In this work, Harsono draws from his identity as an Indonesian of Chinese descent. Using a bamboo-woven structure as the main body, complemented by textiles and ready-made objects, he constructs a ship installation. Collected in Indonesia, these objects retain Chinese cultural elements whilst embodying local characteristics. This piece, altogether, showcases his interpretation and imagination of 'hybrid culture' development through the metaphor of a long journey. The artist suspends the bamboo boat in mid-air, evoking images of drifting, floating, and traversing water. This serves as a symbol of border-crossing, transition, immigration, and migration. The various fabrics adorning the body of the ship interweave traditional Chinese batik patterns with local Indonesian motifs and colours, visually concretising the migration, fusion, flux, and regeneration of cultures. Red LED candles, lotus-shaped lamp holders, and a series of small boats appear to mark the path, guiding or accompanying/sending off the vessel. These elements imbue ritualistic connotations of commemoration and/or aspirations for the future.
Wood, a resource from nature, has provided significant support for human life. Its harvesting and utilisation can be traced back to ancient human history, with different applications highlighting the cultural characteristics of various regions. The 'mortise and tenon' joint is a unique invention of ancient China, serving as the primary structural element for ancient wooden architecture, furniture, and tools. The Great Woodwork is a sculptural installation that amalgamates numerous components from traditional architecture. The wooden architectural fragments, diverse in form and bearing visible traces of use and original colours, evoke the progression and accumulation of time. They also suggest the spatial structure and tension inherent in deconstruction. This work challenges our understanding of the inheritance of traditional wisdom and interrogates the past and present of material culture.
This piece features a rhinoceros on a circular base, ridden by a human figure with a cloud-shaped head. The rhino's body is crafted from steel slag, a by-product of metal smelting, while its head is adorned with blue and white porcelain beads, exemplifying the artist's deliberate juxtaposition of disparate materials. The human rider's knee joints are mechanical, while the torso is fashioned from Korean white porcelain. The abdomen, made with white porcelain, is encircled by blue and white porcelain beads, and the figure's body incorporates debris from fallen fighter jets. The arms, devoid of fingers, evolve into ant-like forms, with a bull emerging from the shoulder. A cloud of plastic beads replaces the brain, topped by a mythical beast figurine. The incorporation of fighter jet debris, once precise machinery, alongside industrial waste, prompts a reconsideration of civilisational cycles. The surreal hybrid of human and animal challenges sculptural aesthetic norms, blurring boundaries between myth and reality, barbarism and civilisation, truth and falsehood, ultimately guiding viewers into an imaginary realm.
Hermaphroditus's Protrusion Mythology is a 4K, high-quality video featuring performers dressed in costumes designed by the artist, appearing in Hermaphroditic form through montage editing techniques. In this video, performers move between historical sites and the performance venue, their bodies traversing imaginary and mythological worlds. The work showcases the artist's desire to challenge and transcend conventional systems and norms, liberating the piece from specific plots and employing deconstructive narratives to create the work.
Sprouting protrusions – Mythogenesis is a large-scale installation, inspired by the formal attire worn by royal women in the Joseon Dynasty. This gigantic garment is crafted from traditional silks, with the silhouettes of women's bodies subtly delineated on its front and back, accompanied by scenes of fauna and flora rendered in black and white lines. The hem of the attire is adorned with fur, its upright posture reminiscent of memorial stones, evoking the sacred aura of totemic patterns. The back hem is intentionally elongated, featuring two interconnected headless bodies on yellow fabric, inviting viewers into a mythological realm. This piece bridges questions of individual gender identity with the mythology of the Earth Goddess, serving as a medium that connects earthly and celestial energies. The artwork also manifests the transcendence of corporeal forms when imbued with divine spirits, as if illustrating the unfolding of 21st-century mythology.
This work explores the potential impacts and risks that clones, cyborgs, and genetic modification pose to human life and civilisation. The orc Donosaurus, a creation of artist Dono, combines a human body with Komodo dragon limbs. These hybrid creatures are designed to mimic simplistic, mindless machines running endlessly. The five Donosauruses appear as identical replicas, evocative of clones. They are positioned in a comical squat, with fans ingeniously installed on their bottoms to facilitate body heat reduction. The appearance of this new species reminds viewers that high-tech engineering might blur the lines between reality and virtuality, potentially creating entirely new forms of organisms. Furthermore, this work cautions viewers that if such capabilities fall into the wrong hands, disasters and wars might be imminent. The five Donosauruses also sardonically comment on how autocratic, oppressive policies might be as dangerous as genetic modifications.
This piece utilises marble slabs to form crisp, geometric shapes that connect modern architecture with industrial structures. However, the artist intentionally retains certain irregular edges of the stone itself, along with the jagged corners, rough surfaces, and leftover fragments from cutting and chiseling, emphasizing the inherent qualities of the material while reflecting its 'artificial experience'. Subtly, the work explores the relationships and tensions between nature and civilisation. Chan values the rawness of stone and approaches the material with restraint, treating both the artist and the medium as equal participants—coexisting subjects within the art world. By elevating the slabs on metal stands, he offers viewers a reader-like experience and perspective, encouraging them to re-examine the essence of materials and consider their impact on modern life.
