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The art of Jun Zhang (1990) is based on an approach he describes as imaginal ethno-cosmology. He is especially interested in cosmologies, i.e. stories about the origins of the universe, that were overshadowed by Western colonial narratives. To create new universes, Zhang interweaves folklore, history, anthropology, myths, and rituals with figments of his own imagination. For the new work Blubber Town (2024) Zhang immersed himself in the history of Dutch whaling between the 17th and 19th centuries. His research focused on Smeerenburg, a former whaling settlement in the Arctic. With the Dutch word smeer referring to the oil extracted from the thick layers of whale blubber, this location was also referred to as Blubber Town in English.
Long before whaling was turned into a bloodthirsty commercial industry by the colonial superpowers, whales were seen as magical creatures. All around the world there are numerous legends and folktales that ascribe special powers to their bones and oil. Inspired by these traditions, Zhang created a contemporary cosmology around the legend of Blubber Town. The installation consists of a ceramic sculpture of a whale-bone temple, inspired by Chinese shrines made with whale bones that washed ashore. The modest sculpture is surrounded by water and accompanied by an almost three-metre-high tapestry with representations of cosmological whale narratives, produced in collaboration with TextielMuseum Tilburg. Blubber Town is an ongoing project.
Text: Esmee Postma
Translated from Dutch by Marie Louise Schoondergang (The Art of Translation)