殘山剩水 我們的城市失敗了嗎？ 策展人｜胡朝聖 這是一個在無常世界裡的反覆提問
一個人類文明進入到工業化後的恆常提問
一個關於我們跟城市之間既緊密又疏離關係的深情提問
在講求秩序、效能和治理有方的當代社會裡，多數人們體驗著現代性的美 好城市經驗，摩登、便利、迅速、明亮，而城市作為政治、經濟和文化的 相遇之所，一個多重的敘述之地，在在彰顯著主流價值的同時，卻也同樣 壓抑著其他相異群體的都市體驗和生活現實，它投射也支配著當今人類文 明的真實處境，是慾望／絕望、競爭／敗退、燦爛／晦暗、秩序／失序、 歸屬／疏離、貪婪／放逐的體現，市民享受著現代城市的美好，卻也必須 忍受著城市現代性經驗帶來的不堪。在以發展主義作為城市未來樣貌的新 自由主義的價值思想下，國家菁英們忽略了城市極可能因為多重錯誤的政 治判斷導致其走向衰竭，甚至死亡，歷史經驗歷歷在目。
城市並非我們想像的堅若磐石，它更不可能無止盡的持續擴張，不論是 在物理或是心理條件上，尤其在新冠病毒疫情持續失控的當今，越國際 化 ( 全球化 ) 的都市，災情反撲越是嚴重，全球化的金科玉律在各國為
防堵疫情的考量下逐步破局，封城致使資本主義的世界版圖破碎零散， 消費市場即時透過虛擬網路變形得以順應時代挑戰，以更奇特頑強、液 態流動的姿態生存著。全球在西元 2020 年間因疫情肆虐、美中貿易戰引
發的單邊、孤立和保護主義，以及世界各地大小不斷的地緣衝突，正經 歷著 90 年代以降全球化趨勢之後的慢球化現象（slowbalisation)，城
市的不堪一擊導致了其從彼此相互連動到更倚賴跨越實體邊界的虛擬世
界，以及逐步變成一座座失能的真實孤島，人類在孤島上學習適應著世 界的裂解與不可預期，我們則成了新的魯賓遜，隨著變動漂流到一種相 對封閉隔離的狀態。
複雜難解的世局使得當下的城市成為一座座孤島，一個與當代人類生命 休戚與共的複合式實境劇場和奇觀式的舞台布景，超現實的劇情每天持
續上演著，陳述人類彼此間的故事，衝擊人們的精神和感官。《殘山剩 水─我們的城市失敗了嗎？》以提問作為一個破題，其思考路徑試著打 破現代性進程裡的樂觀主義，透過藝術家的創作和觀察，將城市中之可
見與不可見再現，以及那些存在與不存在的多重現象和人們的生命故事， 回歸人類社會必須面對生存的迫切處境；並反覆經由作品多層次的對話
互文，進一步延伸論及當代國家治理回應社會發展現況，朝向理想的現
代城市邁進之時，面對新自由主義、菁英治理、開發主義、經濟聯盟、 能源消耗等主流菁英價值時，如何能真正解決城市瀕臨崩潰的承載量與
失能的狀態，這確實膠著難解，但也無法迴避，尤其時間的緊迫性更是 隨時在側。
本展預計分為五個子題：一、消失以及不可見的存在；二、破壞與重 生的極致風景；三、囚禁所和寄生之處；四、他者戰場；五、明日預言 的應許之地，來回應整個展覽從城市現代性的思考到疫情期間引發的
新世界觀，邀請國內外藝術家，包含石孟鑫、吳燦政、何孟娟、安德列 亞．格爾斯基（Andreas Gursky）、徐道獲、袁廣鳴、陳界仁、張立
人、賈茜茹、廖建忠、利安．摩根（Liam Morgan）、豬股亞希（Aki Inomata）等十二位藝術家，將其對不同議題內容的關懷統整在此五個 子題之下互文以及延伸，並試圖從這些對話創造更多的可能思考面向。 一、消失以及不可見的存在
作為一個真實可見的存在，城市不斷在資本刺激與需求下向外擴張，因 應人口大量成長創造的空間與消費需求，伴隨而來的是原本存在於城市
中的歷史、地紋、自然生態和文化傳統的逐步消失。藝術家吳燦政透過
自身行腳全臺灣記錄著環境的變化，在剪輯和疊合不同時空聲影資訊下，
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表達了某種當代生活處境的邊際，在空蕩蒼白的展示長廊，觀者沉浸於時 空交錯中，召喚起對於城市記憶的碎片，傾聽無處不在的日常聲景，那些 可見與不可見的、消失以及正在消失中的。相對於消失，有時不存在與不 可見的往往卻是被視而不見，藝術家石孟鑫巧妙地運用忠泰美術館樓梯下 方的傾斜壁面，以工業化的日常現成物測量樓梯下方畸零且壓迫的空間， 提供觀者以不同的觀看視角重新經驗城市中熟悉又陌生的存在。 二、破壞與重生的極致風景
人類城市進入到二十世紀後，逐步擺脫了工業資本主義社會的侷限，資 本以金融產業、地產開發和全球導向企業的形式都市化，加速了既有都 會中心的去工業化過程，在與製造業資本的競爭關係中取得主導地位， 進化成目前全球都會的主流資本。於是城市的空間在商品化以及仕紳化
