Chen Sheng-Wen: At the Edge of Coexistence: Solo Exhibition

In Wufeng District, longan trees stretch along the contours of the hills. However, the beehives that facilitate pollination are placed at the edges of the orchards. The interior of the orchard is managed according to principles of fertilization, pesticide application, and yield optimization, which take precedence within the agricultural system. In contrast, bees-though essential for pollination-are confined to a condition of conditional access, occupying a space that is both allowed and revocable.

Within this arrangement, bee colonies embody a simultaneous state of collaboration and exclusion. Their flight paths cross human-defined boundaries; they are mobilized as agents of production yet forced to retreat during periods of pesticide application. Their habitation is regulated by agricultural rhythms and risk management. Pesticides and land demarcations together create both visible and invisible boundaries, situating bees on a precarious threshold between life and death while revealing the spatial power structures embedded in agricultural practices.

This exhibition focuses on crushed longan shells as its primary material. Originally forming the outer layer that defines interior and exterior spaces, the shell, when pulverized, becomes a particulate matter capable of flowing and settling-transforming boundaries from fixed outlines into dispersed spatial conditions. This powder simultaneously evokes pollen, a medium of life generation, and the aerosolized spread of pesticides, layering mechanisms of transmission and exclusion within the same material state. In contrast, the sharply defined boundaries of powder-coated aluminum panels emphasize division, while the infiltration of particulate matter destabilizes these demarcations, revealing boundaries as processes of continual dispersion and reconfiguration.

Through these works, the artist reflects on the development of their hometown's agricultural landscape while persistently exploring the tensions and shifts between human intervention and natural environments from a personal perspective.

Special Thanks｜快樂基金圓夢計劃