1.Some thoughts about Contemporary art: from studio to situation
Contemporary art for me is not only in the studio, but also in the transition, such as in a specific venue, different places will have a great influence on my art making.
In the past, all painters painted in their studios, but contemporary art should be more social, not just limited to discussions about how I should make art, but where art can happen.
The revalidation of the gallery as a place of exchange, going from a mere interior to a specific place.
A contemporaneity of artistic practice that does not necessarily have to be presented in a space and confined to a gallery
The relationship is based on an identity, for example, how I experience my identity as a Chinese, as a new student in Scotland, a young Chinese student in the 21st century.
It is not necessarily as a mere individual, but more as a community and a relationship with the land, which actually involves a deeper discussion.
2. Some idea about my artwork
When I was thinking about how my new project could develop, I came up with the idea of connecting the dots between relationships and social activities, which today is called “relational aesthetics”.
I came up with the idea of inviting a group of students to eat hot pot with me, and in the process of inviting some students to eat hot pot, I would also interact with some students who had not been exposed to hot pot culture, introducing them to some Chinese culture, and the act of eating hot pot together would also bring me closer to students from other cultures, and throughout the event I was also exploring the relationship between ‘people’ and people, and how this could be interpreted differently when something different happens in a particular venue.
In this creative process, the artist can meet the public face to face, so that art can communicate more directly with them from creation to presentation. I think the fascination that contemporary art has had for me is that it has given me a different way of looking at the world. Art has subconsciously changed the way I think and guided me to think about the world in a deeper way.
In the book “Relational Aesthetics”, the author mentions that the artist in Relational Aesthetics is like a service provider, not a maker in art, and that art is a process of information exchange between the artist himself and the audience.
3. About “place” and Common items in daily life
I was looking back at my previous work ‘oyster’ and rethinking the meaning of “site-specific art”. Site-specific installation’ shows the interaction between the psychedelic light and the psychedelic environment of the photographs that cover the entire wall. For contemporary art, the physical environment is not as important as the social, political, economic, historical and contextual composition of the place in a given field.
With the change of space, as the artist Felix Gonzalez-Torres did, he placed his everyday objects in a public space, which I think is also a challenge in itself.
Another artist I found very interesting was
Susan Philipsz made the installation Lowlands by placing a recording of herself humming the song ‘Lowlands’ under a bridge where people often jump to their death.
In this work, the music and the artist’s voice merge with the sounds of people on and off the bridge and the river. In such a realistic environment where people are passing by, the sound is more likely to provoke people to think about life. She explores the themes of hope and life by placing the work in a specific location in such a way that it triggers memories and emotions. When this work was placed in the gallery, it was confusing for the audience.
Sounds that we do not care about play an important role in this artist’s work. Although noise often plays a disliked role in life, in the hands of the artist it becomes a creative element and a source of inspiration, and these creations give noise an unusual beauty and meaning. So I was thinking that everything in life has its own special features, even the noise that everyone hates has a unique use.
Also the environment around the work can have an impact on the work, for most people the work placed or presented in the art area will be considered a work of art, but outside of that area it can be easily overlooked. I decided to use everyday objects in my new work and to take on a different kind of place.
Leave a Reply