The Re-Birth of Spandex

Circa 2001, Hock Hiap Leong Coffeeshop, 'Bye Bye Albert', organised by The Artists Village

5 years ago, I introduced Manic Jango to the world, and I became known as the Purple Spandex Guy, and I still remember vividly, some of the description:

In 2001, while serving in the army, fresh upon graduation from art college, (trained in painting) I created a personal character based on the doodles and rants from my sketchbook on the idea of a superhero, called Manic Jango . At that point in time, the sudden change in lifestyle, created an impact to which it reached a point of depression. In order to overcome the sorrow, I embodied another form of self as a way of self-healing. The maiden performance was executed in an event organized by The Artist Village; in the performance, I arrived in the space which was an old coffee shop wearing a gaudy suit and retro pants carrying a briefcase, like a fictional businessman with jazz music as a backdrop. Afterward, I began a demonstration on how to make a good 3-in-one coffee from a sachet that was labeled as ‘Majestical Stimulant’, where the audience was given a pack each to be brought home for keeps. Then, the scene turned into a short cabaret act of stripping of the outer skin of clothes to reveal another layer, where the inner layer revealed a purple leotard.

Following that, a placard series showing of text informed the audience who is Manic Jango gradually revealed the person in the purple leotard. The piece ended with the character crossing the road in a public space with the leotard still intact.


As mentioned by Debord, ‘Man’s appropriation of his own nature is at the same time the apprehension of the unfolding of the universe’