After the Explosion – Chen Han Sheng Solo Exhibition

TAIPEI, Taiwan - July 21, 2019 - PRLog -- Coexisting with Crisis? The third kind of slack farming season!

After the Explosion - Chen Han Sheng Solo Exhibition

In 2019, artist Chen Han Sheng held his third solo exhibition "After the Explosion" in Powen Gallery. Inspired by a noise barrier wall, his work tours the area between the Renda Industrial Park (Renwu Industrial Park and Dashe Industrial Park) and the Chingyun Temple in Dashe District to describe daily co-existence with a crisis in Kaoshiung's agricultural industry and petrochemical industry.

Chen Han Sheng launched the "After the Explosion" from the Green Memorial Wall in Sanzhong Road, Ren Da Industrial Park. He observed and delved into the daily life of Dashe District both inside and outside of the noise barrier wall. In addition to labor, he also discussed the definition of another type of "slack farming.

A green wall monument is installed in the display window outside the exhibition space. On the monument is a record of factory incidents such as unexplained gas leakage, wastewater discharge and machine explosion that spurred the construction of the explosion-proof wall. The exhibit, "After the Explosion", is an imagery of the factory explosion scene in the year that the artist was born. In addition to the factory chimneys and oil storage tanks, embellishments from the door-god of Chingyun Temple are also part of the portrayal. The door-god of Dashe Chingyun Temple is drawn by Tsai Tsao-Ru, an important Tainan temple artist.  Chen Han Sheng combined the images of cranes, lions, and deer in the door-god figure to symbolize the connection between local beliefs and local industries. Stainless steel door panels commonly seen in households are combined in screen style to metaphorize isolation and obscurity associated with walls, which provide protection or perhaps to reduce the awareness of crisis?

The change in industrial structure has resulted in different types of farming slack in Dashe. One is the slack at the end of farming season, the other is slack by abandoning farming. Craft is a way for Chen Han Sheng to examine contemporary art and labor production. Through his solo exhibition, he explored his relationship with his hometown and fulfilled a third kind of farming slack with his art.

After the Explosion not only echoes the current situation in Chen Han Sheng's hometown, but also the difficulties confronting the development of petrochemical industry and agriculture in Kaohsiung, which is the epitome of Taiwan's industrial transformation.

Duration | 07.20.2019 – 08.18.2019 (10:00-19:00 Closed on Mondays)
Artist Talk | 07.27.2019 Sat. 3:00 p.m. Talk with Laura Wang (Founder of Evoked Magazine)

For more information, please refer to: http://www.powengallery.com/index.php/en/current