Jury’s Comments for the 21st Grand Prize Winner: TANG Jo-Hung : As You Sleep Worry-Free —From Pandemic to War: About disaster crisis like a celebration in one or two different cook methods TANG Jo-Hung
TANG Jo-hung, through his accomplished artistic expressions, offers astute insights into the distance between disasters and the daily life of the layperson. His unique and humorous aesthetic politics make this distance feel as close as an absurd drama. Amidst the pandemic and wars, the once-normal life suddenly disappeared and people around the globe are forced to face this situation together. The artist deploys a deft painting language and subtle narration together with free-flowing and chaotic strokes in scenes interwoven with both fantasy and reality, juxtaposing delightful and gloomy ambiences, and overlapping vibrant and dreary palettes. These works resonate with the inherent anxiety and fear that people are trying to evade and beckon concerns for the times we live in, which are indeed the core responsibilities of contemporary art. It is the jury’s wish that many years later as people look back on this edition of Taishin Arts Award, they would recognize the joy and tribulations of this era through TANG’s work.
