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The Altar, 2024, installation views, paral. space, Hangzhou. Photos: Jiajun Wang.
The Altar is an installation presented by Hu Yiyao at paral.space. It consists of four trapezoidal shapes made of tiles and a washbasin. It is based on the shape and concept of the Beijing Shejitan (the Altar of Land and Grain) in the Forbidden City, where the most important national ritual ceremonies were once held. Before the activity, the court would send officials to transport five colors of soil from different regions of China and pour them into the five areas of the Shejitan. This behavior was intended to integrate, and to show the loyalty by paying tribute to the authority. In the altar in paral.space, the raw materials of eight different dishes were selected and mixed. During the blending process, handled by the artist, the liquid continued to flow, overflow, and separate, forming the current pattern.
The delicacies of eight regions are mixed together. The two mixed foods are actually inextricably linked. Shanghai's borscht is a modified version of Russian/Ukrainian borscht, but tomatoes and cabbage are used instead of beetroot. Hong Kong-style milk tea is said to come from the British habit of adding milk to Ceylon black tea, which gradually became popular during the British colonial period. Bánh mi, one of the most famous sandwiches, is closely related to the French colonist’s efforts to recreate the taste of their homeland in Vietnam; after Vietnam's independence, it was changed to use more affordable ingredients. After the Dutch arrived in Indonesia, they passed on their custom of eating sweet pastries to the locals, and puffs also adapted to use locally common wheat flour and more tempting chocolate needles.
At the dawn of civilization, humans discovered edible plants or prey native to different corners of the earth and gradually transitioned from nomadic to agricultural societies. When people of a certain civilization or country are no longer satisfied with living in their birthplace, they embark on journeys - sometimes to invade, sometimes to explore, and sometimes just to seek refuge. In the process, these dietary habits and ingredients followed them to new places. When technology, climate and transportation allow, these new places began to accept foreign food and dietary habits, or transform them. Today, in these dishes, it seems that we can glimpse the history of a place, especially its integration and conflict with foreign cultures. Perhaps thousands of years later, no one will speak of a particular battle, but secrets can be unearthed in the diets passed down from generation to generation.
Text by Hu Yiyao
Edited by Mengyuan Zhang