The Second Asia-Pacific Triennial of Contemporary Art exhibition catalogue (APT2)

Wu started his artistic career in the early 1980s when he became a founding member of the 101 Modern Art Group. Through his artistic creations, he has consistently demonstrated great sensitivity towards issues concerning personal identity. Perhaps because of Taiwan's unique history of repeated foreign rule, Wu has developed a keen awareness of 'traumatic experiences'. It is possibly because of this that he has tended to flow with the currents of political and social vicissitude in Taiwan. In the 1990s Wu abandoned the practice of identifying himself with the prevailing political trends of the time, and turned to the real world for an anchor in life. He used old photographs, an easy medium for invoking past memories, and refurbished them with a resolute appearance of self-confidence, thus consigning the absurdity of history to ridicule. The works to be featured in the exhibition include Man blindfold-'Dream of verandah' 1994, On the damage to the 'spring and autumn pavilion' - Dream ofpast era // 1995 and Dream ofpast era I 1995. These works may at first glance appear to be old photos of the 1950s and 1960s, but actually contain deliberate 'flaws'. In the words of the artist himself: 'This is a one-dimensional caricature'. The careful viewer would find the hidden meaning in the eyes and unique gestures of the models featured in the works. To the Han Chinese, eyes are a window on the activities of the human soul. In Wu's works, the materialistic objects-tie, glasses and strips of cloth-take the place of eyes as indicators of the human spirit, thus achieving a considerable level of satirical effect in terms of the use of artistic language. The sexually suggestive gestures are a unique technique employed by the artist in refurbishing the old photos.This is because death (the frames of the works convey a strong sense of mortality) and sex are the two major taboos in public discourse in orthodox Confucian Han culture. The Han have always accentuated both ends of the continuum– rise and fall, positive and negative-believing that the pinnacle of prosperity is the beginning of decline. Through these works, Wu integrates death and sex, desolation and luxury into a simplified microcosm of human existence. Such an existence may not be part of the 'grand history', but represents the crystallisation of past human experience. Wu has abandoned the practice of trying to rediscover his identity through the caricature of 'official versions' of grand history. He has opened new pages of the photo album of his memories and started an enterprise of self-ridicule in a most calm and confident manner. It takes a very confident person to be comfortable with self-ridicule. Hyacinth Lo.Writer, Taipei Memory's Make-up Artist Lives and works in Taipei Top On the damage to the 'spring and autumn pavilion' - Dream ol past era I 1995 Mixed media 120x80cm Collection: Dimension Endowment of Art, Taipei Bottom Boy & guitar-goodbye! Chun Chiou ko 1993 Mixed media 200x165cm Collection: Taipei Fine Arts Museum ART I s T s : EA s T A s I A I 75