All posts by Chen Yuan

It’s All Relative 合家欢照片里,怎么只有你?

March 17, 2021 2021年3月17日

In front of a sky-patterned curtain, a mom cradles her baby. Her fatigue remains in plain sight, even through the heavy make-up. The dad, standing alongside, looks down at the kid with a look of love and concern. It’s a photo not unlike one you might find in your own family album, and it’s precisely this familiarity that draws you in for a closer look. But scrutiny will reveal something uncanny: both the mom and dad appear to be the same person. This is the work of Rie Yamada, a Nagoya-born and Germany-based artist who intrudes family portraits, replacing every individual with an alternate version of herself.


天蓝色的幕布前,一位身着家居服的妈妈抱着孩子,精致打扮的面容上依然可以看出疲态,另一边的丈夫低头看向宝宝,仿佛生怕它再次哭出声来似的小心翼翼;另一双情侣相互扶持地站在镜头前摆正姿势,笑得欢快,一人穿着明黄色的针织衫,一人身穿藏青色的套装……

这些角色和场景看起来如此熟悉,似乎就是寻常家庭相册里会出现的照片,但仔细一看,照片中的所有人却似乎都长成同一般模样。这就是日本艺术家 Rie Yamada 的作品——她把合家欢照片中的人物,都替换上了自己的脸……

The series, Familie Werden (meaning “Becoming Family” in German), is part one of a trilogy that examines the past, present, and future in the context of familial life.

To create the series, Rie obtained family photos from second-hand markets, auctions, and internet archives. Referencing these images, she found or reconstructed settings in the likeness of the original image, dressed like the images’ subjects, and mimicked their poses. “In front of the lens, wearing their clothes, hairstyle, and make-up, I often felt like I was really a part of their family,” Rie laughs.


Rie Yamada 出生于 1984 年的日本名古屋,她在德国长大,毕业于柏林魏森塞艺术学院。“Familie Werden”是她关于家庭主题创作的摄影系列三部曲中的第一部分,旨在聚焦家庭的过去、现在和未来。

这个系列中的每张图片都是从旧货市场、拍卖会和网络档案中收集来的大量快照,也分别来自世界各地不同的家庭,她只是“重新创作”了这些照片,把自己作为画中人“替换”掉原有的家庭成员。她会通过浏览各种历史和老照片,收集尽可能多的信息,然后还原照片中的布景,摆出近乎一模一样的姿势,再定时拍摄,以此来讲述一个个全新的故事。

By re-enacting these family photos from the past, she examines the weakening of family bonds in modern times. The project has even helped her glean new insight into her own family background and ancestry. “We have photo albums from my mother’s childhood and onwards, but unfortunately, we hardly have any of the older albums with family members that I have never met because our relatives had gotten rid of them,” she sighs. “This was one of the factors that inspired me to focus on the topic of families and family photos.”


“很奇怪的是,站在镜头前,穿着相似的衣服、妆容和发型,我觉得自己仿佛已经融为这些家庭的一份子了。”Rie Yamada 说道。觉得,要了解这些家庭和过去的家庭照片,最好的方法就是真正“成为”这个家庭里的一员。在这整个过程里,也让她思考了自己和现实家庭的关系,了解到了原本不知道的家族历史。

“我们家确实有我母亲童年及以后的相册,但可惜的是,那些收有未曾某面的家庭成员们的相册,已经被亲戚扔掉了。”她不无遗憾地说道,“这也是促使我关注家庭和家庭照片这一主题的因素之一。”

Another source of inspiration came from the 2011 Tohoku earthquake and tsunami, or rather, a specific part of the recovery effort. Countless homes were destroyed by the disaster, and people’s personal belongings were washed away or waterlogged. Despite the amount of financial damage this caused, many people only wanted one thing: their family photo albums. And so, volunteers came together to find, clean, and return these lost family photos to their rightful owners. Rie found these efforts fascinating. It shined a light on just how much people prioritized their families and memories.


这个摄影三部曲系列的诞生还源自另一个契机。2011年,日本福岛大地震和海啸导致了当地无数人家妻离子散、流离失所,而千千万万的幸存者们,比起睹物思人的痛苦,更希望的却是能尽快找回自己的家庭大合照,这比他们在灾难中失去的任何东西都重要。于是,当地出现了很多志愿者发掘、清理、归还家庭照片的项目。Rie Yamada 觉得这非常有趣,也让她对家庭重新产生了思考。

The relationship between an individual and their own family has since been an ongoing topic of interest for Rie, and her roleplay of the different individuals that compose a family—with their own personalities, genders, and backgrounds—has allowed her to better grasp the nuances of the relationship dynamics of different families. It’s also a meditation on the changing photo-taking habits of modern times. Today, people most often turn their cameras on themselves, taking filtered selfies for their social media. “Photographs are proof of existence, especially now, because we live in a time where photography has been popularized and digitized,” she says. “We must think about the future of photography and the future of family photography, and because we live in a time of drastic social changes, we must also think about what makes a family a family.”


Rie Yamada 喜欢探究人与家庭之间的密切关系。无论是笑靥如画的青春少女,或是满头白发、儿孙满堂的老奶奶……身为传统血亲关系和现代个人主义两相交融的一代,Rie Yamada 近乎本能地深入到这种文化冲突中去,并将此借由镜头展现出来。

“照片是我们存在的证明。尤其是我们生活在一个摄影普及化、数字化的时代,我们必须思考家庭照片的未来、思考摄影的未来。也正因为我们生活在一个社会大变革的时代,我们必须思考什么才是一个家庭。”

If Familie Werden is an examination of family through the lens of the past, then part two of the series, Familie Suchen (meaning “Looking for Family”), can be seen as an extension of similar thematics in the present time. In it, she looks to the matchmaking parties of contemporary Japan for inspiration. More reflective than critical, she dressed in the likeness of the men she encountered at these events—many of whom have hopes of meeting someone they can build a family with. The project examines the nature of modern relationships, self-identity, and asks viewers to reconsider what they truly value in a romantic partner.

For the project’s finale, which remains untitled, Rie will look to the future. “In art history and photography, family has been a frequently revisited subject,” she says. “Families are groups of people that embody the cultural and historical backdrop of the time; therefore, family photos exemplify the cultural and historical background and are a reflection of society at the time.”

Even after she completes the project, Rie plans on creating more art that builds on the theme of family. She says that it may just become her life’s work. “Whatever the topic, I would like to keep exploring the various aspects of society through my own experiences.”


如果说《Familie Werden》侧重于家庭的过往历史,那么在该系列的第二部分《Familie Suchen》中,Rie Yamada 把主题伸入了另一个层面:当下。为此,她寻找“租赁家庭”和“在线相亲”活动,这种租借活动旨在可为客户提供合适的演员,以在社交活动场合中扮演朋友、家人或同事的角色。从而去了解眼下日本年轻人对“租赁亲友”对需求,并在作品中探讨这种屡见不鲜的现象。

Rie Yamada 目前正在创作该系列的第三部分,这则将关于她自己和未来家庭的故事了。她说:“在艺术史和摄影史上,家庭的主题被反复研究。家庭是一个人的集合,体现了当时的文化和历史背景,因此,家庭照片体现了文化和历史背景,是当时社会的反映。”但如今,“家庭”是传统社会的基本构成单元的观念渐渐弱化,取而代之的是“个人”,越来越成为社会基本单位。

她计划在这三部分系列完成后,也会进一步研究家庭这个话题,作为我人生工作的一部分。“但不管是什么主题,我都想通过自己的经历,继续探讨社会的方方面面。”她自信地说道。

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Contributor: Chen Yuan


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供稿人: Chen Yuan

 

 

The Claymen 泥土也有情绪

March 8, 2021 2021年3月8日

In the sculptures of Amen Khanna, simple beiges, tans, and whites are used to powerful effect. The Indian artist’s porcelain figures come with rich emotional inner lives, despite their whimsical demeanors—some of his characters have their eyes shut in fear, some have their mouths agape in shock, and others have hands clasped tightly around their heads. Even in works designed to be functional, there’s a pensive grace that he injects into the work. Through his clay creations, Khanna hopes to shine a light on the negative emotions that people too often push out of sight.


平实淡然的色彩,却带有一种让人沉静的能量贯穿其中,一枚枚特立独行的小人仿佛各自拥有各自的小情绪,却又让人觉得饶有趣味。有些人闭起眼长大嘴巴,似乎是对眼前发生的一切感到讶异;有些人紧紧抱住头,似乎陷入了焦头烂额的困境中……哪怕是一些水杯花盆,也好似承载着一丝静默的忧伤——印度艺术家 Amen Khanna 说,他创作的这些陶土作品的初衷,就是“为了呈现那些人类看不见的情绪”。

The first time that Khanna touched clay, something clicked—he found a tremendous amount of beauty in the material. He admired its sturdiness, malleability, adhesiveness, and that, even without additional colorants, it came in naturally pleasing colorways. Once realizing that these qualities could be used to create unique, expressive works, he became obsessed.


