我的名字「Tan Zi Hao」本身即是一個跨語言的存在：它最初由父母以中文書寫為「陳子豪」，但在馬來西亞的法律體系中，則以拉丁字母登記為「Tan Zi Hao」。其中，「Tan」為閩南語（或稱「福建話」）的姓氏，「Zi Hao」則是以漢語拼音書寫的普通話名字。這個拉丁化的姓名是一種跨語言的複合體，不僅結合了閩南語與普通話，也受到英語與馬來語的影響——例如「Tan Zi Hao」在發音時是無聲調的（不同於漢語系語言），而「Tan」中的字母 t 被發為不送氣的清齒齦塞音 /t/，不同於如「Terry」中送氣的 t 音。

我們用來宣告自身姓名、重述自身故事、展現主體性的語言，往往同時也是背叛我們努力的語言。正是這種內在的糾纏，以及自我難以被辨識的複雜性，驅動著我作為一名藝術家、作家、研究者與教育者的實踐。在一個迅速訴諸技術化解決方案的時代，我們還能如何將「複雜性」表述為一種價值？

我的創作涵蓋多元主題，從跨語言實踐、虛構生物，到後人類的糾纏關係。透過對本體論不安的持續關注，我的作品深入探討在一個全球化與生態相互依存的時代中，成為「單一—複數」（singular-plural）存在意味著什麼。作為一位橫跨多重學科的藝術家，我於新加坡國立大學取得東南亞研究博士學位。目前，我任教於馬來亞大學創意藝術學院視覺藝術學程，擔任資深講師，同時也是字體與設計團體 Huruf 的成員。

My name “Tan Zi Hao” is already translingual: originally conceived in the Chinese script by my parents as “陳子豪,” but rendered legal in Malaysia in the Latin script as “Tan Zi Hao.” With the Southern Min (or “Hokkien”) surname “Tan” and the Mandarin given name “Zi Hao” in Hanyu Pinyin, my Latinised name is a translingual composite, not only a combination of Hokkien and Mandarin, but also inflected by English and Malay, as “Tan Zi Hao” is pronounced atonally (unlike Sinitic languages), and the “t” of “Tan” is enunciated with an unaspirated voiceless alveolar plosive /t/, unlike, say, the “t” of “Terry” which is aspirated. The language we use to declare our names, to reclaim our stories, to demonstrate selfhood, is readily a language that has betrayed our endeavours. It is the inherent entanglement and the unrecognisable complexity of the self that drive me as an artist, writer, researcher, and educator. In an age of quick technological solutionism, how else can we articulate complexity as value? My works have covered a wide range of subjects from translingual practices,

imaginary creatures, to posthuman entanglements. Dwelling on issues of ontological insecurity, my works present a deep investigation about what it means to be singular-plural in an age of global and ecological interdependence. As an artist who moves across different disciplines, I hold a Ph.D. in Southeast Asian Studies at the National University of Singapore. Currently, I am a Senior Lecturer at the Visual Arts Program, Faculty of Creative Arts, Universiti Malaya. I am also a member of the type and design collective Huruf.