Stranger In Coconut Grove
I come from elsewhere, I am an outsider, I am gazed upon by other eyes, which
makes me uncomfortable, and I have been treated by ignorant prejudices which
have stayed with me. I am bitter, I am skeptical, I am scornful, I am disgusted with
hypocritical worldliness. It reminds me of Holden in The Catcher in the Rye. At the
same time I accept this absurdity with open arms, as does Meursault in The Outsider.
Coconut trees are also a landscaping plant that is used to portray a tropical seaside
feel. Coconut trees don't grow in my hometown, and now I have them planted in
my home to keep me company. The characters in the video are repeatedly saying,
"Winter is coming, where did the ice go?" As Holden repeatedly asks where the
ducks went in his novel. Meanwhile, coconuts made of ice are my reference to winter
in my hometown, playing games with its children under a landscaped coconut tree.
Stranger In Coconut Grove (installation view), Guerrilla Space, Zhangzhou, China, 2023