Artwork

Daan6gaa1 (2021)
Watercolor on paper, engraving on wood
Dimensions variable

Artwork Description:

In his photographic documentation Illustrations of China and Its People published in 1873, the British photographer John Thomson (1837-1936) captured the living condition of a group of unique inhabitants of the Pearl River Estuary: thousands of Cantonese spent their entire life on the junks (a type of Chinese sailing ship)—they were born on the junk, and the junk became the home that provided them both shelters and means of livelihood. These people drifted around aimlessly until they found a suitable anchorage for them to settle down, and at the end of their life, the junk also delivered their corpses to their burial sites. The fishermen captured by John Thomson likely belonged to the Tanka People—an ancient ethnic group who lived on junks in the lower reaches of the Pearl River. In Qu Dajun’s Guangdong Xinyu (New Discourse on Guangdong), I’ve also discovered a few dietary records on this group— “Guangdong is a land that abounds in sea and river, and residents there depended their life on the fishery. Softshell turtles, crabs, clams, and mussels are of abundance… Though maintaining a humble lifestyle, the Tanka People was able to live off the ample amount of local seafood.” “In the coastal area, there were farms that built upon the briny, barren beach there, which grew various kinds of rice that are characterized by their large grains and muted red palette…” “During July and August, the farmers would irrigate the farm regularly, and cured fish, prawns, eels, clams, and conches for preservation.” Through this work, I reimagine the dinner of a 19th century Tanka household in July, floating adrift amidst the waves of the Pearl River. 

Courtesy of the artist

location: Macao Contemporary Art Center - Navy Yard No.1
23/07/2021~03/10/2021