的過程中，不斷地被破壞以及重生，都會景觀在人們眼前像是大型賣場 和電腦影像般的快速幻化，極致而完美，資本在其中流動而持續創造更 大的利潤。德國藝術家安德列亞．格爾斯基攝影鏡頭下的東京都展現出 一股寧靜超現實的美好樣貌，像是一幅強調色彩豐富的色域畫派，典型 亞洲城市擁擠而櫛比鱗次的居住空間，與遠方的現代辦公大樓交融在同
一畫面中，如同大賣場裡乾淨、理想、多樣性的各式選擇，漸層的視覺 表現出一種規劃下的商品陳列美學，有著令人不安的疏離感。
破壞與建設常互為表裏，為使空間能因應時代的各式需求，二戰之後以 及陸續現代化的亞洲城市都從戰爭的烽火和廢墟之中經歷著如火如荼的
都市更新計畫，城市風景的改變就在這些拆除與重建的過程中展現在人 們眼前成為日常，韓國藝術家徐道獲紀錄倫敦羅賓漢花園社區都更前的
平凡景象，透過鏡頭行進的軌跡，觀者得以穿越並窺視羅賓漢花園內部 尋常人家的生活細節與記憶；在縮時攝影、空拍機、3D 掃描技術、攝影 測量法等各種技術下的正面視角，我們也看到了城市命運及其前世今生
的縮影。開發帶來的巨大利潤使得各式慾望無盡延伸，加拿大藝術家利 安．摩根作品以游擊快閃式的投影行為介入曼谷市區突兀而張揚的廢棄
大樓，這座因為金融風暴下開發不當的廢墟，荒謬且真實地佇立在市中 心最繁華的地段，藝術家以紅光壟罩的巨大鬼魅量體在夜幕低垂後的城
市光影下形成兀自而獨立的反差，血色建築帶來的壓迫性如天魔般地凸 顯出資本與權力之間的共謀關係以及相互吞噬的時代證據，城市規劃下 的地圖就像是一張慾望與權力的證明書。
不同原因造成的失能建物，在都市裡逐漸形構成水泥叢林的迷宮，無用 卻頑強佔據著人們的生活領域，它們都是失敗計畫下的城市傷疤，回應 這些建築或空間，藝術家廖建忠新作《離群物》及《3/2》兩件裝置作品
以擬真手法再現對象仿擬物，以不知名的電纜與轉角遇見消失的路徑概
念，指涉著這些存在於我們眼前的建物本身的真實性與必要性，魔幻的 視覺感受顛倒觀者感知，這些極致的景觀像是銷售策略下的模型物件， 美好理想卻沒有任何意義。 三、囚禁所和寄生之處
戰爭衝擊、環境變遷與城市空間商品化等因素帶來的居住問題，為這個
世界製造了更多新的弱勢階級，從佔屋者、蝸居者、游民到難民等等， 都為城市治理引發在人權、階級矛盾上的巨大隱憂，城市不再是安居樂 業的理想國，而成為了政治和經濟失敗者的囚禁之所。日本藝術家豬股
亞希替寄居蟹訂製一個透明之殻，其樣貌為世界各地城市的縮影，藝術 家以交換寄居之所的方式指涉當今在世界各地因多重複雜因素，需越過
國界移動及流離的移民與難民。關於空間商品化帶來的居住正義課題， 除相對應的土地政策用以調控空間價格同時，各國政府以擴建社會住宅 方式提供社經弱勢的住民使用，但在房價政策與經濟困境等根本問題沒
有獲得解決之時，這些租屋空間說穿了也只是一個臨時的寄生之處，藝 術家何孟娟以影像紀錄紐約魏斯貝絲藝術家公寓裡，年邁藝術家的生命
故事，這所公寓看似一處老人們的囚禁之所，卻也提供這群資深藝術家 創作必須的養分，公寓與住戶們在長達數十年的相伴之後，演化出了共
生的型態，何孟娟在拍攝公寓及老人們的肖像、訪談中，除為其創作產 生了不言而明的深刻連結，也讓她重新理解「變老」這件事以及跨越整 個世紀的人生解答。
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四、他者戰場
法國學者列斐伏爾（Henri Lefebvre）曾說「空間不僅僅是營造環境，
還是生產力和消費對象。它也是政治鬥爭的對象，因為空間乃是國家控
制的手段」，更甚者如當代消費市場，空間被科技與金融資本的操控更
甚於過往任何的治理模式，以資本劃分的城市逐漸化約為階級的競技場， 也成為地緣政治衝突以外的另類戰場，烽火連天。藝術家陳界仁的《中空 之地》表達出在當今的資本權力與政治治理的共謀運作下，使越來越多人 深陷成「全球監禁、在地流放」的泛派遣工，這種全場域式的操控技術使 人無所遁形，人們彷彿生活在一個不上不下，沒有出口的中陰之所。當代 社會與個體的欲望構造、感覺構造、思維方式更加困難，失敗之人則成了 這場階級戰爭底下永無翻身之日的戰俘。而藝術家張立人則從社會集體的
慾望投射下，呈現出背離主流價值下的價值復仇與反撲，藝術家從 2010 年開始，耗時七年自製虛構一齣《戰鬥之城第一部：臺灣之光》的動畫作 品，透過自身對於城市的想像，以男主角志強的經歷，展現了具有臺灣視 野與特殊性的微型政治學。社會集體追求的成功與優越感，最後否定了其 自身的存在，造就了一場名為臺灣之光的災難與戰爭。 五、明日預言的應許之地
人們對於城市的想像，始終無法脫離其物質生產和再生產的必要條件，尤 其今日全球化下的國際大都會，更是以其日新月異的市場需求，改變並主
