DSL Magazine: Issue 6

His use of typical western material offers a critical view on todays’ globalization, beyond the simple Chinese horizon. His Tank Project (2011–13) made entirely of luxury Italian leather embodies the sometimes uncanny and paradoxical outcome of the current interdependencies between nations. The work is a life-size military tank hand-sewn by an entire factory of female needle workers, specially trained by the artist. Yet, rather than rising proudly, the sculpture has collapsed and appears deflated, suggesting an incompatibility between western political and economic power and traditional cultures. It took actually two years for the women to complete the work and it could be linked with the artist’s interest in traditional cultures, which he aims at reviving, prioritizing human culture over technologies.