台北當代藝術館 三人成唬

What is the importance of a visual culture developed only in the recent 30 years of the internet and how does that importance play a role in society?

I visited the Museum of Contemporary Arts in Taipei recently where I specifically visited the exhibition "三人成唬" by 王學淵, 黃育晨, and 許哲豪. Unfortunately, my limitations in the Mandarin language have left me understanding only a fraction of their effort of the meaningfulness behind their work, so I critique this exhibition with shallow but also with a mind to comprehend.

Their current exhibit at the Museum of Contemporary Arts, also known short for MoCa, seems to be discussing sarcastic implications towards the divinity of religion and everyday life in contemporary society today. Their statement for the exhibition presents the saying in Traditional Mandarin: "When there is no way to keep talking about something, to keep talking, and to keep talking, it will become a mantra; when a group of people keeps on repeating the same thing, it will become a meme". One of their works that I remember, is most probably "歡久閣". From a technical point of view, It gives off a disturbing and ominous welcome from the very start, with the backdrop and props made to make the scene look like one of the most famously religious paintings 'The Last Supper' by Leonardo Davinci but with a twist of traditional and modern Eastern culture incorporated into the furnishings and attire of each character. The seemingly premature style of directing and details paid attention to the acting hand puppets are underwhelming compared to the effects of voice and sound generated by these artists. And the ending music theme, seemingly an original piece made by the artists, gives more of a glimpse into the actual meaning of what they, the artists tend to convey, in comparison to the visualization and acting done for this video work. I honestly found it quite vexing while studying each of their works.

Conceptually, perhaps these 3 artists aim to discuss the common relationship between what they call.... 'trash-talking' about everyday life and the humor of heterosexual young men. From my understanding of their perception of their work, it seems more like a fun-downtime project with limited information and a small target audience in mind when it was made and when it was presented. When I go to museums as prestigious as MoCa, I often go with expectations of wanting to see something inspiring, motivational, and brain-wracking. So what could be so brilliant about the works revolving around the topic of 'trash-talking' between 3 young men about their daily worries, their interests, and their social life? How and why is it important that it gets presented in a well-known museum to the general public? What does it give, and how does it educate?

Perhaps the surprising benefits of trash-talking...and the risks of it may very well or should be an important study and discussion between the society of all ages. First of all, in a short summarized definition, trash-talking is essential boasting about one's self or ill-remarks about the other facing party. How influential may trash-talking be I wonder? This exhibition and the work of these 3 artists made me think back to the days of me sitting in front of my laptop essentially grinding the day away on a game called League of Legends, a multiplayer online arena game neurotically and stereotypically targeted towards teenagers to young adults. I recall how I would always lose my temper towards the slander of the opposite team, my opponents, who were most likely very serious about the game that included hierarchy and rankings as a competitive drive. And although I kept quiet throughout the game and gave no slander in return, they were disappointingly so, very neurotic.

Their calumny put off the focus of many in-game, creating an insanely and unbelievably online toxic environment that ultimately reflects into our society today because of the game's huge popularity and success. Eventually, the developers had to implement a mute button for the in-game chats for a chance for a more casual downtime for casual players like me. By relating my own experience with playing a highly competitive game and the exhibit "三人成唬", the understanding of motivators and the distraction of its core actions come to mold into a worldly perception of comprehending and tolerance that benefits our suppressed and repressed nature of Asian society. A means to release and refresh the mind and matter.

From my perspective, these artists wanted to convey a sincere environment through this exhibit by allowing the general public to ponder over daily affairs more actively, in a wild and carefree manner, rather than to stay oppressed and defeated. A shared sentiment of good intentions between 3 people for the declining and yet, rising awareness of the mental-health situation in Asia. Over the past 3 years living in a part of Asia and Southeast Asia, I have bared witness to the black hole that is depression, bipolar disorder, autism, and many more of the spectrum. People usually walk on eggshells and the environment becomes concedingly terrible to be in. Hundreds and thousands of people taking medicine and going to therapy to cope with the loss and haste of time, the overwhelming air that breezes by so quickly that you would not have enough time to react.

Perhaps this exhibition was a refreshing way of reminding the audience to be wary, and to be gentle of oneself, as well as others. To keep a light and open mind so that the value of appreciation shows strongly in actions. These 3 artists use digital mediums to convey their thoughts and feelings. The definition of memes is literally imagery, videos, pieces of text, bashful and humourous in nature which is often used by internet-savvy users without spare. While trash-talking could be considered incivility expressed to compete, or playful rivalry banter. By using digital mediums to produce dialogues and imagery, these 3 artists created an exhibit to most likely tackle an issue that is overly controversial to talk about so blatantly in Asian culture without study or analysis. It shows an odd approach, an urge to understand something that could ultimately destroy the lives of many. A grave already dug, only for declaration.

Motivating the audience to outperform their opponents through the art of memes and trash-talking, the works exhibited in "三人成唬" is definitely food for thought. The agitating, exasperating, and yet competitive boundary demonstrates the want of something from 王學淵, 黃育晨, and 許哲豪, but from whom? Where and when? I look forward to their future exhibitions and works.