■ ■ 策展人前言 ■ ■
Curator’s Foreword
本次展覽的主題就從愉快的週末開始。雙休日制度在上個世紀初由福特汽車公司定型，是一個有關生產效率最大化及資本良性循環的成功社會實驗。與流水線上無休止的工作相比，雙休日的出現創造出一種臨時性的終結，給予生活在流水線上的人們以喘息、休息及消費的機會。
而「睡瞌睡」則簡單至極。對許多重慶人來說，冬天穿上舒服的棉拖鞋，蓋上絨絨的被子倒頭就睡。如果有點太陽曬得暖烘烘的就更好不過了，不需要什麼理由。
藝術家Owen的作品過往展現出相對嚴謹的邏輯脈絡，從對現象的收集與整理，到對議題的歸納與解構，最終通過有些「暗黑笑話」的方式重組為作品，充滿了當代藝術的批判精神。而幾年後再次回到中國的他似乎開啟了另一種探索。一床棉被、一雙棉拖鞋、幾個廣場舞的大喇叭和流淌的長江水就足以讓他駐足深思。這種點滴之間的趣味很難言說，而藝術家似乎正處在這樣一種哲學價值、創作方法和生命意義的流變之中。像是一位旅者，若有所思，卻無以言表。
淅淅瀝瀝的小雨落下，「睡瞌睡」本無需多言，若恰好看到了，會心一笑即可。
The theme of this exhibition begins with the delightful weekend. The weekend system, which was established in the early 20th century at Ford Motor Company, is a successful experiment maximizing the of production efficiency and optimizing the flow of capital. Compared to the endless work on the assembly line, the invention of the weekend system creates a temporary end, providing those living on the assembly line with the opportunity to catch their breath, sleep, and consume.
“Sleep Well” on the other hand is simple. For many people in Chongqing, wearing comfortable slippers in winter and covering oneself with a fluffy blanket to take a nap is all it takes. If there’s a bit of warm sunshine, that’s even better; no reason is needed.
Artist Owen’s previous works have a relatively rigorous logical thread, from the collection and organization of phenomena, to the summarization and deconstruction of issues, and finally, reassembling them through a somewhat “dark humor” approach into works that are imbedded with the critical spirit of contemporary art. However, upon returning to China after several years, he seems to start a different journey. A fluffy blanket, a pair of cotton slippers, a few square dance loudspeakers, and the flowing Yangtze River are enough for artist to pause and wonder. This kind of subtle joy is hard to articulate, and the artist seems to be in a state of fluctuation with his philosophical values, creative methods, and the meaning of life. Like a traveler saw something and lost in thought, yet unable to express it.
As the drizzling rain falls, “Sleep Well” needs no words; if one happens to see it, maybe a smile will do.
當我第一次來到重慶時，我十分困惑自己究竟要創作什麼。我對長江、互聯網以及棉拖鞋等很多事物都有著濃厚的興趣，但我不知道怎麼將它們聯繫在一起。在這裏我遇到了許多有趣的人，也進行了許多討論。這些討論主要是關於想成為什麼樣的人，或是如何找到自己的道路等問題帶來的壓力，這些對話折射了我對未來的感受。
而這就是讓我有興趣探索睡眠的原因。我想以一種趣味性的方式探索如何在一個快速發展和不斷擴張的世界中去休息，並展現一切都從你指尖流逝的感覺。互聯網及其無限的景觀在這一過程中扮演了重要的角色，所以我很自然地使用互聯網素材作為材料。
我收集了論壇上的圖像，社交媒體上的評論，以及微信自帶的表情符號和表情包。我希望通過將這些電子素材轉變為真實存在的事物，並以此來傳達現實和數字世界正在合二為一成為單一信息流的感受。
基於我對長江的瞭解，它一直作為人們聚集和共處的場所，同時也作為中國歷史上的貿易樞紐，發揮著巨大的社會作用。長江的這兩種特性與互聯網在當今世界中扮演的角色非常相似。為了紀念這種聯繫，我使用從長江中採集的音頻製作了展覽中的音軌，經過編輯後，這些音軌可以達到一種類似漂浮在空間中的體驗。
在作品被展現的時候，我希望傳遞給觀眾一種感覺，一種在我自己內心的，也是我在其他人身上看見過的感覺。如果不通過一個主題，這將很難傳達，而現在這個主題似乎是最貼切的。
時至今日我仍然對於自己的藝術創作感到困惑，但我很高興我能在這裏度過一段時光，去探索和瞭解重慶，並結識新朋友。
I think I was confused by what I wanted to make art about when I first came to Chongqing. I knew what I was interested by, the Yangtze River, the internet, and slippers, but I didn’t know how they fit together. I have met a lot of interesting people while I have been here and had a lot of conversations, discussing the pressures of discovering who you want to be, and how to find it, these conversations reflecting my own feelings about the future.