導著城市政治、秩序與治理方式，若沒有 2020 年的新冠疫情、美中新冷 戰，以及各地政治上的緊張關係等國際關鍵因素，我們或許無法想像世
界，乃至於我們的城市會從發展至上的失速列車上被迫降速。面對當今最 壞與不確定的年代不用悲觀，也許它為我們帶來的是更好的自我覺察反 思，主流的城市發展趨勢從今也有了不同於過往固定強勢的單一思考角 度，而這些強制性的煞車迫降，或許才是明日城市真正的可能與希望。
藝術家賈茜茹經由將日常物件作品化的過程，邀請觀眾用現場拍攝的肖
像和名字交換的方式，把現成物以另一種轉換存在於空間，而最後只能 經由防盜窗進出的觀者，以自身尷尬且不符合人體工學的行為，中介出
明日的「之前」與「之後」，體驗「離開／逃離」與「回歸／入侵」的
兩種身體感受。世人在經歷過魔幻的 2020 年之後，也明白了未來的城市
樣貌已經完全無法逆反，人類必須重新適應新的空間密度、距離感受、 消費模式以及人際關係，藝術家袁廣鳴以無人城市的極端樣貌提供了開
放的選擇，他於臺北萬安演習當日使用空拍機，以直線略微俯瞰的鏡頭
拍攝，猶如掃描而呈現出一種「不舒適」的氛圍；此演習的例行化成為
當代社會中奇觀化的「日常中的戰爭」或是「戰爭的日常化」，空無一 人的城市，在戰爭威脅的概念下，是否正預言了人類未來文明社會的全 新可能，亦或是全面終結？
置身於無常變動的年代，我們面臨的每個時刻都處於不斷異化的狀態當
中，如何掌握時機回應當下的處境，正是「殘山剩水」試圖藉著藝術家 們的敏鋭感受和直覺般的預言，在這更為複雜難解的世界關係與千絲萬
縷的結構中提出的反思；尤其當工業革命發展至今，加上後全球化，以 及網路虛擬時代下變幻莫測的流動趨勢，要針對當前人類普遍性的難題
就必然要從問題相對集中化的都會開始，而「我們的城市失敗了嗎？」 或許對不同人的感受來說是既定的事實、現在進行式，或是一個提問以
及對未來的警醒，但不論如何，我們不能對這些城市的現實面視而不見， 保護自然環境與有情無情眾生，減少慾望並尊重差異性的存在，所謂「無
緣大慈，同體大悲」，如何具備更多的同理心，尤其當國際衝突、疫情 恐慌、環境變遷、難民流離、階級鬥爭以及孤立保護主義成為日常所見
之時，城市的成敗與否，正反映著人類文明的未來可能，而這個未來並 非是光明的康莊大道，若期待放眼所及的城市是一片青山碧水，則全端 看於我們自己的所作所為了。
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Broken Landscapes: Have Our Cities Failed? Curatorď˝œSean C.S. Hu
It is a repeated question in an impermanent world; it is an everlasting question that has haunted us since human civilization entered industrialization; it is a question of deep affection about our close yet distant relationships with our cities.
In a modern society that emphasizes on order, efficiency, and effective governance, most people enjoy the wonderful and advanced urban experience imbued with the advantages in the form of modernity, convenience, speed, and brightness. However, as a city serves as the place where politics, economy,
and cultures intersect, it is the site of multiple and simultaneous narratives. When a city accentuates its mainstream values, it also
suppresses the urban experience and realities of other dissimilar groups. It projects and dominates the realities of the current
