论斤论个 per kilo, per fruit

Nets for shading 20%; Donghong variety red MihouTao; vine from last season; buckets; carpet; compressed carton cube; labels; plastic ropes; poly reisen; clay; A0 paper (collaboration with Rory Witt), HD Video loop (collaboration with Yve Oh), sound, 6 minutes

Dimensions variable

2022-23

The work looks into the origin of the Kiwi fruit, its political history, biological transformation, and cultural perception. In 1904, Mihoutao (猕猴桃, the Chinese gooseberry) was brought to New Zealand, where it was profitably cultivated and eventually renamed. Today, the products are sold back to China under strict industrial standards. The reimported fruit is given a different Chinese name, 奇异果, transliteration of Kiwi and literally meaning Strange fruit.

Spanning two spaces, the fruit’s life cycle gets re-enacted: planting, harvesting, selecting, packaging, transporting, marketing, and re-naming. The whole journey under the industrial conditions writes the fruit’s prevailing name over the original one. To claim its original name, the fruit has to develop a red variation to justify its market presence.

Ms. Caplan in 1964 receiving what was said to be the first shipment of New Zealand kiwifruit to the United States

"Showing a 1979 celebration of the 20th Anniversary of the naming of the Kiwifruit by Turners & Growers. The name was coined by Mr John (Jack) Turner (at right). At centre is Sir Harvey Turner".

A Naturalist in Western China (2 Volume Set) (Plant Hunters) 1913 - Ernest H. Wilson. This first documentation of MihouTao was shot in Yichang, China.

Three-Red-Seeds-Innovation-Dedication-Perseverance in NZ

Oriental red (Donghong) variety in the laboratory, Italy, 2021.

The harvesting of red heart kiwifruit in Faenza, Italy 2021

n.t.w. Beijing 2025

Photos by: Hao Yang

KW, Berlin 2023

video stills

with the rubbles of old palaces, Berlin 2023

The project founded by: Senatsverwaltung für Kultur und Europa; Neustart Kultur, Kunstfonds; BPA// Berlin program for artists; Bezirksamt Friederichshein-Kreuzberg.

Thanks to Lucas Maximilian Frohn, Hannah O'Flynn, Rory Witt, Yve Oh, Joannie Baumgärtner, Bokyoung Jeong, Weihan Hu, Pablo Giménez Arteaga, Jolyon Jones, Jingold S.P.A. and LPG Biomarkt GmbH.