玖百贰拾公斤—展览计划 (8月19)

苏文祥

宇文光，这是一个小杂志的采访，里面有一段应该有我回答的关于那个作品的意思：|  
我知道你英文好，你看看吧。我不想在论坛上很正式的阐释自己的作品，呵呵

苏文祥

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9/9/2005 8:56


Wang Jie/Shanghai Daily news

In a city where art lovers are exposed to so many choices, it\'s not easy to know which exhibition will be intriguing and which may be mediocre.
Sometimes the choice of which show to attend can be made just by having a look at the name of the exhibition and "920 Kg" seemed sufficiently weird to warrant a trip to Shanghai Duolun Museum of Modern Art.
The exhibition showcases the works of a group of young artists - including Liu Bo, Wu Ye and Li Yu - in photography, video, installation, painting and multimedia.
But what\'s the mystery behind calling the show "920 Kg?"
"That is the sum of the weights of the participating artists," explains Feng Ruoyu, spokesperson for the museum. "It\'s a new way to name an exhibition."
Since visitors are well accustomed to examining and judging the purpose for holding an exhibition as well as the quality of the works on display, they are in somewhat of a dilemma when trying to interpret such a private vocabulary.
"When high hopes are placed on the title as much as on the exhibits, visitors become obsessed with working out why a certain number has been chosen which is supposed to be overwhelming, profound, easy-to-read, yet most importantly, mysterious or hidden," Feng says.
Then "920 Kg" is only a farcical mathematics game. Does the total weight of all artists, or rather the Arabic figures, in the end reflect the show itself?
"In fact, the theme of the show is a discussion about the human body," says Su Wenxiang, one of the artists in the exhibition. "We thought of several names which were closely related to the human body but they were too direct or erotic for a show."
Apparently the final choice was the right move.
Although nudity has long been recognized as valid in the context of aesthetics and is no longer a taboo subject, it would be stupid merely to display nudity without any thought about artistic merit.
"The disadvantage of following traditional aesthetics is the widespread and inappropriate use of the human body," Su says. "For example, (Marcel) Duchamp was the first to put a urinal inside an art museum. But it would be meaningless if he moved it in a second time."
Naturally each artist has his or her own way of pursuing and uncovering the mystery, the struggle, the hurt or the health of a human body.
For example, in a huge photograph entitled "On the Spot," Liu, a young artist from Wuhan in Hubei Province, expresses his concern about acts of violence done to the human body. The photo is of a kidnapped girl\'s body lying among the ruins of a construction site.
"I have been curious in the subject for years," says Liu. "Just imagine that any unexpected incident would change your life because your body is more fragile than you would think."
However, today many people ignore the health of their bodies because of stress and pressure of work.
Li, also an artist from Wuhan, reminds visitors of taking care of themselves through his photograph, entitled "lastic Playground Series."
The picture depicts a newly built plastic playground but while it contains many people, nobody is playing games.
"My purpose is simple," Li says. "I suggest that these men sitting all day in front of the computer should be out doing some physical exercise instead of playing computer games or chatting on the Internet."
Li Mu and Zhang Fang\'s video installation, "The Paranoia of a Perfectionist," instantly and vividly outlines a psychological problem that troubles some people. It captures a person continuously and patiently washing hands under a tap. The scenario is familiar as the scene is typical of a perfectionist. The artist is lamenting that sometimes the only way to ease the pain in our souls is to torture our own bodies.
Likewise, indulging the body can also cause the soul some agony. Su\'s "How Come You Don\'t Care about My Grief," a light box installation, makes this point.
"This exhibition gives various possibilities of ways to extend the topic of the human body," Su says. "In fact, some of us take our bodies too seriously and others do the opposite."
In Chinese tradition and aesthetics, one\'s body always ought to be under control and this has come to be a national characteristic.
"But here, the body is no longer a taboo subject and it is open to public discussion - thanks to the power of \'920 Kg\'," Su says jokingly.

Date: through September 16, 9am-5pm
Address: 27 Duolun Rd
Admission: 10 yuan
Tel: 6587-6902


From:
http://english.eastday.com