At the other side of the screen during the four-week Residency in the CLOUD, we joined countless Zoom meetings smilingly with the 2D versions of ourselves despite the unknown internet stability. We gradually went from total strangers to seemingly intimate cloud lovers who remained social distances.
Before the residency began, Charmaine Poh and Amin Farid had decided to continue developing their previous topics. Our working mode went from expectedly two creators with one facilitator to one to one conversations. As a facilitator, this was my first time to assist artists who had completely different professions and academic backgrounds from mine. To be honest, I was a little bit nervous and uneasy at first. The propositions, mediums and methods Charmaine and Amin's aimed to work on were clear before the residency started. The dialogue unfolded naturally in a structured manner. At first glance, their practices and mediums seem unrelated, but the fact that they both used autobiographical confrontation. It helped us open up the conversation in a flesh-and-blood way, straight to the point of their personal histories. In these frank conversations, I immediately found some common language, keywords between my past artistic works and theirs .
When the pandemic drastically suppressed everyone's reality, no matter personal or artistic life, it also reshaped the way we work. Art in residency in my previous experiences, most of the time it brought me out of my comfort zone, to work somewhere I am not that familiar with. Sometimes it could feel like working as an office lady, on and off your duty in the same building or studio. For some settings, it can be a fixed period of stay and living in one location. Under such a creative state, whether it is the country, the city, or just the differences of the towns, all the factors after the movement inevitably affect and stimulate the perception and the way to express oneself. When our bodies and creativity are confined to the places we are most familiar with because of lockdown/quarantine, what does this “move or non-move“ affect us?
Confined body in one place - to move or not to move Charmaine focuses on the practice of Cyberfeminism. In Charmaine's artistic practice, usages of the found footage from her teen hood and Artificial Intelligence to simulate a virtual identity/virtual body. Within the created safe cyberspace, this avatar has the mission with the personal experiences as background, by confronting personal history again, she attempts to rewrite the history and bring up the issues on the table such as internet harassment, cyber bullying and patriarchal gaze…etc.
Using black-and-white dance film from the 1950s-1960s as modules, Amin mimics and replicates the ideal female body gestures and dance movements to deconstruct and question the differences in gender performance within the constraints of traditional culture. Originally, Amin's goal for this residency was to focus more on physical practices and exploring ideas. Due to the epidemic, he adjusted his approach to find the possibilities of using the home space and video and video editing tools to re-examine the differences in gender performance from a third perspective, in addition to physical techniques, and to further point out the stereotypical relationship between gender and domestic space.
In addition to the group conversations, Yi-Kai and Ding-Yun also suggested at first that if we want to expand the conversations, we could invite facilitators from other groups to join the conversations. In the third week, we invited Henry to the meeting of Charmaine and me. This one-hour long meeting was delightful, the quick connections and concise questions Henry and Charmaine have made, that made me, as an observer, learned a great deal about.
Untouchable sorrow - where are our bodies?
During the residency, I was struggling with the lack of “body communication” which I had relied on for many years. Of course, the fluency of co-working language had certain effects. But during the process of building mutual understanding, it has always been effective for me to have this mutual experience of being able to feel the distance and the relationship between two bodies in one space whether we touch each other or not. I think we all clearly know that it’s not just a personal challenge nor short period reality. I miss the tensions, the sparks and the waves of emotions across in the studio. But at the time when we’re forced to keep social distances, how can we convey or translate our thoughts and ideas by using other media or tool in this inevitable future? I’m grateful for the Residency in the CLOUD has happend at this moment, the conversations and arts practices by Charmaine and Amin were very much inspiring.
My observation and question
It was very interesting to have a close look at how artists in different geographical locations work and systematically organize their lives and creations because of this residency. With only four or five online meetings in four weeks residency, is definitely not enough to offer a comprehensive observation or insight. But from the first layer of observation, it seems that the independence, self-discipline, and focus on their respective creative directions and themes of the two artists are qualities that I have seen less often or are still maturing among the creators of our generation in Taiwan, including myself.
Every artist has different motivations resulting from the varied growing backgrounds, cultures, religions and environments. The process of an artistic creation can be abstract , beautiful and imaginary or somewhat a healing process as a ritual or a therapy. But if we limit ourselves to personal sentimental events and feelings or to satisfying the recognition of fame from society ,then what is the meaning of making art?
The word community appeared many times during the discussions between us. Community is regarded as a connection, support, positive trigger and even a motivation for personal endeavor. In Singapore or Malaysia, perhaps due to the censorship and restriction of culture, religion and government organization, artists are more focused and rigorous in handling and selecting their artistic languages and methods. Every place has its own pros and cons. Still, I ask myself, as a Taiwanese artist, how we can consciously, fully take advantage and use our resources in this free and democratic environment; how can we boldly develop our artistic approach but carefully deepen the practice? At the same time, applying approaches to artistic communities, to stimulate further discussion and reflections. Moreover, can we break out of our echo chamber and effectively convey and promote aesthetic education to the public, simultaneously cultivate public aesthetic and active thinking in our daily life? Can the public finally regard arts as a profession, an industry and a career?
