The series, Neo N’Old, “imitates” neon signs that are no longer popular today. It is an attempt to interpret and represent the neon signs that were once widely prevalent in Asia in the 1980s. More than just a collection and collage of historical images, the series is also a paradoxical representation that traverses between illusion and reality and seeks to stir up personal memories and experiences. Neo N’Old-Outdoor Cinema (2024) is an extension of the series that began in 2021 and uses the MoCA Video TV wall as a medium for showing outdated neon signs. Situated by a bustling road, they are “screened” as “movies” in a loop. Through a process that transforms the images into an installation, the historical archives become the artwork, as the three-dimensional neon light tubes and the luminous geometric patterns express the oneness of duality. Employing the notable characteristics of the material used to create those neon graphic images, “displacement” that occurs through actions of archaeology and renovation is where time is imagined based on the concept of a “future in the past,” or it is “time” itself. The irrelevant transitions that must be taken are the public’s hazy impressions and memories of different space-times, and between illusion and reality and with the past overlapped with the present, questions are raised and representations produced.

Press release courtesy Museum of Contemporary Art Taipei | MoCA.