Millennium Ginseng Project - Moon Ginseng
In the concept of Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM), ginseng grows in a harsh natural environment, and it takes the shape of a man's body, therefore consuming it connotes the supplement of Jing Qi (Chinese: 精氣; essence and qi/vitality). It is not the material substance but the conceptualization of "qi" that is consumed. Long-lived wild ginseng of a rare strain is particularly deemed as anti-aging. However, because of the belief system in TCM, people think that wild ginseng is more powerful than the cultivated ginseng. It caused illegal harvesting and results in the wild ginseng becoming endangered in North America and East Asia. This issue is a serious conflict between “biodiversity”, a contemporary thinking of ecological conservation and the cultural value of traditional Asian medicine.
With Moon Ginseng Kuang-Yi Ku tries to solve these complicated problems between Western modernity and Eastern heritage. To achieve this he designs a series of new cultivated ginsengs which are conceptually and culturally much stronger than the wild ones. The new ginseng will be a “hybrid medicine” combined by western science and TCM. Moon Ginseng is a speculative scenario in which ginseng will be grown on the moon in the future. One moon year could be defined to equal to one earth month, so the lunar “millennium ginseng” can be cultivated in only 83 earth years. It is one of the many ways in which Kuang-Yi Ku conceptualizes the cultural significances hidden in TCM by representing the beauty and poetic quality in traditional Chinese culture and combine this with futurist thinking.
With Moon Ginseng Kuang-Yi Ku tries to solve these complicated problems between Western modernity and Eastern heritage. To achieve this he designs a series of new cultivated ginsengs which are conceptually and culturally much stronger than the wild ones. The new ginseng will be a “hybrid medicine” combined by western science and TCM. Moon Ginseng is a speculative scenario in which ginseng will be grown on the moon in the future. One moon year could be defined to equal to one earth month, so the lunar “millennium ginseng” can be cultivated in only 83 earth years. It is one of the many ways in which Kuang-Yi Ku conceptualizes the cultural significances hidden in TCM by representing the beauty and poetic quality in traditional Chinese culture and combine this with futurist thinking.
Credit:
Consultancy of Plant Ecophysiology: Rashmi Sasidharan, assistant professor, Plant Ecophysiology, Utrecht University, The Netherlands
Consultancy of Traditional Chinese Medicine: Po-Hsun Chen, Physician, Chinese
Medicine Department, Tainan Hospital, Ministry of Health and Welfare, Taiwan
Architecture design, 3D modeling and 3D printing: Po-Yun Chang, Zhao-Wei Liu, Yi-Ting Chiang
Graphic design and print fabrication: Phoenix Yu Tzu Huang, Ishtar Hsu
Animation and video making: Jian Da Huang
Supported by
Stimuleringsfonds, Netherlands
National Culture and Arts Foundation, Taiwan,
Department of Cultural Affairs, Taipei City Government, Taiwan
MU, Eindhoven, Netherlands
AirWG, Amsterdam, Netherlands
Consultancy of Plant Ecophysiology: Rashmi Sasidharan, assistant professor, Plant Ecophysiology, Utrecht University, The Netherlands
Consultancy of Traditional Chinese Medicine: Po-Hsun Chen, Physician, Chinese
Medicine Department, Tainan Hospital, Ministry of Health and Welfare, Taiwan
Architecture design, 3D modeling and 3D printing: Po-Yun Chang, Zhao-Wei Liu, Yi-Ting Chiang
Graphic design and print fabrication: Phoenix Yu Tzu Huang, Ishtar Hsu
Animation and video making: Jian Da Huang
Supported by
Stimuleringsfonds, Netherlands
National Culture and Arts Foundation, Taiwan,
Department of Cultural Affairs, Taipei City Government, Taiwan
MU, Eindhoven, Netherlands
AirWG, Amsterdam, Netherlands
Growing ginseng on the moon
The farming system of ginseng on the moon
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