「我們需要聚集在一起，在這棵尚未種植的檸檬樹下。」 

 

三個地方——觀音、新埔、關西，有四位農夫——一位年近九十的老農夫、一位從來沒工作的半農、一位失業歸鄉的農婦、一位不務正業的釀酒師傅。

他（她）們各自因為不同的理由而不再耕種。

 

三個地方，三塊休耕的農地，不約而同都有幾顆疏於照顧的檸檬樹。我想起女朋友傳給我的電子卡片上，有她親手寫上的經典勵志格言：

 

 

If You Have a Lemon, Make Lemonade.

 

「如果你有一顆檸檬，做檸檬汁吧！」

 

不過，如果有一顆檸檬，我想做的是檸檬酒(limoncello) 。

 

我們需要五百個你，用五百塊錢，買下五百個酒標。每個酒標可以讓我們種下一棵檸檬樹，在一片已經休耕荒廢二十年的農田 ，三個地方、四個農夫、五百棵檸檬樹，無限的希望。

 

兩年後，它會是一個品牌。你會拿到一瓶檸檬酒，並將你手上的酒標貼上。

 

現在，我們需要你，讓我們聚集在一起，在這棵尚未種植的檸檬樹下。

 

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我從家族離農的脈絡和母親原本的生活網絡中，發掘快被遺忘的故事——沒落的釀造技術、荒廢的休耕田、還有離農失業的農夫。聽完故事，我對母親開玩笑說：「來種五百棵檸檬樹吧。」

 

我妄想以作品建立企業？一間種植水果，釀造甜酒，生產文字的企業？

 

藝術家、作品、策展人、美術館、展覽、觀眾之間存在商業？非商業？的資源流動，我們跳開，但好像總是跳不遠，何不試著尋找資源轉換為有效的工具？去串聯漸漸逝去能量的故事、技術、土地和農夫；更用來採集（訪談）、耕種（撰寫）、生產（出版）水果和文字。資源流動可以不只是交易，同時是一種贊助與回饋，贊助的是品牌建立——器具和檸檬樹苗的購買、種植、休耕地活化、田野調查後的文字生產，甚至設廠、釀酒、製造。回饋的是代表了未來商品的ㄧ張張綠色酒標，還有一瓶瓶需要時間醞釀的試釀檸檬甜酒(limoncello) 。我期待經過兩年的累積，可以讓回饋在你手中的酒標被貼在一瓶精心釀造的檸檬甜酒上，而酒，一口喝下。

 

或許，我們不需跳開、不須跳遠，因為我們可以站在土地上原地起飛，期待一個完美落地。

 

 

 

 

 

‘WE NEED TO HAVE THIS MEETING AT THIS LEMON TREE AIN’ EVEN BEEN PLANTED YET.’ 

 

Three places: Guanyin, Xinpu, Guanxi. Four farmers: an old farmer who is almost ninety years old, a part-time farmer who never has a job, a farm woman who lost her job and returned to the countryside and a distiller who horses around. For different reasons, they no longer farm.

 

Coincidentally, on three fallow farmlands in the three places, there are several neglected lemon trees. This reminds me of the digital card my girlfriend sent me. On the card is a classic maxim of encouragement she wrote with her own hands:

 

If You Have a Lemon, Make Lemonade.

 

But if I have a lemon, what I want to make is limoncello.

 

We need five hundred of you; each of you uses five hundred dollars to buy five hundred wine labels in total. Each wine label will allow us to plant a lemon tree on a fallow farmland that has been neglected for twenty years . Three places, four farmers, five hundred lemon trees and infinite hope.

 

After two years, this will lead to the creation of a brand. You will get a bottle of limoncello and stick the wine label in your hand unto the bottle.

 

Now, we need you. Let’s have this meeting at the lemon tree that hasn’t been planted yet.

 

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From the context of my family that abandoned farming and that of my mother’s previous network in her daily life, I discover stories that will soon be forgotten: brewing techniques on the decline, neglected fallow farmlands and jobless farmers who abandoned farming. Having listened to my mother’s stories, I jokingly told her: ‘Let’s plant five hundred lemon trees.’

 

Is it my crazy fantasy to establish an enterprise with artworks? An enterprise of growing fruits, brewing sweet wine and producing texts?

 

A flow of (non-)commercial(?) resources exists among artist, artwork, curator, museum, exhibition and audience. We jump away from it yet it seems we can never jump very far. Why not try to find resources and turn them into efficient tools? Use the tools to connect stories, techniques, lands and farmers that are gradually losing their energy. Furthermore, use them to collect(interview), grow(write) as well as produce(publish) fruits and texts. The flow of resources can go beyond mere trading; it can also be a kind of patronage and feedback. The object of the patronage is the creation of a brand: purchasing equipment and lemon tree saplings, implantation, reviving fallow farmlands, producing texts after fieldworks and even setting up factories, brewing and manufacturing wine. 

 

The feedback you will get is green wine labels one after another representing future goods as well as a bottle of trial limoncello which requires time for fermentation. I wish the two years of accumulation will allow the wine label in your hands, as feedback to your donation, to be stuck unto a bottle of carefully brewed limoncello. As for the wine, just drink it up at once.

 

Perhaps we do not need to jump away or jump far away since we can stand on the grass, fly from where we are and look forward to a perfect landing.