Asia
Charwei Tsai
Hermit Crab Project
2008
Hermit Crab Project
Charwai Tsai’s photograph documents her Hermit Crab Project installation upon the construction site of gallery Sora in Tokyo. Tsai placed live hermit crabs and shells in a sandy enclosure at the site, writing fragments of The One China policy and the Taiwanese Independence statements on each shell. As the hermit crabs moved and swapped shells, they formed new connections between the statements. Tsai calls attention to the ephemerality of political declarations and makes the movements of animals into metaphors for the changing course of history.
Taiwanese multimedia artist Charwai Tsai often explores geographical, social, and spiritual concerns through performative and ephemeral artworks. She chooses materials that decompose or change to contemplate notions of impermanence and transience. Tsai is also editor-in-chief of “Lovely Daze”, a bi-annual journal of artists’ writings and artworks curated around specific themes for each issue.