People’s lives have been forced to turn over since the outbreak of COVID-19. Nowadays, some people are still experiencing heartbreaking losses. Life and death are inescapable and hard for every human. In line with COVID-19, however, a stronger desire to live is growing powerfully among the Chinese community. Sensing this power, Tong Wang, a New York Multidisciplinary Artist, created “The God of Safe Trip Wherever You Go” to show one’s support. Wang’s work was displayed at Night Flight, a group exhibition curated by Yizhe Huang, featuring artists Tong Wang, Feizi Wu, and Xianglong Li at RSOAA’s The Royal in Williamsburg.
“Night Flight” features the homesickness of the overseas Chinese community, providing an alternative for the audience to experience various narratives through the connection of art. Due to the global pandemic and political tension between the U.S and China, many people can’t reunite with their families in China like they used to. As a member of the Chinese community, Tong Wang wasn’t excluded from the challenge.
According to Tong Wang, the idea of “The God of Safe Trip Wherever You Go” comes from Chinese street advertisements, infinite copies, and stacked forms, which present a huge visual impact and manifest the fantasy of real-life forms and gods. Tong is inspired by the Chinese god of doors, a painting attached to the door during the Chinese Lunar New Year to ward off evil spirits, protect the house, keep the peace, and stay healthy. She transformed original Chinese religious images into fantasy forms with different textures. Even we’re living through a difficult time, Tong calls people to cherish their life by her creations of death, asexuality, and imaging life form and religious appearances.
This masterpiece is one of Tong Wang’s works in “The God of Internet Series” that presents people’s excessive reliance on the Internet. “On the one hand, the Internet can make all kinds of knowledge and information easily accessible, which brings a lot of convenience to life,” Tong explained, “However, the Internet also affects people’s cognitive ability, as our brain receives and processes a large amount of information for a long time, which makes our judgment and ability to think decline continuously.”
Tong’s creation is blended with religion, life, death, mystery, and science concepts. Using elements and symbols of pop culture like cartoons, hip hop music, and video games, she brings audiences unique visual and mental experiences. She aims to express the aspiration for a better life and appeals to the value of life.
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