2023, herbs and spices, plaster, sand, aroma essence, sublimation printed fabric, tin foil
Dimension variable
Commissioned by the Rockbund Art Museum
For Floor Tiles and Flowers, Tan Jing has selected daily spices from Thailand, such as lemongrass and kaffir lime leaves, and blended them into the green bricks that carpet the gallery floor. The mixture recalls the native place of Lap Hung who, after his re-migration from Thailand to China, often prepared dishes with these spices or local alternatives. The artist finds it intriguing that a single smell, limited and perhaps insignificant as a symbol, can encapsulate a person’s entire nostalgia in a persistent way. Scattered, fabric-folded flowers on the ground resemble a typical street view in Thailand, while the green tiles feature patterns common in the last century Lingnan residence. As some of the tiles are designed to be easily breakable, the ground deteriorates with each step. Apparently pursuing a scene from the past, the artist seeks to express the fragility of memory and the tension of revisiting its traumas: the intimate space beckons visitors to step in but then instills a sense of unease with the cracking underfoot.