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This exhibition is derived from a question raised in a dialogue between Liang Shu-ming and his father at the end of the Qing dynasty. The father, Liang Ji, asked, “Will things ever get better?” Liang Shu-ming replied, “I believe things will get better with each day.” This was a critic made by the father and son at the brink of the European War in the 1910s, and the dialogue reveals the global view held by intellectuals a century ago.
Fast-forward to the present day, have things become simpler? Or, do we live in a time without war? Do people have different expectations for life now? Furthermore, are people's views on life different now?
The same question is used as the title for Xiang Jing's 2013 solo exhibition in Taipei, and signifies that the same melancholies and concerns are still hovering today.
Even with the many expressive minds found in the present era, it still seems to be difficult to obtain a satisfactory response for such a direct question.
Liang Shu-ming once mentioned in an interview: “there are many tragedies that we don't wish to see, but they still happen regardless. However, I think the human history is always evolving; it has to naturally evolve and will not stop. Since it has to naturally evolve and can't be stopped, it is good to evolve, but destructions are also unavoidable during the process. Some major destructions are bound to happen. Being unavoidable is one thing, and wishing to avoid it is another. We must strive to try to avoid it, and if it is unavoidable, we should try to lessen its impacts. This is something we must try to do. We don't need to be pessimistic about the future. Since things are bound to evolve this way, what’s the use of being pessimistic? The truth is, it has to evolve, and evolving is a good thing. I think that evolving is always a good thing.” [1] Liang's optimism may be a response to the beautiful time he was in, when modernism was on the rise, or perhaps, his courage for social actualization was fostered by Confucian thoughts. Evolvement brings hope, and today, more reflections about the contemporary world and life for the present era are observed in Xiang Jing's exhibition; evolvement carries on, but it is not necessarily hopeful.