The Beginning of Spring
立春
2013
29 Sheets of Paper
29張素描紙
Dimensions variable
尺寸依場域而定
29張素描紙
Dimensions variable
尺寸依場域而定
As a result, more and more farmers abandoned their farmland as I grown up(*); even my grandparents were among the parade. Farmland is gradually disappearing from sight and becoming a scene of memory. Even our family farmland was said to be laid out into government’s land expropriation area due to the expansion of industrial districts.
In order to preserve the picturesque farmland scenery in my memory, I undertook this sketch project. During this project, I’ve buried into my grandparents’ fallow land the same amounts of sketch paper to the number of days within February. Next, when February arrived, which is the traditional season for transplanting, I dug one after another piece of paper out of ground daily. Finally, I’ve got a series of unique sketches where the interaction of dirt, time, and insect-activity could be observed clearly.
*At the time when I was still an elementary school student, Taiwan gained the membership of WTO (World Trade Organization) and was forced to import so massive quantity of foreign agricultural products at the first time of its history. Really cheap foreign rice was showing up on the market at that time. In order to protect the price of domestic rice from the impact of imported rice, the government had set about a series of production-adjustment policies, including the distribution of fallow farmland subsidy.
(This is a rough translation of the original in Chinese)
In order to preserve the picturesque farmland scenery in my memory, I undertook this sketch project. During this project, I’ve buried into my grandparents’ fallow land the same amounts of sketch paper to the number of days within February. Next, when February arrived, which is the traditional season for transplanting, I dug one after another piece of paper out of ground daily. Finally, I’ve got a series of unique sketches where the interaction of dirt, time, and insect-activity could be observed clearly.
*At the time when I was still an elementary school student, Taiwan gained the membership of WTO (World Trade Organization) and was forced to import so massive quantity of foreign agricultural products at the first time of its history. Really cheap foreign rice was showing up on the market at that time. In order to protect the price of domestic rice from the impact of imported rice, the government had set about a series of production-adjustment policies, including the distribution of fallow farmland subsidy.
(This is a rough translation of the original in Chinese)
隨著我的成長,越來越多農民加入休耕的行列(註1),包含了我的祖父母。稻田逐漸消失,成為只存在於記憶中的風景。近年來因為工業區的擴張,一度傳出政府準備徵收祖田地的傳聞。
為了留下記憶中的稻田風景,我製作了這個素描計畫。在這個計畫當中,我在祖父母已經休耕的田中埋入與二月的天數等數量的素描紙,並且在傳統上稻作插秧的二月份,將這些紙張以一天一張的方式挖出。最後這些留存在紙張上的泥土、時間、昆蟲活動的痕跡讓紙張成為獨特的素描。
註1:當我還是國小學生時,台灣加入WTO,首次開放國外的農產品進口,市場上開始出現便宜的外國稻米,為了避免稻米價格受到進口稻米的影響,政府制定了調節國內稻米產量的政策,以發放補助金的方式鼓勵農民休耕。
為了留下記憶中的稻田風景,我製作了這個素描計畫。在這個計畫當中,我在祖父母已經休耕的田中埋入與二月的天數等數量的素描紙,並且在傳統上稻作插秧的二月份,將這些紙張以一天一張的方式挖出。最後這些留存在紙張上的泥土、時間、昆蟲活動的痕跡讓紙張成為獨特的素描。
註1:當我還是國小學生時,台灣加入WTO,首次開放國外的農產品進口,市場上開始出現便宜的外國稻米,為了避免稻米價格受到進口稻米的影響,政府制定了調節國內稻米產量的政策,以發放補助金的方式鼓勵農民休耕。