WUN TING WENDY TAI
Disabled Chairs, 2012.
Interactive installation. Dimensions variable. Found chairs, casters.
The piece was made specifically for 'Introspecting Unknown', a group exhibition organized by Art Museum at the Art Park in Hsinchu, Taiwan [國家藝術園區美術館]. The theme of the show was 'Tactic Allirreug' [擊游策], which was announced to the participating artists only ten days before the show opened.
[擊遊 (Allirreug) 的字眼來自於游擊 (Guerrilla)，閱讀順序在字義上產生不同的判讀：「游擊」的重點在「擊」這個動作，「游」是在描述如何「擊」法；而「擊游」的重點則是「游」的動作，「擊」在這邊則是描述「游」的方式，具體來說可以是一種「遊走中帶有力道」的姿態。「擊游策」試圖透過各種模擬與練習，以「擊游」的姿態擬定面對未知的策略。對於未知的想像，來自於過往的成敗堆促，累積這些生存經驗，作為對未來的策略想像，通過邀展藝術家們的性格與體質，來串起一個展演的對話。]
The theme was a Chinese word play on the term for 'Guerilla Tactic'; switching the two Chinese characters around, 'Tactic Allirreug' puts emphasis on 'wandering', but retains the aggressivity related to such tactics.
The Taiwanese Air Force base is located in Hsinchu. Many villages in the area that once housed military dependents [眷村] are being demolished by the Taiwanese government. The broken chairs were found in one of such villages. The chairs were partially mended and installed with wheels. Viewers were invited to interact with the chairs in the gallery. A fair amount of effort, or 'aggression', was required when wandering around the space in these broken chairs.
