If it were not for the food, why are they attracted to them?

If there are other fellows, why wouldn’t they want to join?

If they know they are being tricked, why don’t they run?

 

For thousands of years, duck decoys have been used in waterfowl hunting. Crafted to resemble real ducks, they are placed on the water to lure wild waterbirds to land.  When waterbirds see the decoys from above, they assume it is a habitual environment with abundant food sources. As a result, they land in the hunting ground. This seemingly straightforward tool carries narratives of imitation, attraction, and deception. 

 

In Guo’s work everything is fine, the duck decoys are painted the colour of yellow rubber ducks, then placed on illusionistic water suspended on a fragile support structure. The supporting structure is constructed from IKEA stools raised on double-extended wooden stilts. A piece of bright blue fabric is held precariously aloft, secured only by the weight of the decoys. In a joyful scene of yellow ducks floating on water but with rolling eyes (in reference to Zhu Da’s animal paintings), Guo creates a visual fable mirroring the ducks’ reaction to the fragility and fakeness of the scene.

 

Based on everything is fine, With All Due Respect incorporates over one hundred duck decoys collected from across Ontario, Canada, as observers of the audience, potential prey for the trap, and representation of the audience. By untwining the logic behind duck decoys, Guo uses them as an analogy. With All Due Respect challenges the viewers to confront their herd mentality and self-deception, which contributes to institutional power structures that are rife with deception and exploitation.