This is what led to my interest in exploring sleep in the exhibition. I wanted to play with the thought of how to rest in a world that is rapidly and exponentially expanding, and the feeling that everything is slipping through your fingers. The internet and it’s infinite landscape play a big role in this feeling, so it felt only natural to use it as a material in the exhibition.
Gathering images from forums, comments from social media, emojis, and stickers from WeChat, I took these digital materials and modified them into physical objects, wanting to convey a sense that the physical and digital worlds are coalescing into a singular stream of information.
From what I know about the Yangtze River, it has always been a place for people to gather and share time together, while also playing an large sociopolitical role, existing as a hub for trade throughout China’s history, these two things being very similar to the role that the internet plays now. To honor this connection, I created the soundtrack for the exhibition using audio recordings taken from the Yangtze, edited to to float beneath the entire space.
When I exhibit my art, I only really want it to transmit a feeling to the audience, a feeling that I have inside of myself and have seen in others. This is hard to do without choosing a subject, so this is the subject I felt would most effectively communicate this feeling.
I think I am still confused about what I want to make art about, but I am happy I was able to spend time here, to explore and learn about Chongqing, and meet new friends.
I hope you find what you were looking for.
Owen Redmond（AU）Solo Resident Exhibition
Owen Redmond（澳大利亞）個人駐留作品展
展覽開幕 Opening：2024.11.17 19:00
2024.11.17-12.1 14:00-18:00
（每週五至週日｜Every Fri. to Sun.）
Exhibition Hall A, Dimensions Art Center, Chongqing, China
藝術總監｜Art Director：曾途 Zeng Tu
展覽策劃｜Curator：牛琦瑋 Niu Qiwei
展覽策劃助理｜Curator：Assistent Curator：張芷霏 Zhang Zhifei
執行統籌｜Coordination：劉暢 Liu Chang
展覽協助｜Assistance：劉春利 Liu Chunli 胡克 Ben
海報設計｜Poster Design：歐文·雷德蒙德 Owen Redmond
駐留藝術家簡歷︱Resume of Artist：
歐文·雷德蒙德是一位多學科藝術家。他主要在動態影像、聲音和文本的交匯點上進行創作，並將這些媒介根據最適合的效果以不同的組合形式呈現，通常展現在裝置或表演環境中。
Owen Redmond is a multi-disciplinary artist. Mainly working within the junction of moving image, sound and text, these mediums manifesting themselves in various combinations depending on the outcome best suited, often times existing in an installation or performance environment.
他花了很多時間在互聯網上，這是他工作的概念框架的起點。每當他想到互聯網時，通常會感到一種對世界的存在主義情感。屏幕如何越來越多地作為個體與世界之間的媒介，並且導致人們生活在越來越孤立的狀態中，這一點讓他著迷。
He spends a lot of time on the internet, a place where the conceptual framing for his work begins. When he think about the internet, he is generally left with existential feelings towards the world. How screens increasingly acts as an intermediary between individuals and the world, and leads to people living in more and more atomised states, fascinates him.