human civilization, which are characterized by clashes between: desires and despair; competition and defeat; resplendence and
darkness; order and disorder; sense of belonging and distance;
as well as greed and exile. Different classes relish the wonderful
aspects of modern cities, and yet, they also suffer from the tragedy of the modern experience. With Developmentalism as the new neoliberal concept for the future vision of cities, elites from around the world have failed to see that cities might fall
into decay and even perish because of a multitude of erroneous
political decisions. This misery has been repeated for several times in the history.
The city is not as sturdy as we thought; neither can it grow without limitation, no matter mentally or physically. In the pandemic society when the spreading of COVID-19 is still out of control, cities that are more international/globalized are
suffered with even harsher situation. Globalization, once serving as the prime principal, starts to crumble under the restriction
strategies among all nations. The grand map of capitalistic world
also breaks into fragments as cities are shut down. To cope with
the challenge of this era, the market has transformed itself through the Internet, surviving in a liquid form that is stranger yet stronger. Under the pandemic, unilateralism, isolationism and protectionism incurred by the U.S.-China trade war, and all kinds of geopolitical conflicts happening around the world in 2020, the world is now experiencing slowbalisation that appears
after the trend of globalization in the 1990s. Once connected with one another, the vulnerable cities now go across the boundary of
reality and rely more on the virtual world; gradually, they become desert islands. On these islands, people are trying to adapt to the
crumbling and unpredictable world. The world thus makes us
into Robinson Crusoe in the modern era, who drifts in changes and is casted into a relatively isolated state.
