Pride in Chinatown Festival at VALU CO-OP
Image Description: Paul Wong and David Ng stand in front of the "Comrade(ry)" artwork, which spans two windows with forest green trim. It features a newspaper article surrounded by a border of pink flowers, with the words Comrade(ry) 同志 set over the newspaper text.
Our studio has gotten a makeover thanks to David Ng's work "Comrade(ry)", exhibited as part of the Pride in Chinatown festival curated by Paul Wong.
This work considers the overlapping histories laden within the Lim Sai Hor Kow Mock Association building 林西河總堂九牧公所 and Chinatown Neighbourhood through a 1906 newspaper article and a play of language.
The news article featured in David's work describes a community “bathhouse” that was built in the early 20th century by the building's original occupants—the Chinese Empire Reform Society. The article’s racist undertones reflect the social attitudes towards Chinese people at the time, which included stereotypes of hygiene in the neighbourhood, and thus the need for a “big clean up”. This installation asks us to read “against the grain”, illuminating what is left unheard by the racist narrative: a community of support and care in spite of the segregation of the neighbourhood.
The display also plays with different notions of “Comrade(ry)”. In Chinese, the word for comrade is 同志 (tongzi), and as a compound word that literally translates to “common aspiration”. The word has been employed to articulate shared political interests ranging from the anti-monarchy rhetoric of Dr. Sun Yat Sen, to a term used for the Communist Party’s revolutionary struggle. In the late 80s, the term evolved in Hong Kong and Taiwan to refer to homosexuals, in an effort to replace “tongxinglian” (“same-sex love” - which has clinical/pathological connotations), to underpin the comradery, solidarity, and community of the LGBT community.
The Pride in Chinatown festival runs until September 7th, 2020!
Image Description: View from across the street of the Lim Sai Hor Kow Mock Association Building.
