Still life in fruit plate—Mango、Guava、Jujube、Five Fingered Eggplant、Canistel、Bud

作品賞析

This powered installation created by the artist Chen Han-Sheng uses six kinds of fruits that are local products of Kaohsiung’s Dashe District: golden mango, guava, dates, and rarer specialties like the five-fingered eggplant, canistel, and Buddha’s hand, which are used for offerings. Chen uses metal and ceramics as his main materials. The metallic sprouts and leaves on the fruit represent the idea of “germination.” In the Chinese title for this work, the word faying is a pun for “germination,” and the word qinggong refers to offerings. The relationship between the natural environment and traditional culture can be seen in the selection of the fruits used for offerings. For example, the guava was originally considered unsuitable for use in worship, but since it was produced in abundance, its use in sacrifice was encouraged, and now its use for that purpose has become a distinctive feature of the local culture. Chen Han-Sheng also used special patterns to express the feeling of “imitation antique porcelain,” so the fruit bowls used for worship in real life are transformed into ornamental antiques, in order to provide viewers another perspective on the things seen in daily life.