The Wanwu Library

The Wanwu Practice Group showcases a zine library comprising writings and visuals from multi-species art practice and research, accompanied by a series of tours and talks. Michael LEUNG shares the wisdom of Wang Chau villagers during a government eviction. Feixuan XU presents part of her fieldwork with sericulturists and an artist in China in the format of texts and large posters of silkworm-related fabrics, while PARK Ji Yun PARK shares her research notes on Orchids’ symbiotic relationship and life span. Sarah HUANG tells the stories of edible weeds from a historical perspective, while Olga TIMURGALIEVA discusses techniques of art practice with yeast. Aki NAGASAKA reflects on her own art practice and how it guided her to research hybrid <human—more-than human> communities in Hokkaido. Mankun LIU contrasts contemporary art imageries and materials drawn from other systems of knowledge in light of contemporary art theories and criticism. We are living in a world of “Wanwu” [萬物] the myriad things — a complicated multiplicity of species and cultures. Daoist philosophy tells us that the difference and plurality of multiplicity should be understood in light of continuity. Everything exists in an intrinsic and constitutive correlation, in which nothing could stay intact when the relationships change. As Roger T. Ames introduces, Daoist philosophy leads us to a new vision that prioritizes process and changes over form and stasis, situation over agency, historia and mythos over logos, narrative over analysis, contingent and negotiated harmony over deterministic and necessary teleology, a dynamic radial center over boundaries. About the group The Wanwu Practice Group is composed of artists-scholars learning to live on Earth and contribute to its vibrancy. Inspired by wanwu—myriad happenings, they value both knowledge and practice. The Wanwu Practice Group draws on Indigenous wisdom, activist experiences, ecological research, and theoretical reflections. Based at the School of Creative Media, City University of Hong Kong, Wanwu focuses on art and ecology in East Asia. Members: Sarah HUANG, Michael LEUNG, Mankun LIU, Aki NAGASAKA, PARK Ji Yun, Olga TIMURGALIEVA, Feixuan XU.