打造出小木屋民宿，走入房間內，就能感受到鄒族風格，拉開窗簾，青翠的山巒層層疊疊，如畫般的美景，就在眼前。
[[皮雕工作室創辦人 邱梅惠]]
“裡面的裝飾的話有一些原住民的色調這樣子，然後整個全部的建設都是我老公自己一個人蓋的，還有搭配一點我們原住民的烤的風味餐，所以就是用不同的結合，然後有住宿，有吃的，有玩的，順便跟他們講一些鄒族的傳統故事”
每年四到六月就是螢火蟲季，在阿里山公路旁的迷糊步道，就是被稱為懶人版的賞螢秘境。
[[樂野部落導覽員 湯進賢]]
“65.8K，就可以看到這個迷糊步道。懶人賞螢區啊，就不必走路下車，更懶惰可以靠這邊，窗戶打開，就在那邊看的”
來到阿里山，能讓更多人在繁忙的生活中找回與自然間最純粹互動。
更多新聞內容，請鎖定：
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民視新聞台（53頻道）週二至週六凌晨1:00
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