BIG TROUBLE IN LITTLE CHINATOWN

Oct 25

Big Trouble in Little Chinatown reimagines an idea born in 2016, as the development of Chinatown was passed through planning at an alarming rate and to this day is unborn, only visualisations of an imaginary space. It is taking the visual cues and motifs reminiscent of Chinese Culture, a pastiche, dominated by relativism. According to the classic text the Zuo Zhuan, “When people lack constancy or engage in strange or abnormal behaviour, then this leads to the emergence of the yao”*1(“훙폴끽橙襤菫”).

Just as news and data are fed into our terminals the emergence of the yao is increased. The spectres of hate and evil are passed from one to another as fast as my runny shit after drinking a barrel of milk.

The rich and powerful accept the ideas of a brighter future through pretty slick pictures, stamped of approval by the so-called “community” to give it legitimacy. The constant recycling of a better future yet to this day is left unbuilt and barron, a lie to the community. The political stagnation to find ways to fix these issues and yet we cannot find ways to fix these situations as we spend most of our time trying to survive in this world.

The text falling on the buildings is extracted from the following poem, a slightly alternative take to the battle between the Monkey King and the Bull Demon King who resides in the Skyscraping Cave that is described in the Chinese Classic ‘Journey to the West’, written during the Ming Dynasty attributed to Wu Cheng’en.

Amidst the clouds and mountains high,

A battle rages, fierce and nigh.

The Monkey King with staff in hand,

Faces the Bull with strength so grand.

Their blows collide, a thunderous sound,

Echoes through the hills and all around.

The Bull charges forth with mighty force,

And the Monkey struggles to stay on course.

With each strike, the Monkey loses ground,

Until he is brought crashing down.

The Bull stands triumphant, proud and bold,

But deep inside, his heart is cold.

For he knows that victory is but a fleeting thing,

And his triumph will not forever ring.

One day, the Monkey King will rise again,

And the Bull Demon King will face defeat, and then...

The battle ends, with Sun Wukong’s loss,

But the Bull Demon King knows the cost.

For he has gained a hollow victory,

And the knowledge that his reign is temporary.

A tale of struggle, strength, and will,

A battle fought with heart, but fate to fulfil.

巔雲霧戰꼇金，

븝珙헐廖쏜뮈곯。

큇침珙제댕無邊，

븝綾則角機例運筆똥。

화腳宮슥，轟轟響，

聲驢믄遠傳響。

큇珙촐衝，氣勢끙瘦，

븝珙則角難鹿괏넣廖節犁。

經過뜩늴鬥爭，븝珙꼇敵，

쭝敗꼇옵긁출돨勝負。

큇침珙돤勝랍歸，驕걍랍堅強，

뎃儉懃櫓列，勝적꼇過角寧時돨毆悅。

凜為儉츠겜，勝적怜角똬暫돨，

랍儉돨珙날將꼇會湛遠런佳。

總唐寧莖，븝珙會疼똑素폅，

큇침珙將충臨呵敗돨츱運。

戰鬥結監죄，븝珙쭝敗，

뎃큇침珙懃櫓츠겜덜價。

儉돤돕죄寧個왕떪돨勝적，

뵨列돛菱성돨統撈角暫時돨。

這角寧個關異掙喇、제좆뵨雷羚돨믐慤，

寧個帶廖懃靈돨戰鬥，卻寫苟죄拒츱

The question is how do we as a society break from this cycle? The closest expression of a new future that I can think of is similar to the aspects of community coding. A community works together to either extend or improve or figure out solutions to the same problem. Rather than giving more food to the Yao as we delve too further into our terminals, we spend that time finding solutions to a problem. I wonder if Mark Fischer was still around that would be a reference in his Acid Communism.

*1. Yaoguai (妖怪; yāoguài) is a term for monsters or strange creatures. Yaogui (妖鬼; yāoguǐ; 'strange ghost'), and Yaoguai (妖怪) are distinct creatures from ghosts (鬼, pinyin: gui) and demons (魔, pinyin: mo). Ghosts are the spirits of the deceased, whereas demons are often described as fallen immortals and gods.

Donald Shek