Leelee Chan 陳麗同, Pallet in Repose (Barren Rock) 凝伫之盘（荒石）, 2021

"Pallet in Repose (Barren Rock)" probes the interplay between historical and cultural meanings of two disparate materials in the past and present: reclaimed granite from the former Central Police Station compound (currently Tai Kwun) and used plastic shipping pallets. The granite, dressed by local quarrymen early in the colonial era, discloses that the sculpture references the myth of Hong Kong as a colonial “miracle” on a “barren rock”. As one of the earliest export products, granite played a crucial role in Hong Kong’s development into an international trading port. The pallets, as part of an accelerating global supply chain, not only impart a ceaseless state of movement and change, but also have special significance for the artist, who grew up overlooking the 24-hour container port from her apartment window in nearby Lai King. Granite is a permanent material but its extraction results in irreversible topographic modification, whereas plastic pallets are disposable and artificial. The former is created out of human labour, while the latter eliminates it as part of neoliberal production flows. Inspired by the scene where hundreds of salvaged granite rest on pallets in the off-site storage at Shatin racecourse, awaiting to be reused, Chan combines these two materials to create an intricate pallet structure with a circular cavity of granite that evokes the likeness of a mineshaft. — Tam Hok-nang Alex

“《凝伫之盘（荒石）》探索过去和现在两种截然不同的材料在历史内涵和文化意义之间的穿梭互动：一是中区警署建筑群活化时回收的花岗岩石块，一是今天人们用过的塑胶运输卡板托盘。由本地采石工人于殖民时代早期加工处理过的花岗岩，透露了这件雕塑作品参照了香港的神话：一个建立在“荒石”上的殖民“奇迹”。花岗岩是本港最早的出口产品之一，在香港发展为国际贸易港的过程中担当了重要角色。卡板托盘则是全球供应链加速发展的一部分，不仅传递出不断运动和变化的状态，对于从小就于荔景成长，窗户俯瞰着廿四小时运作的港口装卸货柜的艺术家而言，亦具特殊意义。花岗岩是一种永久耐用的材料，但在开采时会引起不可逆转的地形变化，而塑胶卡板托盘却是用完即弃的人工制品。前者要靠人类辛苦劳动创造出来，后者则毫不倚重人力，以新自由主义的生产流程制作。她将这两种材料结合起来，创造出一个复杂的托盘结构，当中的花岗岩形成一个空穴，让人联想到采石场的矿坑。” ——谭学能

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Leelee Chan 陳麗同