The complicated situation has made each city into a desert
island, a real-life stage, where characters of our time are deeply
connected with one another, where surreal scenes are played out every day in this spectacular stage setting, and we affect
one another spiritually and sensuously with our stories. Broken Landscapes: Have Our Cities Failed? is a question that directly
brings out the topic. The concept behind the exhibition attempts
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to dispel the optimism in modernization. The artists' works and observations highlight the visible and invisible aspects,
the various phenomena, and the life stories within cities. This exhibition seeks to redirect its attention to the sense of urgency that must be faced by human society. In addition,
through the repeated, multilayered conversation between the
art works, the exhibition further discusses how modern state governance responds to the actual state of social development.
On the road leading to an ideal modern city, we are also encountered with values such as Neoliberalism, elite governance, Developmentalism, economic alliances, and energy consumption.
In the face of these mainstream and elite values, how can we cope
with the disability of the city and ease its loading, which is on the edge of crumbling? This question is insoluble yet unavoidable, and the clock is ticking.
This exhibition consists of five sub-themes: 1. Disappearing and invisible existences; 2. Extraordinary scenes of destruction and
rebirth; 3. Places of captivity and parasitism; 4. Battlefield of others; 5. The Promised Land. These themes resonate with the core values of this exhibition: the thoughts on the modernity of
cities and the new worldview developed during the epidemic. Meanwhile, 12 artists from Taiwan and abroad are invited: Shih
Meng-Hsin, Wu Tsan-Cheng, Isa Ho, Andreas Gursky, Suh Do-Ho,
Yuan Goang-Ming, Chen Chieh-Jen, Chang Li-Ren, Chia Chien-Ju, Liao Chien-Chung, Liam Morgan and Aki Inomata. These artists'
views on different topics will be taken into account and extended within the structure of the said five sub-themes. It is hoped that more possibilities of thinking can be inspired from this collision of ideas.
1. Disappearing and invisible existences
As a solid existence, the city is expanding outward under the
simulation and demand from the capital world. In the face of the increasing population, the city creates space and the need of consumption, but at the same time brings about the
disappearance of history, geological features, nature, ecology, culture and traditions originally existing in the city. The artist Wu Tsan-Cheng visited and recorded the changes in the environment all around Taiwan. Through editing and overlapping signals taken
from different time and space, he illustrates a kind of edge in the contemporary life experience. Immersed in the intersected
spaces on the empty, white aisle, the viewers may recall the
fragments of memory in the city and listen carefully to the sounds scattering in daily life, which are visible or invisible, disappeared or disappearing. Sometimes, instead of being "non-existent" or
"invisible," things are actually "neglected." The artist Shih Meng-
Hsin skillfully utilizes the tilting wall under the stair in Jut Art
Museum. Shih uses industrialized objects found in daily life to measure the unused and suffocating space under the stair. Seeing through the brand-new aspect provided by the artist, viewers are
granted with chance to re-experience the existences in the city which are at the same time familiar yet strange.
2. Extraordinary scenes of destruction and rebirth
Stepping into the 20th century, cities are released from the
limitation of industrial capitalism. Capital is urbanized through financial industry, real estate development, and globalized
enterprise. It accelerates the pace of deindustrialization in
the metropolis, earns the leading role in the competition with manufacturing capital and becomes the mainstream capital
in the global cities. Under the process of commercialization
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and gentrification, space in the city undergoes the repeating circulation of destruction and rebirth. Urban landscape is
transforming rapidly in front of the residents like products displayed in hypermarkets or images on computers. Greater prof its are made while capital is flowing between each
transformation. Under the camera of the German artist Andreas Gursky, Tokyo is presented in a serene, surreal atmosphere,
like an enriched color field painting. The crowded living space
typically seen in Asian cities and the distant skyscrapers are merged in the same composition, presenting a neat and perfect
image just like the goods displayed in a hypermarket. The layered
visual effect reminds people of the neatly displayed products, which presents a sense of alienation that discomforts the viewers.