Amen 在一次偶然接触陶土制作之后就爱上了这种媒介,他发现陶土本身具有着独特的美学价值。它实在、可塑、有粘力,且自带沉寂的色彩——这些与生俱来的物理性质让人着迷。而如何捕捉陶土的特性,去塑造一个个不同性格气质的作品,则是 Amen 一直想要去探索的命题。

Considering the versatility of clay, Khanna believes it’s a shame that people overlook their full potential. The material is often thought of as nothing more than a medium to construct functional ceramic ware. But Amen sees clay for what it is or can be—a material with life. Under his touch, his ceramic men express puzzlement, astonishment, sorrow, and more. “The thought that the material comes from the earth and will return to be a part of it one day keeps me grounded,” he says.


虽然说陶土的形态可以万变,但人们对它的看法似乎永远跳不出其本身的实用意义,所以大多数陶土制品都沦为了锅碗瓢盆。可是 Amen 并不这么认为。在他眼里,陶土是有生命的,这些小泥人们仿佛会惊讶、迷惑、忧虑、沉思,它们所呈现的神态是丰富多样的,但有着表里如一的核心:真诚。“一想到它来自于大地,总有一天会成为大地的一部分,我就觉得很踏实。”Amen 说。

Ceramics as a medium is prone to damage and cracks, and this is precisely what makes each of Khanna’s clay men so delicate and unique. In this way, they’re similar to human beings—needing to be constantly reshaped and cared for. This belief is what elevates his porcelain art and adds emotional dimensionality. He also believes the nature of clay adds a universality to his art, one that allows him to transcend gender, geography, and politics. He says, “Simply put, my clay men are the language and voice with which I communicate my thoughts and feelings with the world.”


这些陶土人在制作过程中总会不可避免地面临损坏和龟裂,但这也体现出每一件泥人的弥足珍贵,它们几乎和人类一样,需要一次次塑形,需要一枚枚真心呵护。唯有这样才能让观者关注和感知到更多情感信息,而非物质本身的实用主义。对 Amen 来说,泥土从来都不只是一种简单的媒介,他希望塑造的是一枚枚超越性别、地理、政治界限的泥人,“它们是我的语言和声音,我用它们与世界交流我的思想和感受。” Amen 说道。

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Floral Roll-ups 纸·植

March 1, 2021 2021年3月1日

Under the touch of Daphne Lee, calming gradients and multilayered petals blossom from sheets of ordinary paper. Born in Singapore and now based in Minneapolis–Saint Paul, Lee—who co-founded the papercraft studio JUDiTH+ROLFE with her husband in 2016—creates handmade floral sculptures that examine the relationship between man and nature, particularly on how flowers can have a profound effect on our everyday lives.


渐次晕开的色彩,层叠舒展的花瓣,是 Daphne Lee(Judith)用通过最贴近自然的手工制作,把植物与人的关系、连同生命赋予人的意义,悉数植入到衍纸作品中去,塑造出简单却层次丰富的立体植物形态。

Lee stumbled upon paper art by chance. In 2016, she wanted to find a customized gift for a friend but searched high and low to no avail. That’s when she decided to take matters into her own hands and make her own out of paper. Having worked as an architect for nearly a decade, making three-dimensional paper art wasn’t a far leap. Her first creation was a typographic piece. Joining together strips of paper, she assembled a paper sculpture of her friend’s name. She found it surprisingly soothing to work with paper, discovering a zen-like sense of peace in their repetitive folds. She was hooked.

Lee has long adored flowers and the natural world, so it’s not surprising that it’s become a central theme in her art. Magnolias, daisies, roses, and lilies are among some of her favorites, and their colors and shapes are frequently referenced in her designs. “The beauty of a blossoming flower inspires me endlessly,” she says. “So in my color palettes, I try to recreate their original vibrance. The power of colors cannot be underestimated—they can affect our mood and even change the energy of a room.”


2016年,Daphne Lee 本想寻找一种个性化定制名字的礼物送人,但苦寻未果,反而让她下定决心自己动手了起来。那是 Daphne Lee 首次创作纸艺作品。曾作为一名建筑设计师的她,本就有一双乐于发现美的眼睛,她利用手边既有的材料,制成预先裁剪好的纸条,然后就开始卷纸卷,并将它们排列成字母名字。没想到接下来却发现自己“爱上了这个重复的、充满禅意的过程”,此后几乎每天都在与纸打交道。

Daphne Lee 印象中,能吸引到她的总是那些极具美感和生命力的东西。木兰、雏菊、玫瑰、百合……她擅长收集和“解构”自然界里的种种微妙设计所在。“似锦的繁花是我的灵感来源,我在调色板中通常会尝试反映自然界中的实际颜色。”她说道,花瓣的颜色丰富而有渐变感,会仔细筛选备用的纸张颜色,因为纵深度的关系,作品会随着观者的视角、光线的变化而不断变化,Daphne Lee 对此很是痴迷:“色彩的力量不容小觑,它可以影响我们的情绪,改变一个房间的能量。”

When working, inspiration often comes to Lee without much effort. The faint glimmer of an idea is more than enough for her to make a preliminary sketch. A variety of techniques goes into her paper assemblages, but quilling—a traditional paper-art method involving standing rolled sheets of paper upright—remains the most used. This technique makes a variety of shapes possible. “In traditional quilling, rolled paper is made into various decorative shapes,” she explains. “With my method, instead of using the shapes associated with traditional quilling, I treat each strip of paper as its own line. The paper still stands on its edge, but its cut and glued down individually to create the artwork. It’s in a way, kind of like sketching with paper.”


Daphne Lee 说,她从不会主动寻找灵感,这个过程是反过来的:一霎灵光会找上她,然后就开始画草图制作。一般来说,她会使用不同的技术来创作立体的纸质作品,但更擅长使用立边纸条,这种技术也可以广泛地被称为“衍纸艺术”。“在我的工作方法中,没有使用典型的装饰形状,而是将每跟纸条都作为自己的线条来使用。纸条保持在它垂直的立面,但被我单独切割和粘合下来以构建作品。”Daphne 这样解释道整个过程,相比其他手工创作,她坦言自己就是喜欢衍纸作品的模样,“有点像用纸画素描。”

Since starting JUDiTH+ROLFE, Lee has invested even more time studying up on plants and nature. Both she and her husband believe that there’s a universality to the love of plants, and a person’s preference for flowers can reveal plenty about them as an individual. To them, flowers also hold a tremendous influence on a person’s well-being. With these viewpoints in mind, the studio’s past work has largely been focused on floral-themed art. More than eye candy, Lee’s paper flowers carry the power and beauty of their real-life counterparts but are imparted with an expressive elegance that leaves a lasting impression.


自从创办 JUDiTH+ROLFE 后,Daphne Lee 投入了更多时间在植物和自然身上。她和丈夫都认为,人们对植物的喜爱是是普遍共识,一个人对花的喜好可以揭示出很多个人特点。在他们的理解中,大自然应是和人类的身心健康息息相关。这也许正是他们简历纸艺工作室的初衷:纸张铺陈的植物也是有力量的,它们不仅仅会带给人视觉上的享受,更重要的是寻得内心深处对美的渴望与表达,并将植物的能量投射到人们的心境中去。

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Taiwan, Abandoned 我们长大了,房屋却老了

February 24, 2021 2021年2月24日

In the past few decades, a series of government-led initiatives in Taiwan has industrialized the countryside. Factories and warehouses popped up across the island’s rural outskirts, but the industrial boom eventually came to an end. Today, many of these buildings, once a measure of Taiwan’s economic ambitions, now lay dilapidated. But these abandoned structures still hold importance, in that they can offer a glimpse into the region’s history.

The changing times are hardly a surprise to Huang Bowen. Born and raised in the ‘90s, the Taiwanese urbex photographer is a keen-eyed observer of the ebb and flow of time. The objects and places imprinted into his childhood memories—CRT televisions, bustling factories, and the grand theatre that he frequented as a child—are a constant source of inspiration for his explorations today. To him, it’s fascinating to see how nothing is able to escape the ruthless grasp of time. As it seems, people may age with grace, but buildings and objects simply crumble.


