I went to see the Tender Comrade exhibition at Sydney's White Rabbit Gallery this morning. A "sprawling ecosystem of relationships, networks and alliances", the first thing I encountered was a giant inflatable dick. Xia Han's Humiliation, featuring an inflatable structure in the position of a peeing dog and three Game Boy consoles showing various digital animations, claims to have been a comment on society, but I found myself disagreeing. In reality, it might just be a giant dick.
Not all of the first floor's content danced with the Freudian. Han's Less is More explored, once again, the nauseatingly cliché conversation of male/female representation in video games. Apparently, we haven't asked why women wear less clothing and male characters are wrapped in armour enough. Shang Liang played with curves, line and masculinity in Boxing Man 7 and described the aggressive male form with bursting muscles, raw colour and purposeful lines.
The majority of the pieces featured in the exhibition commented on various forms of sexuality and the queer space, but in a way that has sadly been done before. With visual scaremongering, rage baiting and a shock and awe attitude to interacting with the audience, it toed the line between an accurate portrayal of homosexuality in the Chinese art space and a lazy attempt at engaging the audience. Sin Wai Kin's The Breaking Story 2 showed bright and garish film, telling me I wasn't who I thought I was. Pixy Liao's Ping Pong Balls, a C-Type Print of a hand grasping, yet another, penis shaped object pressed against a table tennis bat commented on power dynamics in an artist's relationship. Zheng Bo's Pteridophilia explored sexual attraction in nature.
Yes, apparently plants can be gay.
As always, concent was brought into play, but this time through the gallery itself rather than the artist, both explicitly and implicitly. I was asked not to use a pen for fear of spilling ink in the gallery. Samsung Young's Risers, an amalgamation of carpet, colour and height, begged to be walked on. Although I had a very strong suspicion that this would have gotten me removed from the gallery. If I couldn't move a pen near a piece, I doubt I could have moved my feet on one. A Hong Kong native born in 1979, Young claims to "Make stuff and sometimes write music", and tells us "The world is yours", in neon. Well, Mr Young, if the world is mine, why can't I fully interact with your piece?
There were some genuinely interesting pieces within the exhibition. Fan Daqi's Marshes and its rotating desk fan aside, Yan Shen's collection played with bright lines and texture, most excitedly in Sailor and Monster. Han Duyi's Ordinance of Subconscious lent a tactile and physical nod to more well-known Chinese culture. Lin Zhipeng's Layers showed tenderness and intimacy in nudity and the queer male gaze.
There are moments of softness within the exhibition's aggression. But as a bisexual woman, not every piece of art produced by my community needs to be so forceful. The art world is not attacking us, and our sexuality is not being censored through artistic media. There is benefit in softness and sometimes, just sometimes, a dick is just a dick.
Stay safe on the road
J
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