你可能可以想像得到，他認為世界上已經有太多的媒體了。考慮到這一點，他經常使用再利用的媒體作為創作的素材來源，在內部進行採樣和拼貼。這使他能夠更直接地審視自己想要觀察的主題，這是一種參與度較高的循環過程，或者螺旋上升的過程。
As you could probably imagine, he thinks there is already too much media in the world. Considering this, he often uses reappropriated media as the source material to create, sampling and collaging it within. This allows for a more direct critical lens towards the subjects he would like to view, a somewhat cyclic process of engagement, or a spiral.
藝術家以往作品︱Previous works of the artist：
Single channel video, audio, found objects
一個孤獨的身影坐在樓梯下，看著自己升向天空。伴隨著阿巴樂隊的《舞蹈皇后》的前奏，原曲的純真與希望被放慢成了一首關於存在主義的挽歌。這個作品明顯荒誕而幽默，通過生命的終極終點——死亡，來探索生活中的幽默與荒誕。
A solitary figure sits under the stairs, watching his own ascension into the sky. Soundtracked by the intro to Abba’s Dancing Queen, the innocence and hope of the original song slowed to an existential ambient dirge. Explicitly absurd and humorous, this piece explores the humour and absurdity of life through its ultimate finality, death.
Infinite Harmonic Radiance
Single channel video, three channel audio, cotton, steel, found objects
一個孤獨的身影躺在一張發光的床上，觀看著枕頭裏的一個屏幕。屏幕上有一個由YouTube上的無盡演算法構建的門戶。這個演算法從「陷入深度睡眠 • 治癒壓力、焦慮和抑鬱狀態 • 身心恢復」開始，包含了長達8小時的視頻，這些視頻有著新時代動畫美學化的視頻和環境音軌。
A solitary figure lays in a glowing bed, watching a screen within a pillow. The screen has a portal within in, constructed from an endless algorithm found of Youtube. Beginning with ‘FALL INTO DEEP SLEEP • Healing of Stress, Anxiety and Depressive States • Body and Mind Restoration’, this algorithm consists of videos up to 8 hours long, with new age animated aestheticised videos and ambient soundtracks.
床下隱藏著3個揚聲器，它們播放著由這些YouTube視頻音樂構建的分佈式音樂作品。在音頻的每個部分中，有三個獨立的獨白，同時向觀眾朗讀三種不同的表現。這些獨白再次從YouTube演算法的評論部分構建而來，來自那些希望讀者擁有希望、力量和對生活更好理解的人們。
Hidden beneath the bed are 3 speakers which play a distributed music piece, also constructed from the music with these Youtube videos. Within each section of the audio is three individual monologues, reading three manifestations to the audience over the top of each other. These were again constructed from the comments section within the Youtube algorithm, from people wishing the reader hope, strength and a better understanding of life.
Some of my favourite music videos
我喜歡音樂視頻。這種形式是次要的，它唯一的功能是反映其所圍繞的音樂的情感，允許它成為一種實驗性和創造性的視覺媒體形式。這場表演包括我向觀眾播放我最喜歡的一些音樂視頻，描述我與每一部的關係以及我為什麼喜歡它們。在表演中，我描述了幽默、悲傷、社會批評和生活，與音樂視頻合作講述我計劃講述的故事。
I love music videos. The form is secondary, and its only function is to reflect the sentiment of the music it is built around, allowing it to be an experimental and creative form of visual media. This performance consisted of me playing a selection of my favourite music videos to the audience, describing my relationship to each and what I love about them. I described humour, sadness, social critique and life in the performance, collaborating with the music videos to tell the story I had planned to tell.
郵箱 : info@chongqingdac.org
Website : chongqingdac.org
Email : info@chongqingdac.org
Facebook : Chongqing Dimensions Art Centre & Chongqing Artists In Residency
Address : Huangjueping GuanJiaLin 190, Jiulongpo, Chongqing, CN.
