The immense fear of the apocalypse looms like an enemy’s jet circling up above, unpredictably shifting near and far, and the widespread virus, like an invisible killer, leaves people at a loss for what to do. Having been through the COVID-19 pandemic and the ongoing Russia-Ukraine War, our planet is further shrouded by extreme weather conditions that overshadow people’s spirits and minds with apocalyptic thoughts like an overwhelming dark cloud. The world knows no mercy, and art is useless. The faint cries coming from the artist sound even more frail and helpless in the face of ecological extinction, leopard cat road-kills, the disappearance of clouded leopards, forest fires, racial massacres, energy depletion, or how things are in the post-colonial contemporary world. It seems like he is only able to ask ever so gently before the dark and endless path of doom emerges: “How on earth can we obtain salvation?”
Yang Mao-Lin’s earlier works explore figures and themes that included failed immortals; heroes in turbulent times; a baby with “Bad Taste”; and the Maha, as well as “Culture Intercourse”; “Canonization of the Gods”; “The Immortals”; and “The Quest for Mandala,” which then led to his grand exhibitions, MADE IN TAIWAN, in 2016 and Wanderers of the Abyssal Darkness in 2018. For years, Yang, whilst traversing a dark abyss, has used art to create cultural hybrid narratives that bring together fairy tales, myths, and beliefs, where he calls out for “Rescues in Time” and also creates gods that come to the rescue. The unique artworks created have also allowed the artist to embark on a long journey with the hero that lies deep within him. Yang’s “Rescues in Time” began with characters of the Warrior and the Martyr from historical myths based on Taiwan’s martial law era, with symbolic salvation obtained through cultural creativity from moments of failure. Then, through appropriating stories about saving the world, heroic acts of justice, and universal restoration appropriated from manga, anime, fairytales, and popular subcultures, the characters of the Innocent, the Orphan, and the Wanderer from children and adolescents’ memories are created to repeatedly overcome obstacles and to find pure redemption in a world that is currently falling apart.
Facing today’s world, Yang began with a realm full of fierce mythical figures and characters engaged in historical battles, and he then embarked on a heroic path with the Innocent and the Wanderer, such as saints, immortals, robots, and also Alice and the Astro Boy. Then with brisk and enthusiastic steps, he gradually leaped away from the cumbersome shackles of history and even tried to detach from humankind’s blood-stained past, which then took him on nighttime excursions to explore splendid fighting fish and bizarre deep-sea creatures, before entering a magical eternally spring tropical forest, with blossoming lilies, clouded leopards, Formosan black bears, crows, insects, and fish tattooed on wooden blocks. The artist then embarked on the ultimate return journey of redemption for all sentient beings and the call of the wild. From the trinity of painting, iconography, and sculpture to the coming together of the trio of brushstrokes, wood, and metal, and from his early path of hope for the Innocent and the Orphan who fell or were forgotten by the heavenly kingdom, and the scenes of the rise and fall of power with the Martyr and the Warrior who saved the world and fought against violence, Yang’s creative journey traveled to Glittering Soul, where the fighting fish’s tenacious will was experienced and then to Wanderers of the Abyssal Darkness to be accompanied by a school of deep-sea fish and surrounded in an ambiance of profundity, solitude, autonomy, and alertness. He then freely transitioned to an emerald jungle of The Lasting Spring, where primal instincts were liberated and all beings became one; it was where the mind was joyful, light, and calm. With all gods congregated, the dusk is yet to be over. This exhibition intends to delve deeper into what kind of contemporary divinity Yang is trying to achieve with “Rescues in Time.” Is it the art world’s Warrior or Martyr? Or is it the Innocent with no worldly goals, the Wanderer who follows and drifts along, or the Orphan who was left behind in the deep sea? Perhaps, it’s the mystical beast that’s immersed holistically in nature and protected by the gods, or those characters that came to the rescue represent the journey of the hero within the artist, as he faces himself and goes through personal adjustments.
This exhibition at the Museum of Contemporary Art, Taipei revisits Yang’s decades-long internal art journey through these three series, Glittering Soul, Wanderers of the Abyssal Darkness , and The Lasting Spring, with two inverted curvatures further extended from Wanderers of the Abyssal Darkness and The Lasting Spring . With more than 60% of the exhibition composed of the artist’s latest creations, he collaborates with the WhiteDeer Animation Studios and sound artist Chen Yu-Jung, with 3D animated visual effects and a soundscape created for the exhibition to construct a large-scale immersive theater installation with projections of the deep sea and a phantom forest. This is an experimental project that recurrently tests the potential energy between the audio-visual environment created and the works of art, reinforcing the multi-layered somatosensory formations and highlighting the potential theological implications of Yang’s sculptures and paintings. Attempts are also made to use experimental curatorial methods to further expand contemporary art’s interdisciplinary energy, which leads to the organization of a workshop based on the exhibition theme. It calls upon people who are interested in literature, art, manga, and anime and welcomes families, adolescents, and anyone who cares about profound personal experiences. The intention is to transform MoCA TAIPEI into a place for inner journeys and dialogues, and in a time when people might be overwhelmed with the sentiments that “the world knows no mercy, and art is useless,” a lighter kind of salvation may be made possible through art and immersive experiences.
