Family Album, 2016

Hong Kong 2017
Family Album

Pearl Lam Galleries

Family Album is an attempt to reveal the complexity of identity, particularly from a Tibetan cultural perspective. Seventeen of the artist’s family members appear as cut-out figures, lining what resembles a catwalk. The scene is framed by a long drape that at once references religious scroll painting and propaganda. The cut-outs are dressed for a variety of settings: work, traditional or holiday and personal costumes. The changing garments can be seen as an outward symbol of how they navigate these different settings, while the expressions and postures suggest a more nuanced perspective into how contemporary life is experienced. Through this personal work, the artist attempts to present a new story of Tibet, one that examines a remote culture that is now part of a globalizing world. He investigates representations of self and explores the boundaries between advertising, propaganda and self-promotion. “At the intersection of representation and interpretation lies a deep and vast area that is so complex and at the same time very beautiful. If my work is ambiguous, it is, perhaps, because this is where I find myself.” 《全家福》試圖從西藏文化的角度揭露錯綜複雜的身份關係。藝術家把自己17位家庭成員塑造成人像立牌,排列如同時裝秀一般。整個場景由長布簾圍繞著,讓人立即聯想到含宗教色彩的捲軸畫和宣傳品。人像立牌根據不同的身份場景穿著,有上班、傳統、假日或個人服飾。服飾的多變可以視為一種外在象徵,顯示出他們如何遊走於這些身份之間;至於人物的表情和姿態,則以細微的差別展現出他們如何體現當代生活。透過這件個人作品,藝術家試圖訴說一個關於西藏的全新故事,探討西藏其正與全球化接軌的偏遠文化。藝術家審視自我表達方式,並探索商業廣告、政治宣傳與自我推銷之間的界線。藝術家指出:「在表達和詮釋之間存在着一個遼闊寬廣的領域,既複雜又美麗。如果我的作品含糊不清,也許是因為我目前正是如此。」