Separated by different generations, it is difficult for modern people to understand the various things of their predecessors. But even if we are in the same space, we may misunderstand each other because of following the crowd. Just like “parrots learning to speak”, although they can imitate human voices, they do not fully understand the meaning of the voices they imitate. Recently, contemporary artist Zhang Tengyuan from Taiwan brought the interesting character of “parrot people” in his solo exhibition “Parrot People Land in Hong Kong” at 13A New Street in Sheung Wan, allowing everyone to embark on a humorous archaeological journey in Hong Kong with them!
Zhang Tengyuan’s solo exhibition “Parrot Man Landing in Hong Kong” is a key art project curated by ARTICKS, featuring 20 pieces including paintings, wooden boxes, and sculptures. The “parrot” in the works is actually an alien, and since his first solo exhibition in 2008, the artist has been exploring the concept of “imagining the future, reflecting on the present.” He later created a fictional doomsday story and used his invented “parrot people” to investigate Earth and discuss current social issues.
In the series of works, the “Parrot People” come to the post-apocalyptic Earth, conducting archaeological excavations in Hong Kong, digging up various objects left by previous humans, and understanding the things in front of them in their unique way. Zhang Tengyuan simply presents the Parrot People in the picture and combines contemporary objects to reflect the era. The reason he chose the Parrot People as the protagonist in the painting is because parrots have the meanings of “imitation” and “misunderstanding,” and through the Parrot People’s clumsy imitation and unique character setting, various interesting issues are humorously presented.
Zhang Tengyuan excels in combining flat painting, animated spatial installations, and composite media as his unique visual language. In this exhibition, you can see how he turns elements extracted from Eastern and Western paintings into symbols, reconstructing new visual images that merge Eastern and Western styles.
Another series using agarwood boxes as carriers is also on display. Zhang Tengyuan presents images resembling movie frames on each side of the wooden box, finally sealing it with an agarwood box, as if storing the memories of parrot people in the archaeological ruins of the doomsday Earth.
In addition, the curatorial unit ARTICKS and Zhang Tengyuan specially launched a special edition mini figure for the solo exhibition in Hong Kong. The parrot man appeared in a black and gold hoodie style, combining playfulness and style. You may want to visit the exhibition and take a closer look at these interesting “parrot people”!
Date: From now until June 7th
Time: (Tuesday to Sunday) 12:00 PM to 7:00 PM
Location: 13a New Street Art Gallery, 13 New Street, Sheung Wan
圖片來源：13A New Street
