“But I heard your Chief Executive had declared that ‘the bill was dead’, isn’t it?”
“That’s true. But that is just one of our five demands.”
“Hong Kong Police abused protesters during peaceful demonstration. Their brutality should be brought to justice.”
“Pro-government people called us cockroaches, rioters. For over half a century, they were blinded to the brutality of communist Chinese government. Our notoriety was just a wrong stereotype which only happened in their mind, like the mould and pests I painted on the cloths, which were not real.”
“It reminded me about Gregor Schneider’s recreated rooms/spaces. How do you feel about this association?”
“He is an exceptional artist, especially in recreating those disturbing rooms. When Gregor Schneider made the ‘Totes Haus U R’, he wished it might reflect viewers’ fear and could help them overcome the fear.1 I could not speak for my audience, but I was relieved and my fury was channeled when I completed this work.”
“This is a very interesting pieces. I heard you were laying on the mattress during the exhibition. Could you tell me more about it?”
“My artwork was highly connected to my daily life. Me staying in the art piece enabled viewers to understand the interaction, e.g. what I would do with the mattress, those square cloths and the air fresher, and hence illustrated the indivisibility between me and my art piece.”
“I am interested in the stereotype of viewers. And I found pests and mould might be a good start for conversation. I would explore and develop this topic in the near future by researching different types of mould and pests, as well as thoughts of people about them.”
1. Lack, Jessica. “ Artist of the week 28: Gregor Schneider.” The Guardian, (London), February 11, 2009, accessed January 13, 2020, https://www.theguardian.com/artanddesign/2009/feb/10/gregor-schneider-artist