Rice fields, drone technology and shifting agricultural landscapes form the backdrop of Cao Fei’s exhibition Dash. Moving between documentary footage, installation and speculative fiction, the work explores how labour and technology increasingly exist side by side within contemporary rural communities.
Physical labour meets automated systems. Modern farmers work the land while drones scan the fields above them, gradually becoming part of daily agricultural life. Rather than presenting technology as something distant or futuristic, Cao Fei observes how innovation integrates into existing routines and landscapes. The relationship between tradition, machinery, human labour and technological progress runs throughout the exhibition. In one of the films, I recognise traces of Cantonese mixed with another dialect. Language shifts alongside the landscape itself, quietly reinforcing the sense of transition present within the work.
Dash by Cao Fei, courtesy of the artist and Fondazione Prada
Devotion takes another form. An altar dedicated to the drone, shifting from spirit to technology. A dragon form, referencing both mythology and technology. A visual language that transcends function. The exhibition moves across regions in China and Southeast Asia, observing the rapid rise of what is often referred to as smart agriculture. At the same time, it raises questions about labour, migration, and the ever-changing relationships between people and land.
Across multiple floors, the works form a layered dialogue between efficiency and tradition, progress and memory. Generations of rice farmers face change, as younger family members leave and sometimes return, drawn back by shifts in labour and technology. Cao Fei observes these transitions closely, without forcing a conclusion. A layered, thought-provoking exhibition, and a fascinating artist to watch.
Images by the author, courtesy of the artist and Fondazione Prada.
Discover: www.fondazioneprada.com
