LISTE 2024 Preview - The Organology of the World
Musquiqui Chihying - LISTE 2024 Preview - The Organology of the World from Tabula Rasa Gallery on Vimeo.
Tabula Rasa Gallery presents The Organology of the World, a solo booth by Taipei and Berlin-based artist and filmmaker Musquiqui Chihying.
Delving into the profound impact of technical images on human society's epistemic system, Chihying's multifaceted projectunveils the intricate interplay between image production, knowledge formation, and the construction of identity.At the heart of this solo lies Chihying's exploration of the coolie system, a form of indentured labor that brought individualsfrom Asia to work in colonial plantations around the world during the 19th century. Through months of immersive researchand engagement with Afro-Asian communities, Chihying traces the indelible marks left by this system on the social fabricof these regions. In parallel, he examines the contemporary concept of "smart cities," a Chinese government initiative aimedat expanding computational capacity. These islands and coastal cities, once hubs of the coolie system, now serve as testinggrounds for smart city technologies, forming a nexus where past and present converge.To unravel the complexities of this interconnected narrative, Chihying embarks on a cinematic journey through his experimen-tal documentary, "The Link." Employing interviews and modified opera, the film explores the living and trading spaces builtby immigrants in Mauritius, a former British colony in the Indian Ocean. The film's title evokes the intertwining threads ofhistory, identity, and the enduring legacy of the coolie system.Complementing the film is a series of intricate pencil drawings titled "The Cable," meticulously rendered by the artist's hand.These drawings provide a detailed and informative exploration of the inner workings of submarine cables, the critical infra-structure that underpins the global digital landscape. The cables' intricate layers and components serve as a metaphor for theinterconnectedness of the modern world and the hidden forces that shape our lives.