Destruction and construction are often the two sides of the same coin. To meet the various needs for space in different times, urban plans have been flourishing from the battlefields and ruins in Asian cities during the process of modernization after
World War II. Destruction and construction of the buildings have become a common scenery for people. The Korean artist Suh Do-
Ho recorded the daily scenery in Robin Hood Gardens in London before the urban renewal took place. As the lens moves on, the
viewers can peep into the living details and memories of the ordinary residents living in Robin Hood Gardens. By adapting skills such as time-lapse photography, drone, 3D scanner and
photogrammetry and keeping the camera right in front of the objects, the artist allows us to perceive the destiny of the city, its history and its future in a short time. On the other hand, the great profit brought by developments also furnishes all kinds of desire.
The Canadian artist Liam Morgan took an urban intervention
that involves an abandoned skyscraper standing awkwardly in Bangkok. Born under improper planning during financial crisis,
this ridiculous yet real ruin stands in the most bustling section of the city. Saturated in red light, the enormous, ghost-like object becomes a standalone and contrasting existence in the lightened
city at night. With the suppressive, blood-red, devil-like building, the artist highlights the conspiracy between capital and power,
which are at the same time devouring each other. The map for city planning is therefore like a certificate for desire and power.
Caused by different reasons, the unfunctional buildings are
forming a concrete maze in the city. These buildings, standing uselessly yet stubbornly in the living domain of people, are the
scars of the Taiwanese failed urban projects. As a response to
these buildings or spaces, the artist Liao Chien-Chung vividly recreates the targeted objects in his two installation art works Outlier and 3/2. With a lump of unknown cables and a route
disappearing at the corner, he questions the reality and necessity of these unfunctional buildings standing in front of us. With their
enchanting visual effects that fool the conceptions of the viewers,
these works are like models used for marketing strategy, which are pleasing, perfect yet meaningless. 3. Places of captivity and parasitism
Accommodation issues derived from wars, environmental changes and commercialization of urban space have brought
the world with new underprivileged classes. When it comes to
governing cities, squatters, homeless, refugee and people living in micro spaces for no choice are now tremendous concerns regarding human rights and class contradiction. Cities are no
longer utopia that provide safe home and satisfying works; they
become the place that captivates the victims suffering from politics and economy. The Japanese artist Aki Inomata customizes
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transparent shells for hermit crabs, which are in the shape of cities around the world. Through the act of exchanging the hermit
crabs' shelters, the artist intends to remind the viewers of the immigrants and refugees around the world, who are forced into
cross-border travel due to complicated issues. To solve residential issues, the governments establish land policy to control the price
of land; they also build social housing for residents with low socioeconomic status. However, before the problems in house
price policy and economic dilemma are rooted up, these rented
places are merely temporary shelters. In response to residential justice issue derived from the commercialization of urban space, the Taiwanese artist Isa Ho records the aged artists living in the
Westbeth Artist House and their life stories with her camera. The apartment, seemingly a prison captivating the aged artists, in fact
provides nutrients for creation that are necessary to the artists. After spending decades accompanying each other, the apartment and the artists have gradually developed an interdependent relationship. Through photos and interviews, Ho not only
observes their self-evident bond in her work, but also re-perceives
the idea of "aging" and the answer of life across the whole century. 4. Battlefield of others
As the French scholar Henri Lefebvre said: "space is produced not merely to shape the environment. It is also a target of productivity and consumption. Meanwhile, it is a target of politic struggle, as
space is a mean of control of the nation," besides contemporary market, space is controlled by technology and finance capitalism in a form never seen before. The city divided by capital has gradually become an arena for class struggle. It also develops
into a certain kind of battlefield that is different from geopolitical
conflicts, and the fire of war is raging. In his work A Field of Non-
Field, Chen Chieh-Jen points out that, under conspiracy and
operation of capital power and political governance, more and
more people are forced to become temp workers that are "globally imprisoned, locally exiled." Having no place to hide under this kind of panoramic control, these laborers seem to be stuck
in bardo without an exit. When the desire, feelings and way of
thinking of both society and individual become more complicated,
people who fail the class struggle have become captives that have
no hope of release. Under the collective desire of the public, the artist Chang Li-Ren illustrates the vengeance and counterattack against the mainstream value. Since 2010, Chang has spent seven
years composing a story called Battle City 1 - The Glory of Taiwan. Through the story of the protagonist Zhi-Qiang, a micro-scaled
politics specifically found in Taiwan is presented. Based on his
imagination about the city, the work shows that the collective pursuance of success and superiority in the society has eventually
denied the existence of individual and led to a disaster called "the glory of Taiwan."
