New Proverb
Size:13cm x 7.5cm
Media: Digital Riso graph
Date: 2020
Welcome to the age of technology. In my past experience as an digital artist, I more than often find myself immersed in the Online world rather than the “real world”, and this experience has bought my attention to the unique internet related social issues. I took an interest in this phenomenon and soon discovered that the people around me had the same epiphany. In my collection of ironic-humor themed comic strips, I have combined ancient Chinese-proverb with my findings on these social issues, and taken on a different perspective on the meaning of the proverbs to better fit our current internet culture.
I have chosen to present my artwork in an exaggerated and humourous manner to emphasize and poke fun at the idea.
泛滥成灾 Original meaning:
Even the flooding of a small river can become a disaster.(Meaning when negative ideas spread around, it can causing harmful effects.)
Comic content:
The excessive amount of pop-up windows with pornographic and negative content has spread like an unstoppable tsunami. Leaving viewers spilling a deadly amount of nosebleed, which end up drowning the universe.
挂羊头卖狗肉 Original meaning:
Selling dog meat while hanging a sheep’s head in the store front.(meaning someone who is pretending to be something they are not)
Comic content:
A man sells the so-called New Zealand Lambs on the Internet, but in fact he is actually selling dogs dressed as lambs. Such a businessman may seem human, but underneath the human skin, lives devil.
童言无忌 Original meaning:
Take no offense to a child’s blabber. (meaning children speak without scruple because they lack the capability.)
Comic content:
A Internet troll sends malicious comments on the Internet without scruple of speaking. Gradually, he becomes a giant baby.(Mentally infantile adults)
三人成虎 Original meaning:
There people become tiger. (When a message is spread by many people, it might becomes
completely different
Comic content:
In the way of flashback, we trace back to the news of "alien tiger destroying the earth". After exaggerating and changing the facts for the sake of click rate, we finally find that the origin is just a picture of three children in a kitten's headgear.
I used the risograph technique to print the zines in the shape of mobile phones.
The first page of these comics is the screen of the a mobile phone, displaying some of our most favourable social media/ Shopping sites , and the back of the zines is design to be the back of a mobile phone. When viewers open the zines, they would discover these stories behind the emulative sites.
Because it's related to the Internet, I take some new technology to represent it.
This is a free interactive exhibition, showing only the first page of the zines. Viewers can download an app in their mobile phones and use their mobile phones to spy on the stories behind these network events in the form of augmented reality technology. The interaction between the audience and the work (whether it's a series of actions or forms) is indispensable part of the my works.
Please click on the website and watch the interaction way.