Wan-Lun
June, 2021
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為期四周的雲端線上駐村，我們隔著螢幕，帶著2D版本的我們，即使充滿掙扎於網路的穩定度，仍微笑進入數不清的Zoom會議室連結，從全然的陌生人，開展成若有似無的親密關係卻保持著絕對社交距離的雲端情人。
在駐村開始前，Charmaine Poh以及Amin Farid就決定了各自延續個人前期的創作主題發展，於是我們的工作模式，從原本預期的二對一的創作與協作關係，轉變為一對一為主的對話視窗。
第一次協作自身專業領域以外的藝術家，並且都是擁有學院派背景及訓練，老實說，我在一開始有些緊張與生澀。Charmaine與Amin的創作命題與想嘗試的新媒介在駐村開始前就有相當清楚的方向，對話自然而然非常有架構的各自展開。兩人的創作主題與媒介乍看毫無關聯，但因為兩人皆使用了自傳體式對證的手法，在推展工作的對話時，扒開皮膚以及血肉的討論個人部分簡史成為第一步驟時，這樣直接的交流，讓我相當快的在兩人之間，以及自己過往的創作路徑中，找到一些共同語彙。
疫情強勢打壓著大家的現實生活時，創作的型態也被迫改變。
駐村，在自己的經驗裡，都是到一個自己熟悉以外的環境去創作；有時候彷如上班族一般在同一個建築物裡上班排練，有時候是一段時期定點的居留與生活。在這樣創作情境下，因為身體的移動，不管是國家、城市、亦或只是鄉鎮之差，所有因移動過後的因素都無可避免的影響了甚至是刺激創作個體的感知與表達。而因為封城(lockdown)/隔離(quarantine)使得我們的身體與創作被侷限在我們所最熟悉的地方時，這樣的「變與動」，影響了我們什麼？
身體侷限於一地之後的 動與不動＿
Charmaine專注於網絡女權主義 (Cyberfeminism) 的練習，在Charmaine的創作實踐中，她使用自己童年時期童星的電視錄像帶以及個人經歷出發，利用A.I. (Artificial Intelligence)系統模擬建構一個虛擬的身份/身體，所有的行動都在這個安全的虛擬網絡空間裡，藉由這個虛擬化身，她試圖重寫歷史，探討網路騷擾、霸凌與父權凝視等議題。
Amin延續前期講座式展演的創作主題 “POK!” 從馬來傳統舞蹈的身體技法出發，使用1950s-1960s的黑白舞蹈影帶作為模組，從模仿與複製其理想的女性身體儀態與舞蹈動作，來解構並提問傳統文化限制下的性別展演差異。本來Amin在此駐村的目標設定於專注在更多的身體實踐與發想，後來因為疫情的影響，他彈性的調整了創作方式，轉而利用居家空間以及錄像與影像編輯工具，從第三視角來重新審視除了身體技法上的性別展演差異，更進一步的點出了性別與空間的刻板關係投射。
除了組內的對話，高翊愷與黃鼎云也在一開始提供出了如果我們想要擴展對話的可能性時，我們可以邀請其他組的協作者加入對話。 於是第三週，我們邀請Henry Tan加入Charmaine與我的會議。一小時內的對話色調相當輕盈之餘，Henry與Charmaine快速的產生連結以及簡潔扼要的問答，讓我也有機會以一個觀察者的角度來聆聽，學習到了非常的多。
無法碰觸之傷感＿我們的身體在哪裡？
在駐村期間讓我感到掙扎的一件事：長年以來仰賴的「肢體語言」的缺失。共同工作語言的流利度當然有一定程度的影響，但在達成互相理解的過程中，不管碰觸與否，兩個身體在一個空間內的距離與關係，對我來說是一個相當有直接效益的的體感共同理解經驗。我想我們都清楚知道，這樣的情形不會只是一個短期的個人挑戰。我仍舊思念真實的觸碰與排練場中各種情緒緊張的撞擊與摩擦，但在這個被迫保持社交距離的時代，我們如何能夠轉譯我們的思考與溫度，以另一種媒介或工具去傳播？感謝這次的雲端駐村以及與Charmaine、Amin的對話與他們的藝術實踐，帶給了我個人非常多的思考與刺激。
我的觀察與提問＿
非常有趣的因為這次的駐村，而有機會近距離的觀看在不同地理位置上的藝術家們是如何工作以及系統性的組織他們的生活與創作。我想在短短的四週內只有四、五次的線上會面實在不足以提出一個全面的觀察或是見解，但單就淺層的觀察之下，兩位藝術家的獨立性、自律性與在各自創作方向以及主題上的專注度，似乎是我在台灣我們這個世代的創作者中，包括我自己，較少見或者說仍待成熟的特質。
因為不同的成長背景、文化、宗教、環境的刺激與培育，每個獨立藝術家皆有著不同的動機而創作。藝術創作可以是一個抽象、唯美想像完成的過程，或是一種療癒的神秘儀式或形式，但若只停留局限於個人抒情又或者，成為一種滿足於社會結構認可的地位與名聲時，藝術創作之本質意義何在？
社群(Comuninity) 一詞多次出現在我與兩位藝術家的討論中，社群作為一種連結、支持、正向刺激甚至是個人奮鬥之動機。在新加坡或是馬來西亞，或許因為文化、宗教與政府機構的審查制約與限制，藝術家反而更集中注意力嚴謹的處理並揀選個人的創作言語與手法。每一地都有各自的優與缺，仍舊，我自問，同樣都是島國，當我們驕傲我們臺灣人可以擁有自由民主意識與行動時，我們多有意識地去正視並擁抱我們的優勢與資源，同時在藝術社群結構裡，微觀且勇敢的建造個人藝術練習與深度？同時宏觀的關照、建構與刺激相同主題之社群思考以及拓展討論深度的可能性？進而傳達並促進同溫層以外，大眾美學教育的實質功效？讓一般大眾終於可以將藝術視為一門專業與事業的同時，一步步的培養出，在日常生活中對於美的品嚐與思考的能力？
宛倫
六月，二零二一年
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