JIANG PENGYI

Birds Bring Forth the Sun is one of the most fairytale phrases in the short story A_s Birds Bring Forth the Sun_ by Canadian novelist Alistair MacLeod. Similar to the plot development of this story, the implicit narrative of the exhibition is also full of invisible and irresistible forces, and a mournful but real historical context like an elegy. In Sun! Sun!, Jiang continues his experimental exploration on impromptu photography practice, as well as his exploration of the image of damage/violence for many years. From a magnificent and historical perspective, Gravel Fathoms the Sea presents the Heigebi (which means the Gobi in black in Chinese) near Dunhuang with a secret past – no doubt it is more like a symbol of the state of current human beings.

Whether it is the silent icy Gobi in black and white or the sun in extreme gorgeous color, behind these pure natural objects, the image of ‘human’ always exists. It is hard to distinguish the continuous whispers behind the reticent Gobi and the endless silence behind the burst of the sunlight, also unable to find the roots of the traumatic rebirth and the temporary forgiveness. However, beyond the birth and death of the individuals, from Jiang’s works, we can interrogate life’s own circumstances and the weight that the human spirit and body can carry.