「生活的片段」- 鑼鼓“Facets of Life” - Gongs and Drums
Artist Statement
Humanity's place in the infinite universe is utterly insignificant. The "space" traversed by humanity is also of little consequence. Nevertheless, humanity's consciousness is "alive" and feels more intimate than "space" and "time". Yet in real life, "space" and "time" poses limitations to the meaning of "living". "To live" is therefore a process undertaken within such contradictions. In these days of change and consumerism, "the meaning of life" seems less important than "the purpose of life". Life nowadays is probably merely a quest after "purpose". From an individual's point of view, "the purpose of life" is nothing more than the need for clothing, food, shelter, and transportation. The collective community environment generates burdens to an individual's pursuit of his "purpose of life". On the other hand, an individual's "meaning of life" benefits from the enlarged circle provided by a community.
The American cultural critic Susan Sontag describes a photograph as a mirror, reflecting each individual's morality and conscience. But the British Marxist critic John Berger does not consider photographs themselves to be capable of preserving meaning like memories. They can only provide the surface of credibility and solemnity.As a visual media, photography's advantage lies in its "documentary" characteristic. Searching for objective visual elements using a "documentary" perspective, and then presenting these elements in a subjective manner in the photographs -- this is the creative idea underlining the photographs in this exhibition.
“Facets of Life” is the theme of these series of photographs. The series record ordinary individuals, together, collectively, doing the same thing. They may not share any common understanding among themselves or may not even know each other. So what drives them to do the same activity at the same time? Is it a shared "purpose of life" or a shared "meaning of life"? Perhaps the answer can be found in the reflection in the photographs' "mirror", or perhaps in their "external" credibility and solemnity.
The American cultural critic Susan Sontag describes a photograph as a mirror, reflecting each individual's morality and conscience. But the British Marxist critic John Berger does not consider photographs themselves to be capable of preserving meaning like memories. They can only provide the surface of credibility and solemnity.As a visual media, photography's advantage lies in its "documentary" characteristic. Searching for objective visual elements using a "documentary" perspective, and then presenting these elements in a subjective manner in the photographs -- this is the creative idea underlining the photographs in this exhibition.
“Facets of Life” is the theme of these series of photographs. The series record ordinary individuals, together, collectively, doing the same thing. They may not share any common understanding among themselves or may not even know each other. So what drives them to do the same activity at the same time? Is it a shared "purpose of life" or a shared "meaning of life"? Perhaps the answer can be found in the reflection in the photographs' "mirror", or perhaps in their "external" credibility and solemnity.
