Photo: Lok Cheng. Image courtesy of M+, Hong Kong
NARRATOR:
This installation is called 2000 A.D.. It was created by Yue Minjun in the year 2000. This work features twenty-five humanoid sculptures crafted from acrylic, polyester, and fibreglass. Each figure stands approximately 1.8 metres tall, and the overall dimension of the installation changes depending on the display space. In the 2025 exhibition M+ Sigg Collection: Inner Worlds, the figures are arranged in neat rows, with their backs facing the gallery’s windows. This formation is reminiscent of China’s first emperor’s terracotta army.
Each figure shares East Asian features, a medium build, and identical facial expressions, postures, and clothes. Their eyes are squeezed shut, and their square jaws stretch in exaggerated grins that reveal blood-red mouths and white teeth. Their smiles are so wide that they cover nearly one third of their faces. Their short, neatly trimmed black hair expose broad foreheads. Standing barefoot on rectangular metal plates, their hands are clasped behind their backs, with their feet shoulder-width apart. Every figure wears a yellowed white T-shirt with a round collar, tucked into black trousers. Both garments are wrinkled and worn.
At first glance, these exaggerated grins appear absurd. Yet, their meaning is unclear during the viewing experience. When paired with the figures’ rigid, military-style formation, their eerie smiles evoke a sense of anxiety and oppression.