蝸牛樂園－前導篇 Snail Paradise: Preface

2019, 複合媒材，影像3分25秒，三組傳統男子刺繡後敞褲片，尺寸依場地。
展出於「留洋四鏢客」，TKG+，內湖，台北。
2019, mixed media, video 3' 25", 3 traditional men's rear open pants with embroidery, dimensions variable. At “The Middleman, the Backpacker, the Alien Species, and the Time Traveler”, TKG+, Taipei, Taiwan. (Courtesy of TKG+)

當非洲大蝸牛出現在台灣本地熱炒料理“炒螺肉”，成為熱門下酒菜，尤其受台灣原住民族族人的歡迎，甚至納入珍貴的傳統食物裡；牠似乎出乎1933年引入食用養殖日殖官員的預料之外，且台灣的原生物種構樹葉子能夠輕易地去除牠的黏液。

通過非洲大蝸牛行走遺留的黏液，逆返審視牠的傳播路徑（台灣→新加坡→東非），探詢它拖曳過的痕跡；先是作為轉運站的新加坡，與對牠原生地非洲的想像，做一「啟航」的宣示。此蝸牛旅程系列「前導篇」，借用了母親家鄉「大鳥部落」(pacavalj)男子傳統服褲片的樣式，設計了與蝸牛料理有關的植物轉為刺繡圖騰，用此形式書寫地方或世界的一段歷史。

It must not have been foreseen that the African snails became a very popular dish usually enjoyed with beer in Taiwanese stir fry restaurants and also a precious traditional dish among indigenous group of people when they were introduced to Taiwan in 1933 by Japanese officials.  
Moreover, leaves of the local common paper mulberry could be used to remove its trail easily.


By the trail left along the way, the artist examines African snail's dissemination route in reverse from Taiwan to Singapore and then back to East Africa. The preface of the journey depicted in this project presents a period of local and international history on embroideries rendering the plants relate to the snail dishes. The patterns are designed by the artist out of male pants from Pacavali, a tribe where the artist's mother originated. (Translated by Chun-Ying Lin)

(Courtesy of TKG+)

(Courtesy of TKG+)

(Courtesy of TKG+)

(Courtesy of TKG+)

(Courtesy of TKG+)

(Courtesy of TKG+)