对一座城市的了解,应该始于它的历史;而历史是写在淹没城市四处的废墟里面的。在过去二十年里,台湾中央政府致力推动工业发展,不少农田水利之处都建造起工厂和楼房,以适应时代经济的改革。但厂楼平地起,总有起完的一天,那些曾经见证了经济腾飞的砖瓦泥墙,就此也会逐渐见证人烟荒芜。

废墟摄影师黄柏雯对此并不意外。他是土生土长的台湾人,生于 90 年代初的他,见证了台湾经济和人口都飞速发展的时期,对记忆中的家用电视机、父母辈工作的老工厂和儿时常去的大剧院都葆有深沉的情感。这些潜藏在记忆中的角落,后来也成了他城市探险的“景点”——当年的人长大了,房屋却老了。

Huang’s first experience with urban exploration was during his conscription. In 2012, he tagged along with his army buddies when they decided to visit a large abandoned building in northeastern Taiwan. Though the precise details and exact location have long faded, that experience left an impression on him. It inspired him to take up urbexing on his own and learn how to take photos of his adventures.  “It was so interesting that we put in so much work and overcame so many hurdles just to catch a glimpse inside,” he recalls.


最初涉足废墟,黄柏雯说是源于当兵时候的一次巧合,在 2012 年,他与同袍去了一趟台湾东北角的大型废墟探险。时隔多年后种种细节已经淡忘,但那次的经历依然让他印象深刻,“钻过无数的芒草丛,越过重重关卡,只为了一窥内部,非常有趣。”也是在这趟旅程之后,他开启了自己的废墟摄影生涯。

Urbex photography requires a certain degree of luck: the right weather condition at the right time can make a scene that much more stunning. Luck also plays a part in whether or not an urbexer can successfully get inside a building.

To ensure that Lady Luck is on his side, Huang often scouts out a location prior to the actual shoot. He’ll take mental note of times when guards aren’t around and the best spots to enter the complex. If the patrolman seems especially vigilant, then he’ll need to weigh out the risks and decide on whether or not it’s worth it.

It’s not always difficult though. “Sometimes it’s just normal people living next to these abandoned lots,” he says. “If you just give them a heads up as to what you’re doing, oftentimes you can just saunter right in and shoot to your heart’s content.”


废墟摄影最需要的是运气。天时地利的光影能体现废墟的凄美感,避人耳目的时机则能保证整趟探险之旅不被打扰。在拍摄前,黄柏雯通常会先搜集一些“情报”,无守卫或是荒烟漫草型的废墟很好潜入,但如若碰到有警卫把守,就需要先行做下功课,评估一下是否值得一去。但也有例外,“有些废墟旁边有邻居等人,适时地打招呼并说明来意反而也可以很顺利,大喇喇地进入拍摄。”黄柏雯说。

Luck, or rather the lack of luck, also plays a part in what an urban explorer may encounter inside each building. It’s not uncommon to find critters such as rats and cats scurrying out from the shadows, photography of deceased family members hung on the walls, stacks of well-preserved books from years past, or mattresses that have rotted into pieces. Unexpected run-ins are all part of the urbex experience.

But no matter how gritty an abandoned building may seem to the untrained eye, with the right light and composition, these structures—and even the trash within them—can take on a certain grandeur. “In larger industrial complexes, good light can add to the sense of spatiality,” Huang says. “In smaller residential spaces, the items that past inhabitants left behind tell revealing stories. But sometimes, it almost feels like the previous owners simply evaporated, and it leaves a lot to the imagination.”


足够“幸运”的话,在废墟里什么都能碰到,挂在墙上的遗像照、保存完好的书本、被虫蛀到烂成碎片的床褥,还有不时出没的老鼠和猫。

但对黄柏雯来说,废墟中最迷人之处莫过于物品及光影的互动,“大型工厂里的光影能够衬托整体空间感,而住宅型废墟则能够由遗留的物品来推敲这户人的状况。”他说道,“有些废墟令人感到疑惑,物品都遗留在现场,人却像是蒸发般的消失,完全摸不透到底发生了什么事情。”

Structures that have been reclaimed by nature are among some of Huang’s favorites to explore. He says that, in these spaces, where the manmade meets the natural world, the passage of time feels like it takes on a material form—he’s able to picture the workers who built the structure, admire the metal and concrete used in its construction, and even imagine what the previous inhabitants might have been like. But in the present moment, with vines, branches, and ferns overrunning the space, he respects that Mother Nature has taken control, covering the building exterior and interior in ways she sees fit. The building’s past is wiped clean, as is its future.


他尤为钟爱长满植物的废墟,那种“各种蕨类及藤蔓在室内窜生的感觉,是第一眼就会被吸引的”。在满眼绿意的断壁残垣里,时间不再是无形之物——数十年前人们用钢筋水泥打造城市的画面出现了,那些人们曾在楼宇中生活的印记也历历在目,可节同时异,这里的窗里门外的一切又被野生的植株次第吞噬了——房屋的过往已被摧毁,而它们也没有未来。

After every shoot, Huang’s edits aim not only to reproduce everything the way he saw in person but also evoke whiffs of the building’s past. His signature tones—namely the warm highlights and cyan-tinged shadows—add an atmospheric glow to his images, one that uncovers the elegance of these neglected structures. “I hope to lend my perspective to others,” he says. “I want to show them that there’s a lot of beauty and meaning to be found in these derelict places.”


他的废墟摄影色调灰沉,处处透露出一种陈年往事的气息。对此,黄柏雯只是淡淡地说道,“我想借由这些视角,来诉说这废墟背后的美感及蕴藏的故事。”

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Filipino Pride 一张图拼凑出你的文化背景

January 25, 2021 2021年1月25日
Details of Vortex《Vortex》局部细节

Jay Cabalu is no stranger to loneliness.

Growing up in Canada, the Philippines-born artist spent much of his childhood collecting comics and magazines. Popular culture through the lens of printed media served as a much-welcomed escape from the isolation that he experienced as a queer immigrant. As he began making art as an adult, he decided to revisit the print media that offered him temporary comfort, only to discover them with a new perspective. “In the magazines I flipped through, I saw little of myself,” he says. “There were no representations of Asian men that were reflective of my sexuality. As I grew older, I desired to represent my adult self as the person I was looking for in the material I browsed as a child.” Now, cutting these magazines and comics to shreds, he’s creating visually staggering collages that touch on themes of identity, capitalism, and supremacism.


Jay Cabalu 是出身于菲律宾的酷儿艺术家,专注于波普艺术,擅长手工切割拼贴,现居温哥华。对从小在加拿大的一个移民家庭中长大、不太接触电子设备的他来说,在漫画和杂志对他的艺术实践产生了重大影响。菲律宾移民、加拿大国籍、同性恋……自小就在三种身份的夹缝中长大,这让 Jay 倍感孤独。“在翻阅过的杂志中,我几乎看不到自己。” Jay 说,“没有任何能反映我性向的亚洲男人形象。而随着年龄的增长,我愈发渴望在我小时候浏览的资料中就能找到代表我这一群体的成年人。”于是,身份焦虑促使着他不断思考和探索自身认同的问题,最终也催生出了他缤纷多彩的拼贴作品。

The Count of Monte Cristo《The Count of Monte Cristo》
SUPERMODEL (MIDNIGHT BLUE)《SUPERMODEL (MIDNIGHT BLUE)》

In Vancouver, media representation of Filipinos was scarce. Hence, once Cabalu started making art, it felt all the more important for him to provide proper representation. This came in the form of self-portraits. Take, for example, the piece De Los Reyes, titled after his mother’s maiden name. In it, he hoists a massive can of SPAM over his head in triumph. The prominent depiction of the canned meat is, in a less subtle way, also a homage to his Filipino roots. This was a staple food item for nearly all Filipinos during the Second World War and remains wildly popular today. “I wanted to create a loud self-portrait about Filipino identity so I threw in many stereotypical references to my culture that you would only know if you were an insider,” he explains. “While stereotypes can be harmful and perpetuate a notion that people of racial groups are all the same, they can also sometimes provide comfort when you are part of a diaspora that lacks visibility.”


Jay 从小成长起来的地方,菲律宾人是几乎不会出现在电视电影中的人群。亚裔族群的数量既非少到无法计数,也远不至于被完全忽略。

Jay 为自画像《De Los Reyes》的命名时,他沿用了母亲的娘家姓(直译为“国王的”),结合着触目的“SPAM”午餐肉品牌字样,让人直视其背后的历史:二战期间,在菲律宾(当时是美国殖民地),罐头肉在作为一种易于运输的军用粮非常流行。“我想创造一个关于菲律宾人身份的响亮的自画像,所以我抛出了许多关于我的文化的刻板印象。” Jay 说道“虽然说刻板印象可能不太友好,且会使种族群体的人都是一样的观念永久化,但当你是缺乏知名度的少数群体的一部分时,它们有时也可以提供安慰。”Jay 坦然说道。

De Los Reyes《De Los Reyes》
Details of De Los Reyes《De Los Reyes》局部细节
Details of De Los Reyes《De Los Reyes》局部细节

From celebrity portraits and comic-style bubble dialogue to Costco and luxury-brand logos, the hodgepodge of motifs that appear in his collages is designed to shock the senses. Despite his personal artistic goals, Cabalu hopes for audiences to piece these disparate components together and form their own interpretation. “I like hiding Easter eggs in plain sight, inviting viewers to take a closer look and discover the connection between the fragments,” he says. “Working on this type of art forces me to see small, standalone images with a new perspective, to identify how they can come together to form a larger picture.”


