Ming Wong and Tseng Kwong Chi

Ming Wong, Life of Imitation  2009

Life of Imitation 2009 is a multimedia work by the Singaporean artist Ming Wong who works primarily in moving image and installation. It was first presented in the Singapore Pavilion at the 53rd Venice Biennale in 2009. It comprises two main parts: a double video projection and a suite of four large billboard ‘posters’, each of which is a painting in acrylic on canvas. The aesthetic of these posters evokes an analogue age reliant on hand-drawn illustration and combines images of one of the film’s protagonists alongside key quotes from the film. Though these two parts can be exhibited separately, a presentation of both film and posters creates the conceit of a major film production in an alternative history of cinema.

Tseng Kwong Chi, London, England (Tower Bridge)  1983

Tseng Kwong Chi’s work explores cultural difference and belonging. He uses re-enactment to confront and subvert societal constructions of race and identity. Tseng used a large-format camera and shutter release cable to stage self-portraits at tourist sites in the US and Europe. He wore a ‘Zhongshan suit’ or ‘Mao suit’ (a tunic-style suit with a flipped collar) to adopt the identity of a Chinese government official. Tseng’s performance reveals the prejudice of observers, who may assume he is a communist foreign dignitary visiting a famous Western landmark. This portrayal contrasts with Tseng’s identity as an artist living and working in New York.

Gallery label, November 2022

Tseng Kwong Chi, New York, New York (Empire State)  1979, printed 2018

This black and white silver gelatin black and white photograph is part of a larger body of work by the Hong Kong-born American photographer Tseng Kwong Chi known as the East Meets West series or the Expeditionary Portrait Series. This series, which Tseng began in the late 1970s and continued into the 1980s, is his best-known work (see also San Francisco, California (Trans Am) 1979, printed 2008, Tate P82467, and London, England (Tower Bridge) 1983, printed 2018, Tate P14982). The artist photographed himself in front of popular tourist sites, both in the United States and elsewhere. He is rigidly positioned, wearing a Zhonghan or ‘Mao suit’ and a deadpan expression. Co-opting the identity of a Chinese government official or dignitary, Tseng shot these images himself, setting up his camera, situating himself within the composition and clicking the shutter release cable, which is often visible in his hand. About his intention in making the works, he stated: ‘My mirrored glasses give the picture a neutral impact and a surrealistic quality I’m looking for. I am an inquisitive traveller, a witness of my time, and an ambiguous ambassador … My photographs are social studies and social comments on Western society and its relationship with the East. [I pose] as a Chinese tourist in front of monuments of Europe, America and elsewhere.’ (Quoted on artist’s website, http://www.tsengkwongchi.com/, accessed 20 May 2018.)

Tseng Kwong Chi, San Francisco, California (Trans Am)  1979, printed 2008

This black and white silver gelatin black and white photograph is part of a larger body of work by the Hong Kong-born American photographer Tseng Kwong Chi known as the East Meets West series or the Expeditionary Portrait Series. This series, which Tseng began in the late 1970s and continued into the 1980s, is his best-known work (see also New York, New York (Empire State) 1979, printed 2018, Tate P82466, and London, England (Tower Bridge) 1983, printed 2018, Tate P14982). The artist photographed himself in front of popular tourist sites, both in the United States and elsewhere. He is rigidly positioned, wearing a Zhonghan or ‘Mao suit’ and a deadpan expression. Co-opting the identity of a Chinese government official or dignitary, Tseng shot these images himself, setting up his camera, situating himself within the composition and clicking the shutter release cable, which is often visible in his hand. About his intention in making the works, he stated: ‘My mirrored glasses give the picture a neutral impact and a surrealistic quality I’m looking for. I am an inquisitive traveller, a witness of my time, and an ambiguous ambassador … My photographs are social studies and social comments on Western society and its relationship with the East. [I pose] as a Chinese tourist in front of monuments of Europe, America and elsewhere.’ (Quoted on artist’s website, http://www.tsengkwongchi.com/, accessed 20 May 2018.)

Ming Wong, Life of Imitation  2009

In these billboard paintings, Ming Wong expands the fictional universe of his video installation Life of Imitation to include promotional posters. These artworks are reminiscent of the ‘golden age’ of Singaporean cinema during the 1950s and 1960s. Hand-painted billboards were traditionally used to advertise new releases, considered to be newsworthy events in a time when films could only be consumed as communal events in movie theatres.

Gallery label, November 2022