Artwork Appreciation
Artist Huang Chien-Hua’s Project V is a digital photograph on the Covid-19 pandemic. In 2020, Huang was in Japan conducting field research when the Covid-19 pandemic erupted. International borders were closed, and he found himself stuck in a foreign country, which heightened his feelings of uncertainty. The photo shows a minibus—the kind used for nursery schools and kindergartens—suspended in the air by coronavirus-shaped balloons. It is a metaphor for the childlike condition that each country found itself in, having to learn how to deal with a world covered with an unknown virus. The traffic sign cautioning “SLOW” symbolizes the forced slower pace of the world during the pandemic. With these bright, colorful objects, he takes a positive attitude and interprets the pandemic as a kind of challenging adventure. He looks forward to people moving forward and exploring a new world.