细看 Jay 的作品,从明星照片到漫画字体,从大卖场价码标到毛泽东像,从 Jeff Koons 的气球狗到LV、宝格丽的 LOGO……每一张肖像拼贴都包含了很多信息,Jay 希望观众们可以用任何他们中意的方式来自行理解作品。“我很喜欢把彩蛋藏在显而易见的地方,邀请观众仔细观察,并在更大的画面和组成它的碎片之间建立联系。这种类型的艺术创作迫使我把小的、孤立的图像看成另一种东西,以创造更大的画面。”

Details of AUDREY 1 (PJÄTTERYD)《AUDREY 1 (PJÄTTERYD)》
AUDREY 1 (PJÄTTERYD)《AUDREY 1 (PJÄTTERYD)》
Details of AUDREY 1 (PJÄTTERYD)《AUDREY 1 (PJÄTTERYD)》局部细节

Cabalu’s collages are mostly cut and pieced together by hand. It’s time-consuming but worth the effort as he believes that the “materiality” of the medium best represents his life experiences. To him, paper collages have a tactility unrivaled by any other medium. “Especially in person, you can see the fragility of the paper in every ripple, cut, and tear,” he says. “It reveals how the superficial notions that magazines tout—about how human beings should look and what we should own to be considered worthy—as being paper-thin.”

His art is vengeful, in a way, made to cast a critical gaze on the white-male society that he grew up in. “I love the ironic symbolism of physically taking traumatic materials and adorning myself in branding to reverse my exclusion, while also being obvious that it’s just paper— it’s nothing essentially.”


从规划设计到剪裁粘贴,Jay 会花费很多时间在手工的过程中,以期呈现出最佳的层次分布效果。他认为这种“物质属性”更能表达他的生活经验,这也是他用实体纸张拼接作为主要媒介的原因,他喜欢纸质拼贴的原始和触感。“尤其是亲手制作的话,你能从每一个波纹、剪裁和撕裂中看到纸张的脆弱。”Jay 说,“一纸厚度,它却向我们展露杂志所吹捧的肤浅观念——即关于人们理应如何穿着打扮,以及什么才是值得拥有的。”

同时,他也认为目前人们生活在一个消解白人至上主义结构的、严肃对话的时代,而他童年印象中的杂志则一直以来都是个维护白人至上主义的资本主义工具。“我喜欢这种具有讽刺意味的象征意义,亲躬力行地拿着创伤性的材料——杂志,来装饰自己的作品,以扭转我的排斥感。同时也显而易见的是,这不过就只是一页页纸头而已,本质上说,它什么都算不上。”

Details of HEARTTHROB (RED)《HEARTTHROB (RED)》局部细节
HEARTTHROB (RED)《HEARTTHROB (RED)》

Cabalu’s pivot into digital collages happened last year, with his first piece, Fortune Diptych, debuting at an exhibition in Vancouver’s Chinatown. The piece was also his first typography-focused work. To retain the handmade aesthetic of his past works, this piece is still all cut out by hand. The only difference is that these individual cutouts were cobbled together via software after being scanned. There was a new level of creative freedom to be found working digitally that surprised and delighted him—he realized that he was able to alter the cutouts any way he liked, whether it be scaling them up, warping them, or even changing the colors completely. “The process was like discovering a new language to express myself,” he says.


在去年不久前,Jay Cabalu 刚为温哥华唐人街的一个街头展览创作了数字拼贴画《Fortune Diptych》,对他来说,这种体验非常新鲜。它们也是 Jay 的第一件文字拼贴作品,单从字面上看,就已经饱含了他对种族主义的态度。由于想保持自己的手作过程,Jay 也是先把所有的图片实物找来,在拼贴前先行扫描成电子版。他改变了这些图像部件的尺寸,随意剪裁,玩弄色彩、比例,这是他创作中莫大的乐趣之一。Jay 笑称这整个过程就像发现了一种新的语言来表达自己。

Fortune Diptych, Part 1: RACISM IS DISTRACTION, digital collage on vinylFortune Diptych 第一部分: 《RACISM IS DISTRACTION》
Fortune Diptych, Part 2: YELLOW PERIL SUPPORTS BLACK POWERFortune Diptych 第二部分: 《YELLOW PERIL SUPPORTS BLACK POWER》

This was a surprising pivot from the self-portraits that audiences have known Cabalu known for, but he’s since realized that this self-imposed restraint did him no good. While a number of powerful, introspective works resulted from that period, he believes breaking out of this pigeonhole can result in works that can find resonance with individuals from backgrounds different from himself. “My biggest takeaway from the last year is that what I have, and what all artists have, is internal and not dictated by a singular style or process, and it does not run out,” he says. “This is why artists are important and will always be—they can help people discover their capacity for growth.”


Jay 表示在自己刚开始拼贴肖像的时候,有一段时间他笃信他的自画肖像将永远是自己的艺术表达形式,但现在看来这无异于把自己囿于桎梏之中。“在去年,我最大的收获是,我和所有艺术家所拥有的源动力都是内在的,那不是由任何一种风格或过程所决定的。虽然我们有自己特定的价值观和品位,但我们也在不断地与时俱进,艺术也应该反映这一点。”

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China Re-rendered 一百年前的上海名媛有多美?

January 13, 2021 2021年1月13日

How did the socialites of Shanghai dress a century ago? What did the Great Wall look like before a century’s worth of human and natural damage? What would one of the terracotta soldiers of Xi’an look like in real life?

New York-based artist Hu Wengu, better known by the online handle of DGSpitzer, has pondered long and hard on these questions. In his search for answers, he’s using AI and machine-learning software to restore archival footage of China, offering audiences a high-definition glimpse into the country’s past.


一百年前的上海名媛穿什么颜色的衣服?没有被拆掉的老北京城墙是什么样子?兵马俑的真人长相如何?

旅居纽约的独立艺术家胡文谷(DGSpitzer)用 AI 技术,通过对百年前的视频资料进行人脸修复,让我们看到了属于中国的、跨越时代的高清过往。

Hu works full-time as a game developer, and his original impetus for learning AI was to learn how the technology can be incorporated into his game-design workflow. He quickly realized that it could be applied in nearly every area of game development, whether it be training in-game NPCs, generating vast maps, or even composing original music. “It actually has interesting applications in a wide range of fields, even social and human sciences,” Hu says. “So this year I made a series of videos introducing people to how AI can compose music, paint, generate faces, and more.”

As Hu’s understanding of AI deepened, he began exploring how the technology could carry over into other domains. This interest eventually led him to AI-enhanced video. Since then, he’s leveraged the power of AI to create a stunning collection of color-restored videos showcasing China’s past.


作为游戏开发者的 DGSpitzer,最开始主动学习人工智能的动机很现实,是为了尝试一下这些技术“能否为自己的游戏开发节省时间和成本”。但随着对 AI 技术了解的逐渐深入,他发现,人工智能不仅能在训练游戏 NPC、制作游戏贴图、音乐作曲素材上有着各种便捷的使用方式,“在更广阔的领域,甚至社会人文科普上都有着很有意思的应用前景。” DGSpitzer 说,“于是最近这一年我也开始制作了一系列视频,来介绍 AI 作曲、绘画、面部生成的各种小工具的使用方法。”

于是乎,尘封多年的黑白影像就得以有机会还原了本初的鲜艳面貌。而目前,在 DGSpitzer 的个人频道上,他正在制作人工智能相关的科普介绍视频,100 年黑白影片 AI 上色修复,也正是他的其中一个视频作品。

 

无法观看?前往哔哩哔哩

Three of Hu’s AI-enhanced works include footage sourced from the University of South Carolina Moving Image Research Collections, which showcase a Beijing streetside barber, a Shanghai fashion show, and the construction of the Broadway Mansion Hotel. Hu discovered their footage archives by chance, and as he dug through the video library, he became more and more fascinated. “MIRC has recordings of China from the 1930s, which is extraordinary,” he says. “In the old Beijing barber video, there was a bald, charismatic guy who left a profound impression on me. So much so that, after I watched it, I got in touch with the university and asked if I could use their black-and-white videos in my AI project. They responded quickly and were happy to oblige. They even helped look into the exact dates of when the films were shot.”