5. The Promised Land
When talking about cities, people will unavoidably consider them
as essential roles for production and re-production of goods.
Under globalization, international metropolises further transform and control the politics, order and way of governance in the city
with fast changing market needs. Without the crucial factors such
as COVID-19 in 2020, the New Cold War between the United States
and China, and political tensions growing in several areas, we may not be able to imagine that one day the world and our cities would be forced to slow down from the speeding train, on which
development takes priority over everything. This is the worst and most uncertain era; yet being pessimistic is not our only option.
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Maybe we are granted with a chance of re-inspection, and the
dominant trend of urban development is released from the old perspective, which is single-angled, rigid and assertive. These
forced landings and stops may be the actual possibility and hope of a "Tomorrowland."
The artist Chia Chien-Ju makes the objects found in daily life into artworks. By inviting the viewers to take pictures of the objects
and leave their names, the artist transforms these objects into another form. The only access to the space is a security window.
The viewers' awkward and uncomfortable experience of entering
or exiting through the window therefore serves as a boundary separating "before" and "after," enabling them to experience the two body perceptions of "existing/fleeing" and "returning/
invading." After 2020, people finally realize that the landscape of the cities will never be reversed. We are forced to adapt to
the space, distance, interpersonal relationship and pattern of
spending money in this new era. The artist Yuan Goang-Ming raises an open question with an extreme circumstance featuring
a city with no man. Yuan filmed the Taipei city right above the
streets on the day of Wanan Air Raid Drill. Seemingly scanning the city, the film thus creates an uncomfortable phenomenon. As a routine in the city, the drill becomes a spectacle in the contemporary society that stands for "war in daily life" or "war becomes daily life." Under the threat of war, is the city with no
man indicating a brand-new possibility of human civilization and society in the future, or is it foreseeing an ultimate termination?
In an era of constant changes, every moment we face is
undergoing transformations. "To seize the chance and respond to our current situation" is the idea that the theme Broken
Landscapes into Decrepitude intends to convey. This is also what
the participating artists raise through their keen observations
and distinctive prophecy in the midst of the complicated world relationship and entangled structures. When the world steps
into the later stage of industrialization, we are facing post-
globalization and the unpredictable trend in the virtual world on the Internet. To cope with the general dilemma of the
contemporary human beings, we should look into cities, a place where various problems gather and reside. To different people, the statement "Have our cities failed?" might be a fact, an ongoing process, a question, or a warning to the future. Even if our
thoughts vary, we cannot turn our heads away from the existing problems in the cities. We should protect nature and all people
without premises, reduce desire and accept all differences. As the motto goes: "to save all lives unconditionally; to take the pain
of all lives as one's own," can we be more compassionate when international conflicts, panic under the epidemic, environmental changes, refugees, class struggle, isolationism and protectionism have become our daily life? The success or failure of cities is
foretelling the fortune of human civilization; yet the road leading
to this future will not be a smooth, bright avenue. Eventually, it all depends on our own efforts to make our future cities a beautiful and pleasant place.
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