Exhibition Review: Our Children

Filial piety, feelings pushed away from the surface, and fighting the boundaries of function - Tang Da Wu has been a pioneer for Singapore’s local art scene, cracking our shell to explore the medium of performance art. 

In his most recent showcase under Our Children, our eyes are sensitised to the combination of video and embroidery. One who steps in the Art Outreach Gallery can be greeted with a cacophony of coloured threads, adjacent to an embroidered baby lamb and its mother. This lamb, in the likeness of a traditional Chinese painting symbolises a debt of one’s inner self to their parents. 

Tang Da Wu’s latest version of his three-part artwork, “Our Children” at Art Outreach Gallery in Gillman Barracks, Singapore is a testament to his long, continual legacy. Immersing in Chinese parables and his personal life, he provides a multi-sensory experience, telling the motivations behind his creative processes and reflections on his previous works. His works have been adorned with white chiffon, accompanied by writings and handmade plaster sculptures. The entrance of the gallery has been taken up with metal holders containing bottles of milk. A balance of intentional obscurity and emotional sensitivity destabilise an individual narrative, creating a collective echo for many Asian families alike. As we walk through the Our Children exhibition, a tapestry of an embroidered sheep is suspended by pulleys. On the lamb are colourful clusters of yarn tied in loosely. As we walk around this installation, a video showcasing his previous participatory performance from 2017 plays in the background. In the video shows a ritualistic production of volunteers going on stage to carry and distribute milk bottles. Its long, laborious nature parallels the endurance and sacrificial nature of a mother. 

Motherhood is a timeless theme in contemporary art. While many bring light to the generational guilt that a mother holds and passes on to their offspring, Tang Da Wu sincerely reminisces the presence of a nurturing figure in his life. It suggests that the most poignant memories of learning his moral principles come from this feminine presence. Without this toiling and oblation, we would not be who we are today. It is a reminder for us children (no pun intended) especially, to humble ourselves before the generations that had done everything for us. Tang Da Wu is one of the remaining voices in Singapore who continues his vocation in praise of tradition, and inspires future generations to come to uphold this sacrosanct respect. This rawness, progressing journey of realisation is further emphasised by his experimental nature, almost like pleas to figure out the Self through family. 

In terms of accessibility, Gillman Barracks, still being an emerging venue for arts appreciation in Singapore is still not commonly visited. This could do with the geographical location being in the Southwest region, and having an obscured entrance. While the lush greenery makes up for it, there is hardly any shelter for visitors to move from block to block. In the exhibition itself at Art Outreach, there were little to no seats. The only seats present were at the side of the room, where there was a video introduction of Tang Da Wu. Given that the video duration of his interview was shorter, these seats should have been relocated to the longer video of his 2017 participatory performance. Nevertheless, given that Art Outreach is a small block, every piece is visible from different seatings, and easy to revisit around the space again and again. Tang Da Wu’s presentation in more independent curatorial settings creates more avenues for experimentation within his professional practice, and provides a silver lining for many more existing artists in Singapore.