在 GDSpitzer 修复的老影像中,其中有三期是来自南卡罗莱纳大学影像研究馆藏(University of South Carolina Moving Image Research Collections,以下简称 MIRC),分别是老北京剃头、上海时装秀、百老汇大厦建造纪录。

着手制作的契机来得很偶然,GDSpitzer 是不经意在网络上浏览到相关年代有声的影像,本着好奇的探索欲,他找到了他们的影像资料库网站,“MIRC 所藏的中国有声影像最早可以追溯到1930年代,非常的珍贵,尤其老北京剃头那期视频中光头精神小伙的逗乐劲儿,颇为打动我。”GDSpitzer 说道,“所以在官网找到他们的联系邮箱后,我果断就发去了电邮。邮件里介绍了我之前做过的项目,以及希望他们可以授权我来上色这几部黑白影像,并允许我发布在社交网络上。之后不久收到了回复,那边的工作人员欣然应允,还帮忙扫描了当时的影像卡片确认影片的拍摄日期等信息。”

 

无法观看?前往哔哩哔哩

 

无法观看?前往哔哩哔哩

 

无法观看?前往哔哩哔哩

Hu’s video restorations happen in three stages. The first involves adding in extra frames, then the footage is colorized, and finally, the resolution is upscaled. His arsenal of AI software, which includes DAIN, DeOldify, DeepRemaster, and PaddleGAN, all tackle these tasks independently. “For example, the AI that adds missing frames, it analyzes the first frame and last frame to logically work out what should fit between them to smooth out the framerate,” he explains. “As for the colorizing AI, it almost like a human toddler. It examines large amounts of black-and-white photos, eventually learning that when a plant-shaped object appears, it should be green; when the sky and clouds appear, they should be blue and white; and when a human face appears, it should be flesh colored. The resolution upscaling AI works in a similar way, and by combining the output of these AI software, the footage is restored.”


人工智能上色主要分为三个阶段:补帧、上色、和分辨率提升。在这几个步骤里,每个 AI 都是单独分工的,DGSpitzer 动用了多个海外开源的 AI 项目来实现修复影片,比如 DAINDeOldifyDeepRemaster PaddleGAN 等。“例如补帧AI,就是 AI 通过联系前后帧画面形状和景深的逻辑关系,绘制出一个不存在的中间帧,实现提升画面流畅度的效果。” DGSpitzer 分享道,“而在上色 AI 当中,我个人觉得这个人工智能就像和人类从幼儿开始成长观察世界一样,通过慢慢用双眼收集数据,这个 AI 就是通过学习大量黑白彩色的对比图片,了解到有植物形状特征出现时,画面区域应该是绿色的;天空云朵出现时,应该是蓝天白云;有人脸特征出现时则是肉色……由此实现了黑白影片的上色。提升分辨率的人工智能也是同理。这几个人工智能各司其职,一起完成了影片的修复工作。”

 

无法观看?前往哔哩哔哩

 

无法观看?前往哔哩哔哩

Despite the amount of work and time Hu has invested in the project, he confesses that he’s not exactly a history buff. Instead, he considers himself a sci-fi nerd. “When I watched black-and-white videos in the past, they felt like history lessons,” he shrugs. “I would fast forward it to get through it quicker. They just didn’t catch my interest.”

However, to restore a piece of footage, sped-up viewing was no longer an option. Watching at regular speeds, he was able to discover a ton of details that he overlooked on the initial watch, such as a young man staring at the cameraman from behind a tree, a group of carefree kids playing in the street, or a curious worker studying the camera as he passes by.

These little moments of connection fascinate Hu. “It reminds me of the fact that even though we’re living centuries apart, we’re still under the same sky and walking the same earth,” he says. “It’s like watching a century-old vlog.”


出乎意料的是,DGSpitzer 说自己并不是历史纪录片的死忠粉,日常的观影爱好更偏向于科幻系列。“以前看黑白影片的时候,更多仅仅是把它当作一种历史资料,尤其很多影片还是快放版本,一下就看完了,也没有留下特别深刻的印象。”DGSpitzer 说。但唯独在进行人工智能上色修复时,他必须把影片的时间流速减慢到正常速度,从前不曾注意到的细节一下就浮现出来了。比如,“悄悄躲在树干后面偷望摄像机的小哥”、“天真无邪的小孩”、“充满好奇心手头上依然忙活没有闲着的大人”……而这样的细枝末节,却恰恰是最能抓住人心的时刻,DGSpitzer 直言他的代入感大幅提升了,“让我感受到,这些人原来曾和我一同生活在同一片天空下,同一片土地上,有点像百年前的 Vlog。”

Hu has also begun looking into restoring historical footage from other countries. Recently, he’s working with a German artist to restore a documentary shot in Dresden in 1936, even taking it a step further with the implementation of AR technology that will allow viewers to overlay the AI-enhanced scenes atop locations in real-life to see how the area has changed over the years.

Aside from video-related endeavors, he’s also begun using AI to colorize and upscale old portrait photography from China. Through his use of neural networks, Hu hopes for viewers to experience the simplicity of the past and immerse themselves in the lives of these people long gone—if only for a few short minutes. “It can be a moment of respite when you allow people to look into the past,” he says. “Stepping into the shoes of these people on camera and  looking at history through the lens of the present can perhaps help us gain a greater understanding of culture and what it means to be human.”

History can often seem dull, appearing as unrelatable lines of text tucked inside of course books, but Hu believes it doesn’t have to be. Through his AI-enhanced videos, Hu hopes that people who may have previously dismissed how interesting history can be are able to find renewed excitement for the subject, and in turn, develop a healthy appetite for knowledge in all forms and shapes.


现在,DGSpitzer 还在进一步寻找合适的影片来修复,比如最近会和德国的一位艺术家朋友一起合作,用 AI 上色复原一部德国德累斯顿 1936 年的老纪录片,使用 AR 技术把纪录片中的景点镜头和现实中的景点坐标对接。另一方面,最近他也在进行一些古代历史人物画像的写实修复。让 AI “脑补”出古代人像接近真实的相貌,比如秦朝兵马俑、明太祖朱元璋、宋徽宗赵佶等,下一步,他还会继续进行人物画像还原相关的内容,比如四大美女、竹林七贤等等。

以强大的数据支持为依托,DGSpitzer 说,他想制作出这种“五分钟的彼岸”的意象传达,即让大家能有那么五分钟,通过这些 AI 处理过的复原影像,“可以从纷繁复杂的现代生活中脱离出来,感受一下前人的生活是怎样的,这些古人们的所思所想又是如何,已故鉴今,也许会有不一样的体会,可以说是一种人文关怀的感觉吧。”

在大多数人对历史的理解还停留在课本上白纸黑字的知识时,DGSpitzer 表示,他更希望通过这样有趣且贴近生活的创新形式,去激起网络上的诸多观众对历史文化的兴趣,从而更多地去了解影片背后的故事,从而抛砖引玉、寓教于乐。

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Project Gross-out 自我呕吐计划

January 4, 2021 2021年1月4日

Dismembered body parts piled up in a bathtub, two human torsos conjoined by their intestines, and a rotten decapitated head being held by the victim themself. Perusing the works of Xie Kun can be a spine-chilling experience.

However, Xie insists that her work isn’t all that dark—everything is done in good fun. “Originally, I just wanted to draw for my own amusement, nothing stressful,” she says. “So I turned to one of my old diaries for inspiration, which was filled with random trash talk, over-the-top short fiction, and observations of the neurotic things in my life.”

Under her imagination, these journal entries were transformed into severed appendages and disfigured bodies, all of which she’s stuffed away into little tin trays. Together, these disconcerting yet whimsical scenes form the stop-motion series outu jihua, which can be roughly translated as “Project Gross-out.”


残肢断臂堆满了浴缸、连体人扭曲的大肠相互牵扯,被砍下的头颅发黑腐烂,却啃噬着自己的乳房……谢堃的作品,看久了有点让人头皮发麻。

但谢堃自己是很坦然的,她并不觉得这些意象黑暗,反而有点好玩。“这些作品初衷是我想画一些玩的东西,没那么沉重,所以我就摘了一本以前的日记,里面都是我日常吐槽的话,瞎想的小故事,身边人的神经病事。”带着一丝有趣、一丝诡异,谢堃砍掉了笔下人的头颅、四肢,折叠了躯体、经络,然后把它们放到了一个个铁皮盒子中,给了它们一个脑洞大开的名字,叫《呕吐计划》。

While finishing up her graduation project at the Central Academy of Fine Arts, a strange concept began brewing in Xie’s head: she wanted to draw a scene in which she turned herself inside out. “I envisioned something like grabbing myself by my tongue and pulling my innards outwards, like a razor clam,” she says. “This scene would represent my inner world becoming one with the external world, the dissolving of ego, and plainly speak to the idea that I’m no different from everything else. I’m just a different combination of atoms.”

