RESTORING THE VIEW

Tong Wenmin CHONGQING

Embracing performance as a spontaneous, organic form of expression, Tong Wenmin utilizes her own body to explore her relationship with her surroundings. In Lawn (2018), Tong, wrapped in a long coat stitched from green turf, silently lies face down on an expansive field next to the partially demolished Zhongliang Village, located in her home city, Chongqing. By mimicking the stillness of the scenery, she conveys her admiration for the landscape, which offers respite from the nearby wreckage. Eventually, she stands and, with the aid of digital effects, her figure becomes translucent, merging with the greenery before entirely fading from view.

For her three-part features her sprawled on a beach, surrendering herself to the tides that sweep the shore, thus highlighting the sea’s power over life on our planet. In , she stands in a dense forest with her hands stretched upward, her naked torso rising and falling rhythmically to exaggerate her breathing. Through this action, she draws attention to the plants, which supply oxygen and absorb carbon dioxide, and accentuates the co-dependent relationships within ecosystems. Her gestures in are more urgent. Standing atop a pile of ashes from plants that had just been burnt to the ground, she shakes and convulses, personifying the crop’s pain.