Preface
Zobeide is a fictional city in Invisible Cities, a classic work of magical realismone of the most renowned works by Italian writer Italo Calvino. It symbolises a shared dream and a collective desire – men from different countries dreamed of traversing a strange city in search of a naked woman. Upon waking up, they were unable to find her. Consequently, they constructed Zobeide, recreating the alleyways and thoroughfares of their dreams through repetitive renovations. The city’s structure was designed to prevent the woman from escaping. Like Zobeide, numerous real cities were built during the era of colonialism and globalisation, where people of diverse backgrounds desperately pursued their desires, such as spices, beauty, wealth, and new power. At the same time, foreign newcomers continuously reshaped and restructured these cities.
As a classic work of magical realism, Invisible Cities integrates a multiplicity of realities and discourses. The curator of the Macao exhibition, Chang Chan, and artist Wong Weng Cheong, echo the themes from Calvino’s novel, as well as the official theme of the biennale – ‘Foreigners Everywhere’ – in their work. However, they refrain from presenting Macao solely as a gaming hub filled with reconstructed global landmarks and tourists. They also avoid using Zobeide as a direct metaphor for Macao, a city historically populated by foreigners driven by materialistic desires. Instead, they innovatively create a ‘triple’ fictional world setting.
The first visual impact that grips the audience is that this city once constructed by human beings is now occupied by mutated creatures and weeds. The artist intuitively presents the ‘mutation crises’ that have been deliberately ignored throughout human civilisation. Furthermore, various strange yet realistic post-apocalyptic scenes suggest that humans have, over time, been left spiritually displaced.
Following this, the artist compels viewers to enter an intriguing ‘exotic realm’ as time travellers or ‘outsiders’. Here, the relationship between humans and animals – dominant and dominated, wild and domesticated, perching and occupying, top tier and bottom tier of the food chain – are reversed and dislocated. The title ‘Above Zobeide’ also implies the presence of an omniscient, dominant force. The viewers themselves inevitably enter a realm full of omnipresent surveillance cameras, becoming the ‘foreigners’ under constant observation – just like the mutated creatures. Zobeide, a city of desire, serves as a tragic prediction of the ultimate fate of a metropolis and a painstaking endeavour to dismantle a civilisation. We cannot help but dread both the distant future and the unseen force behind order and disorder.
Wong’s ‘exotic realm’ is visually spectacular, and it shares many similarities with French philosopher Michel Foucault’s concept of ‘heterotopia’ – a phase between real space and utopia. With its real yet dreamlike quality, a ‘heterotopia’ can encompass norms, taboos, realities, myths, customs, and fantasies all within one place, offering a critical perspective in social analysis and allowing us to re-examine the existing order. Set within its compelling yet barren atmosphere, this exhibition effectively expresses deep concerns about the continued development of our human civilisation, responding to the anxieties of our time. It demonstrates remarkable imagination, forward-thinking and innovation.
In Invisible Cities, the narrator Marco Polo avoids mentioning the city of Venice. Instead, he subtly infuses the characteristics of the Italian city into every metropolis he describes. Similarly, born and raised in Macao, Wong Weng Cheong creates an ‘exotic realm’ imbued with the unique features of Macao. The artist dissects the city’s long history, precisely defining that the concept of ‘foreign’ is always ‘relative’. He also reflects upon the dichotomy between ‘civilisation’ and ‘barbarism’. The exhibition reveals the pathetic and absurd phenomenon where people negatively emphasise the difference between ‘indigenous natives’ and ‘foreigners’, or between ‘residents’ and ‘immigrants’. Furthermore, it indirectly highlights the universal values of harmonious inclusivity in terms of multi-ethnic groups that have coexisted in Macao over many past centuries.
The exhibition also breaks away from conventional local narratives, revealing how the artist, as a citizen of the world with an international perspective, casts off these standardised domestic portrayals in response to both today’s global issues and his own personal changes over time. The young artistic talent from Macao shows sensitivity, creativity and courage in his work as he reflects on the concept of locality through the perspective of human civilisation, discovering an array of commonalities within the many differences.
This year marks the 60th anniversary of the Venice Biennale and the 25th anniversary of the Macao Museum of Art (MAM). MAM continues its mission to promote Macao art and wholeheartedly supports ’Above Zobeide’ as it represents our city at this prestigious global artistic event. The exhibition provides an opportunity for the international art world to better understand Macao, inspiring its audience to reflect on global affairs and the shared future of humanity, while at the same time promoting important exchange between all civilisations.
Un Sio San
Director of the Macao Museum of Art