With this newfound perspective on herself and the external world, she felt a sense of accord with the universe at large. “Nature, the cosmos, faraway galaxies, and everything that we may not fully fathom, we still have a connection with them.”


毕业于央美的她,在当时毕设创作时候突发奇想,本意是想画一个把自我由内而外翻过来的场景图——“就是自己抓着自己舌头,把自己里外翻个个,和洗蛏子一样,这样呢,你以前所有认知的外部的世界就是你自己本身了。”谢堃笑说,“这种感觉让我觉得自我在分解消散,好像我和其他东西并没有什么差别,只是组合序列不同。”

这么内外一翻转,把内里的东西吐出来、外面的东西裹进去,谢堃觉得:“自然、星河、宇宙那些你不了解的所有规律,似乎都可以和自身挂上钩。”在《呕吐计划》中,她把所有能展开联想到的物件和意象都融入进去,谢堃笑说连生活心态都好了很多。

Through her stop-motion GIFs, Xie molds her overactive imagination into something tangible, albeit grisly. After finishing an illustration, she carefully cuts them out into separate pieces, setting them up and making them squirm and slither against the tin tray that’s served as the stage for the entire project.


谢堃喜欢用手工的方式去呈现自己大脑剧场:手绘的“肢解图”,被她以各种出其不意的方式在小铁盒里运动,再用定格动画的形式拍出来做成 GIFs,仿佛在狭隘空间里成就了一场迷你独幕剧。

As a biology and animal lover, wildlife is a consistent source of inspiration for Xie. Take, for example, her recent subject of infatuation, the octopus, with their smooth, slimy skin that shines like latex. “Even when you cut off a leg, it’ll still keep wriggling,” she says. “It’s like every individual molecule of their being has a life of its own.”

These brief infatuations with certain animals often result in bursts of creativity, where traits she associates with them find their way into her work in absurd ways. During her octopus craze, she created a six-armed man in the likeness of her favorite cephalopod. While rooted in absurdity, Xie’s works are a way for her to appreciate the natural world on her own terms.


谢堃喜欢自然,喜欢动物,但不是那种局限于想要拥有的喜欢,她更喜欢有些动物带给她的“刺激”。比如有阵子,谢堃说她疯狂地喜欢章鱼,黏黏光滑的皮肤,紧身衣一样的质感,“即使切断了也在蠕动”,这种原始而饱满的生命力让她讶异万分,“仿佛每个细胞都独立存在似的”。于是乎,超尺寸、变色、隐身、蓝色的血液,预言能力、高光、冷灰色……这一堆词从她的大脑里一次次“呕吐”出来,看似毫无关联,但相互组合在一起,就组成了谢堃作品里荒诞却有趣的元素,比如,八爪鱼一样的异形人。谢堃始终在从这样博大的自然科学里找方向,试图用自己的方式呈现自己理解的地球万物,那既是她创作的乐趣所在,也是意义所向。

Xie says that viewers don’t need to dig deep to understand the meaning behind each piece. Ego death and the meaning of existence are themes that she mostly hones in on. Whether it be different genders, different species, or differently mutilated body parts—are these varied arrangements of molecules and atoms all that different from one another?

Having studied public art in school, Xie initially believed that all art should be made for the public, made to impact audiences or offer new perspective. But in recent years, she’s gained a new understanding of what art can be: it can be more inward-facing, designed with the artist’s own interests in mind. This swimming against the current can result in art that’s more meaningful for the artist, and ultimately, become works that are equally memorable for viewers.


这些呕吐元素大杂烩的“意义”并不难找到,谢堃说,她关注的主题是“自我消散”,即人的界限。在作品里,谢堃不会刻意去强调人的性别或物的意象,男人或女人、人头或兔头、白骨森森或血肉健全的躯体,有何分别呢?从前学公共艺术出身的她,起先觉得艺术家有很多作品是“要为大众画的”、“要提供一种新的视觉感受或者新的观察事物的观点”,但这几年自由艺术家的经历反而让她有所感悟:艺术作品所带给人的冲击,未必一定要体现在服务观众的层面上去解读,很多时候,谢堃觉得如果能完全随着自己的心,做一个不随波逐流的自己,就已经是一个艺术家非常难能可贵的品质了。

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Hatarakimono 人人都是打工人

December 30, 2020 2020年12月30日

Japan, as one of the most successful capitalist societies in Asia, is a country whose prosperity can be attributed to its working class. According to data from Japan’s National Bureau of Statics, craftsmen, miners, factory workers, and construction workers are the majority of the country’s workforce. At 19.31 million people, these sectors account for 30.1% of the country’s total-employed persons over the age of 15. These workers are the foundation of Japan’s economic growth, but they’re often underappreciated.

In the photo series Hatarakimono, creative duo K-narf&Shoko pays respect to the working class of their country with a collection of powerful portraits that document and celebrate these overlooked occupations.


当“打工人”已经成为又一个过气的热搜词时,与其在调侃中消解它,不如在一张张安静客观的照片里赋予它尊严。

日本,作为一个亚洲相对成熟的资本主义国家,也是一个靠“工薪族”发展起来的经济体,据日本国家统计局最新数据显示,  “工匠、采矿、制造和建筑工人和劳工”是最大的群体,有 1931 万人,占日本 15 岁及以上就业人数的 30.1%,而“专业技工”和“服务行业人员”也名列前茅。这一批人为日本经济金字塔构筑了坚实的基础。

来自日法两国的艺术家组合 K-NARF&SHOKO,把镜头对准了日本的这一批领工薪的打工人,服务员、建筑工、交通协管员……像档案中留存影像资料那样,给这些人们拍下了“工装照”——《Hatarakimono》。

Prior to meeting his now-wife Shoko Yamaguchi, Parisian-born artist Frank Le Petit (a.k.a K-narf) was already an established name in the fine art photography world for over 15 years. However, after becoming a couple in 2014 and establishing K-Narf&Shoko Studio in 2016, Le Petit’s work found further depth and sharper focus. “She helped my projects so much,” he says. “She scaled them up to levels that I would not be able to reach on my own because she’s very much into the logistics of things and project management while I’m more into coming up with the initial concepts and artworks. We’re always exchanging ideas about how the project can be executed.”

When Le Petit had the idea to shoot a portrait project in Japan, the two settled on the idea of pointing his lens at the country’s blue-collar and pink-collar workers, people that they admired the most in the country. “It’s these people who make Japan the country what it is,” Le Petit says.


来自法国的 Frank Le Petit(又名 K-Narf)  在遇见 Shoko Yamaguchi 前,已经是一个全职 15 年的摄影艺术家。但 Shoko Yamaguchi 的加入,让原本 K-NARF 的个人摄影变成了更大体量、更为宏观的项目,“Shoko 给我的项目带来了意想不到的影响力。我提出最初的概念,她擅长逻辑分析、项目管理和制作。”于是,在 K-NARF 决定拍摄人物肖像照的时候,他们俩俩商议,最终选择了自己在日常生活中最欣赏的人:日本劳动者——“是他们让日本之所以成为日本”,K-NARF 如是说。他们想记录平凡到极致的人,并为其创造一份特别的视觉档案。

HATARAKIMONO PROJECT
HATARAKIMONO PROJECT

The project wasn’t all smooth sailing though. “Most of the time, the workers were happy to be photographed,” Le Petit says. “But almost all of them asked us to get authorization from their company.”

This added a considerable amount of difficulty to the series. They had to find the right person to speak to, go through the necessary bureaucratic hurdles, and hope they’d be allowed to shoot. The actual shooting had to happen within a tight timeframe as well. Often, they only had five minutes to shoot a worker before they had to return to their post. “We shot in natural light right there on their worksite using a portable photo studio made up of a fabric background and folding chairs,” Le Petit says.


