本展源自1999年，臺北與澳洲伯斯市(Perth)締結友誼城市，今年適逢雙城情誼正式邁入第20年，北美館特與澳洲伯斯當代藝術中心(Perth Institute of Contemporary Arts)共同合作，藉由策展交流模式，觸及地域的故事文本之摹寫述說，回應時間及相遇的多重可能。小說，意指虛構的故事作品，在中文中最早見於《莊子‧外物》，指涉瑣碎的言談、微小的道理。相對於傳統主張「如實描寫過去」的「歷史」，「小說」實則在語言與文字的虛構之境，重新書寫過去、敘說事物，以一種「再回憶」的形式，聯繫時間與地理的文本。本展試圖從歷史的建構與再書寫，以小說為發想，通過難以考據的故事、軼聞謠言、記述，或是微不足道的私密回憶，展開對台灣－澳洲兩地之探索。本展預計邀請十三位╱組來自台灣與西澳兩地當代藝術家之共同參與。
The story of this exhibition began in 1999, when Taipei and Perth, Australia, establish the friendship cities. The sisterhood has officially entered its 20th year this year, prompting TFAM and the Perth Institute of Contemporary Arts to come together to organize this exhibition, which serves as a platform for interaction and exchanges, and for the curators to tell stories rooted in local cultures that explore the multiple possibilities created by time and timely meetings. “Tales” refer to fictional stories, as well as snippets of utterances and moral lessons. As opposed to history, which emphasizes realistic descriptions of the past, tales employ fictional language to interpret and reinterpret stories from the past and various subjects. This process of “remémoration” forms a bridge between time and locality. The exhibition sets out from a rewriting of history, and recruit 13 artists from Taiwan and West Australia were invited to be part of this journey inspired by the idea of tales. Henceforth begins a sojourn of imagination and exploration between two islands, from two cities, revolving around stories, rumors from the grapevine, records, and even inconsequential and personal memories.