Trans-Justice: Para-Colonial@Technology

Trans-Justice: Para-Colonial@Technology

Curator: Huang Chien-Hung

Artists
Kader Attia / Pak Sheung Chuen / Wu Chi-Yu / Ham Yang Ah / Harun Farocki / Musquiqui Chihying & Gregor Kasper / Xu Tan / Chang Wen-Hsuan / Chen Chieh-Jen / Estella Huang / Huang Pang-Chuan / Ming Wong

The year 2017 marks the 30th anniversary of the lifting of martial law in Taiwan, with that moment of liberation in history belonging, nonetheless, not only to Taiwan. Geopolitically, other nations, whether originally on the side of liberalism or communism, were also in the midst of democratization, and historically, the three years between 2017 and 2019, also mark the centennial of the October Revolution, the semi-centennial of the May 1968 in France, and the 30th anniversary of the fall of the Berlin Wall. However, the abundance of “transitional justice” in the late '80s has not led to the guarantee of social justice two decades later; in other words, communal social values, equality, fair distribution of power resources have all remain unresolved, resulting in the heavy influx of “quasi-anarchism” occupy movements. In short, global democratization and liberalization have caused power disparity and a gap between rich and poor in society

Under the layers of disparaging differences, there exists an invisible yet apparent connection between global structure and personal relations; however, how to confront this extremely complex and colossal geological and historical stretch seems to have caused an awkward state for the middle-aged generation and imposed some conundrums for the youth generation, even leading to tremendous expansion and exhaustion of social innovativeness. Undoubtedly, much attention on the possibilities of altering the future is placed on technology’s inventiveness; however, the development of digital network technology and the relations of production evoked by such development are also inflicting much anxiety in people due to the suggestion that human could be “replaced”. With this in mind, artistic creativity, especially imaginations on forming new relationships between individuals and the world, or the preservation of the “eco-individual,” will be the core demand for the next phase of democracy and technological development. The objective of this exhibition, Trans-Justice: Para-Colonial@Technology, seeks to find artworks relevant to the theme to open up our imagination for transcending obstacles and our thoughts for “justice experience.”

Seeing from the artworks on view in the exhibition, the position of future justice certainly does not exist in the binary framework of “justice/injustice” that is often seen in the past or even the present, but it exists outside the framework and does not present itself as a utopian “alternative option.” Three decades after global democratization took place in the '80s, we can more clearly comprehend that Para-Colonial@Technology is not an extension of specific historical colonialism or post-colonial state; it is not a state of affair with the colonizer and the colonized clearly distinguishable like previous specific historical periods in time. The old dominance relationship remains, but the one occupying the dominant position is constantly changing under the flow of globalization. The relationships between individuals and structure, experience and cosmology are indisputably focused on, with innovative ways applied to imagine various methods of practice for individuals or groups. This is exactly the task that artists in recent centuries have never ceased pursuing, which is striving to “TRANS.”