但执行起来,他们发现,原本在日本街头四处可见的劳动者,要拍摄他们却并不容易。

“大多数时候,工人们自己都很乐意被拍摄,但几乎所有的工人都要求我们得到他们公司的授权。”K-NARF 说道,这就让他们的项目变得非常困难。因为在日本,公司规模往往都非常巨大、流程又特别繁琐,所以,他们必须在那些工人所处的单位里找到合适的“牵线人”,让他们同意为一个艺术项目拍摄借用一两个公司的员工。

“而当我们成功获得授权后,就必须迅速组织拍摄工作了。我们自带便携式摄影棚,布艺背景和可折叠凳子,因为我们需要在工人的工作现场、用自然光拍摄。”K-NARF 说,项目中的每一张肖像都来之不易,拍摄前的 5 分钟工人们都在工作,拍摄后 5 分钟又都回到了工作岗位。

The individuals featured in Hatarakimono all appear in triptych form, with two side profiles and a front profile. While the series is primarily intended to document and celebrate these occupations, Le Petit’s full-body framing, which shows each workers’ uniforms in their entirety, also casts a light on the link between profession, public image, and identity.

The photos for a single individual can require upwards of eight hours to process, using a method that Le Petit invented called “tape-o-graphy,” which involves imprinting images onto scotch tape by attaching the adhesive onto fresh prints and ripping them off. The imperfections that result from the technique often add surprising textures and details, which is part of the technique’s charm for Le Petit. “For me, photography is not just about taking photos,” he says. “It’s also about taking the time to process them and finding the right way of showing my images.


Hatarakimono》里的每张人像都是三联照(正面和两侧面),K-NARF 说他们之所以这么做,也是为了记录他们的制服,并去找寻工作所给人带来的身份意义。每人的“三联肖像”,在后期 K-NARF&SHOKO 都需要经过 8 个小时来处理细节。他发明了一种非常单一的手工处理数码摄影的方式,叫做“Tape-o-graphy”:先打印照片,然后涂上胶粘剂,再将其扯下来,观看其痕迹对相片的影响。这样的全手工制作过程,也给最终呈现的作品带来种种意想不到的繁复细节。“这不仅仅是拍摄一系列符合美学定义的相片,更是以找到合适的方式去呈现人物。”K-NARF 说。

虽然没有采访过这些工人,也没有和他们建立起社会关系,但 K-NARF&SHOKO 两个人却被这些日本工人的精神深深打动了,“我们花了两年时间全职拍摄了一百多名工人,他们每个人都努力工作,并热爱自己的工作、也尊重彼此的工作。这是日本文化的一部分,他们有一个特别的词来形容这些工人,这是任何其他语言都无法翻译的。这就是‘Hatarakimono’。” K-NARF 说。

Although the working class has been a vital pillar of Japan’s booming economy, an aging population might spell trouble in future years. The country’s working-age population, classified as individuals between the ages of 15 – 64, has been on a steep decline since 1995, according to the Japan Times. Between 1995 and 2018, it’s dropped from a peak of 87.26 million to 77.45 million, a decline of nearly 10%. By 2030, it’s estimated that this number will drop down to 68.75 million, and by 2060, there may only be 48 million working-age individuals.

Le Petit and Yamaguchi foresee the declining workforce being a major problem for the country, and their idea of exhibiting the full set of images from Hatarakimono in 2042 is planned with that forecast in mind. “By that point, the world will be a much different place,” Le Petit says.


不可否认,虽然“Hatarakimono”撑起了日本工业经济的一片广阔天地,但如今随着日本人口老龄化不断攀升,种种社会劳工问题也日益凸显,据日本时报的报道,在日本主要劳动年龄人口(15 岁- 64 岁)从 1995 年的 8726 万峰值下降到 2018 年的 7745 万,占比下降了将近 10%,创下了历史新低。到 2030 年,这一数字将进一步下降到 6875 万,到 2060 年将可能仅有 4800 万适龄劳动人口。

K-NARF&SHOKO 他们看到了这可能即将发生的剧变,他们二人为此项目也筹备了一个展览,但却是在开启拍摄的25 年之后,也就是在 2042 年,“因为那时候世界会变得大不一样。”K-NARF 说道。

For the 2042 exhibition, Yamaguchi and Le Petit have already begun preparations. “We created an archival crate to preserve the 102 original tape-o-graphic portraits along with full documentation of how we made this project,” Le Petit says. “We’ve also selected the museums and galleries we’d like to showcase the project at and reached out to the relevant directors. We’re still waiting for confirmation, but we’re not in a hurry.”

With the amount of love and work the duo has poured into the project, those who’ve seen the series have showered them with nothing but praise. “We really enjoyed this project, so we’ve worked super hard,” Le Petit smiles. “Some people have told us that we were also hatarakimono.”


为了这个展览,他们已经提前准备好了所有内容,“我们制作了一个档案盒,不仅保存了 102 张原始的磁带画像,还保存了所有的文件,以展示我们如何完成这个项目。我们也为自己选择了 2042 年举办巡回展览的博物馆,并已经给他们的负责人发了通知信。不过来日方长,还大可不必着急。”

K-NARF 笑道,“我们一直在超级努力地完成这个我们非常喜欢的项目……很多人告诉我们,我们也算得上是‘Hatarakimono’呢。”

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Touching the Untouchable 谢欣: 能量释放

December 23, 2020 2020年12月23日

Even in the third trimester of her pregnancy, Chinese choreographer and dancer Xie Xin still couldn’t resist the call of the stage. However, after giving birth, a number of postpartum symptoms required her to take a break. The hiatus ended up being a blessing in disguise—it helped her realize that she wanted to dedicate the rest of her life to the art of dance, and that, with the right mentality, moments of weakness can be transformed into feats of strength. These revelations lent clarity on not only how she approaches dance going forward but shed new insight on her physical limits and future goals.


谢欣说,失去舞蹈的时候,就是让她立志终身扎根舞蹈的时候。

那时她第一次当母亲。怀胎八个月的时候,她还坚持在剧场一线演出,但不曾料到的是,产后的种种恢复和后遗症,让她却不得不停下来调整身体,重视自己和舞蹈的关系。

所幸这种痛苦的结果是甜蜜的。因为她发现,“虚弱也是一种能量”,这让她对身体、对舞蹈、对未来,都有了一种全新的理解。

Xie has held high expectations of herself throughout all 16 years of her career. Having practiced day in and day out, she holds a thorough understanding of the expressive abilities of her body. Knowing when to assert power and when to withhold it to communicate particular feelings have all become second nature to her. This mastery of body has resulted in a rich lexicon of movements that have captivated audiences across the country.


谢欣是个对自己要求很高的人,习舞十六年,她几乎没有一天是停止练习的。长期以往的训练下来,她对自己的身体有十足的把握,怎样蓄力、怎样舒展、怎样呈现,在舞蹈时已不需要思索,而成为一种本能。她力图和自己的身体达到一种相互和解的状态,这样才能够让身体展现出更丰富的东西。

Xie began her career in traditional Chinese dance, a marked departure from the contemporary dance she now focuses on. Contemporary dance, as she sees it, is more than aesthetics—it’s about the ability to convey the complexities of the human condition, whether it be pain, sorrow, or hurt. There’s a depth to the art form that has kept her riveted. But picking up contemporary dance was anything but easy. In terms of technicals, it was already a steep learning curve. And to wield the expressive capabilities of contemporary dance to its full potential, Xie believed she had to deconstruct her preconceptions of dance, relearning everything from the ground up. Every new obstacle pushed her deeper into untraversed creative territories, and with it, brought about new perspective on how movement and the human body could be used to different expressive means. “Every creative bottleneck was a mountainous hurdle,” she recalls. “There was no comfort zone. However, once you pass one horizon, you’re able to see further and harness new energy. All you need is courage, patience, and a love for dance.”


谢欣最早之前学的专业是中国舞,这和当代舞有着相当的差异。现代舞的动作语⾔不仅仅是展现美,更会呈现出痛苦、挣扎、疼痛,它似乎是本更“厚实”的书。在转向的时候,她坦言也曾遇到过困难——先是从技术开始,再到对自我的认知,对世界的认知。这是一次次突破自我的尝试,需要她去挣脱原有的框架,然后再到找到自己着力的身体语言研究方向。“每一次瓶颈就是一座山,没有舒适区,翻过去视野和能量被一次次打开,但需要勇敢、耐心、还有对舞蹈的爱。”

In 2014, Xie established her own dance company. But before reaching this milestone, she’s had to put in her dues. Over the course of her career, she’s performed with different dance groups across China, including the renowned Jin Xin Dance Theatre, which saw potential in her early on. Under the wings of Jin Xin dancers, Xie went from an amateur dancer to an accomplished professional in the span of six years. Looking back on her journey, she feels grateful. “I’m thankful for the memories during those formative years, and how they trained me to be a professional dancer,” she says. “Every setback I endured, every challenge I faced, every person I hugged, and every step I walked were all essential in preparing me for the future.”


2014 年,谢欣成立了自己的舞蹈剧场。而此前,她在国内多个舞蹈剧场都当过舞者,包括金星舞蹈团在内。金星尤为器重当时还算年少的谢欣,整整六年时间,她从一个初登舞台的舞者蜕变成为了一个专业而成熟的演员。回首这种种经历,她是非常感恩的,“感谢那些经历赋予了我最宝贵的青春里珍贵的记忆,也赋予了我作为职业舞者的修养。”如果有重来的机会,谢欣说,她还会走过那些珍贵的地方,“相遇每一次打击,经历每一次挑战,拥抱每一个人,每一个阶段都冥冥之中在为未来准备着什么。”

Since establishing Xiexin Dance Theatre, she’s has been on a creative hot streak. In the past few years, she’s added a number of notable works to her oeuvre, including Plus, From In, Unknown, and Touching. Through these performances, Xie has meditated on notions of truth, humanity, perception, and love. Woven together, these strands of life form a panoramic view of existence as she understands it.

Out of all the shows, Xie says that Touching has been perhaps the most meaningful performance so far. “It was based on my perception of the buoyancy and weight of life in the then and there,” she says.


独立之后,谢欣没有丝毫的松懈,她在舞台上留下了一部又一部作品,比如《+》、《一撇一捺》、《未·知》、《触不可及》。她非常明晰自己编排和创作的方向:在于“真实”,在于“人”,在于“感悟”,在于“爱”。而这样的理念,也正赋予了她的舞蹈一种强大的生命力。

在采访的当下,谢欣说,《触不可及》是她留给自己这个时间点上的一支独舞,“是此时此刻对生命的轻与重的感知。”

 

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Xie believes in living in the present moment, but to be fully in this moment, she understands that reconciling with the past is important. She treats every show and every breath as her last, believing that it’s essential in living life to the fullest. This awareness keeps her grounded and has shaped her personality to take on many parallels with her style of dance: straightforward, passionate, and unguarded.


她是一个活在当下的人,但为了这一刻的“活着”,会厚积薄发许久。她几乎把每一场舞都当作是最后一场,把每一次呼吸都当作最后一次,甚至把生活的每一段状态都定义为生命唯一且最重要的时刻——这样的觉悟,让她的人,和她的舞一样,好像一个猛子扎进生活的大潭里,简单明了、全情投入、毫无防备,然后痛快淋漓地释放。

Despite show postponements and cancellations as a result of the pandemic, Xie and her dance trope remain optimistic about the future. At the height of the lockdowns, they were given ample time to unwind and continue honing their craft. Much like her own hiatus after becoming a mother years back, Xie believed this temporary lull was something that can ultimately be beneficial for the group, one that can make them more resilient.

To her, a mature dancer should carry certain traits: they must be cultured, physically fit, resilient, and clearheaded. Dancers with these qualities are the ones who she believes will find the most success. An eye for detail can make choreographed movements beautiful, but contemporary dancers who are attuned with their inner selves is what can truly elevate a regular performance into a work of art.


2020 年,在疫情带来的影响下,谢欣和她的舞蹈团却一直是能量满满,一边养精蓄锐,一边创作着。虽然很多演出都延期和取消,但也给了她们足够的时间去反刍和学习,这就好像她产后调理时一样,先直面困难,再调整自己,谢欣觉得这未尝不是“坏事变好事,让心态变强壮”。

谢欣觉得,一个成熟的舞者无分派别,只要是“人有修养、身体真实、对职业踏实有韧性,对内心简单而通透”的,她喜欢这样“内外兼修”的舞者,那种敏锐的感知力让舞蹈变美,而内在的澄澈则会给舞蹈赋能,那是舞蹈的精髓。

With loosening lockdown restrictions in the past few months, Xie has found herself with a packed schedule. She’s performed across the country and even starred on the Chinese reality TV show Dance Smash. With dance now being championed by Chinese networks, dance in all forms—including contemporary dance—has been in the spotlight. “I do think this is a good moment for dance,” Xie says. “Movement is the most effective form of communication.”

Despite the growing interest in contemporary dance, Xie says that dance theatres in the country shouldn’t be complacent. The art must strive to reach new creative plateaus, to touch peoples’ hearts, and deliver unforgettable shows. Dance has given Xie much courage and joy over the years, and now, each time she steps on stage, she’s eager to pass it on to audiences.


城与城的隔离放宽后,谢欣疯狂地辗转在中国各大城市排演舞蹈,甚至也上了火爆的综艺《舞蹈风暴》。曾经小众的当代舞,似乎在一夜之间为全民皆知,成了炙手可热的一种文化标签,未来的市场看似前途无量。谢欣是乐观的行动派:“我相信这是一个好的时机,行动是最有效的声音。”

一路走来,谢欣知道即使观众市场增长,当代独立舞团的未来也并不能谓之容易。但她只是淡淡说,希望给观众带去“留画的舞台,内心的触动”,足矣。舞蹈带给她的恣意和果勇,舞台自会一一传递给每一个人。

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Contributor: Chen Yuan
Photographer: David Yen


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Nothing Less, Nothing More 简单就有极致的美

November 30, 2020 2020年11月30日

We were first introduced to the work of Korean illustrator and motion designer Minji Moon via her series, 30 Under 30, which featured portraits of different 30-year-old professionals across China. Whether it be doctors, veterinarians, or engineers, vocations of all varieties were equally celebrated in the project, portrayed as androgynous characters in vivid colors and eye-catching patterns. Despite Moon’s bold palettes, there’s an elegant simplicity to her work that feels remarkably original.


初次关注韩国插画和动态图形设计师 Minji Moon,是源于她的系列作品《三十而立》。歌手、医生、猫奴、程序员……她描绘了人们各种各样的身份角色,却用大胆跳跃的颜色消解了传统意义上的人种、性别和肤色。用极简的手法描绘肖像人物,是 Minji 作品中最大的特征。

The creative cornerstone of Moon’s art revolves around a singular question: “What can I remove to simplify the work?” With this philosophy, her artworks are concise. Designed to convey a certain mood or message with the bare minimum, every element that remains in frame serves a purpose. Whether it be a stethoscope, a pair of earrings, or a line of code flashing on a computer screen—her deliberate placements look to deliver the necessary information in a succinct yet playful way.


Minji 独特的风格,来自于她时常扪心自问的问题:“还有没有什么东西要删掉?还能不能更简单?”因而在她的插画里不存在繁复的细节,但每一个代表性的物件都缺一不可,比如医护人员脖子上的听诊器、绕在天鹅脖子上的保暖围巾。Minji 的叙述语言简洁明了,试图邀请观看者以最简单快速的方式直接进入到她画中世界。

Moon’s use of colors is another distinctive aspect of her work. Her color pairings are often unexpected, but she makes them work. Color experiments are nothing new to her though; they can be traced back to her childhood, where she often spent entire afternoons hunched over a coloring book with a set of crayons. Playing around with how colors can be mixed and matched never failed to bring a smile to her face. This early love of color is what led Moon into the art world where she’s now brought to life a range of characters painted in greens, magentas, cyans, and more. “It gives them a fresh look that’s different from real life,” Moon explains of her approach. “The sense of unfamiliarity also allows audiences the freedom to interpret who the person is for themselves.”


而另一个在她作品中异常重要的元素:色彩,则是 Minji 有意用实验性的方式来打破一般物体应该有的颜色的刻板印象。

对从小就喜欢和颜色玩游戏的 Minji 来说,端看不同颜色在不同组合下展现出参差而缤纷的层次,是件异常快乐的事情。而这种激情随之引导着她步入插画艺术这一领域,并一路走来成为了插画师。

在她的好几件作品中,绿色、紫色、蓝色,都可以作为她笔下人物的皮肤颜色。“它给人带来了我们在现实生活中不常见的新鲜感,也带来了多样性,让观众可以自由地诠释这个人物是谁。”她如是说。

With her affinity for peculiar colors and shapes, it’s clear that realism isn’t a top priority for Moon. But at the same time, she has no interest in making art that can’t be easily understood. “If you’re about to paint an apple, painting it with full fidelity isn’t difficult if you’re practicing enough,” she says. “But to me, turning the apple into something simpler by removing unnecessary elements while retaining its essence as an apple is much more creatively challenging. In this regard, I believe simplicity is the ultimate form of beauty.”


简化的形状加之鲜艳的色彩,是 Minji 深受吸引且努力追寻的风格。但她并不想让画面简化得太抽象,“比方说,有一个苹果,你要画它。把苹果画得和你眼睛看到的一样准确,只要你练习得足够多,就很容易实现。但要把苹果画得简单,就需要创造性地去掉你所看到的不必要的东西,但又要保持苹果的概念。”Minji 表示,“我有这样的信念,简单就有极致的美。”

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Contributor: Chen Yuan


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