Page 130 - Flaunt 171 - Summer of Our Discontent - St-John

It could be said the circumstances this year have not been very ideal for grand openings. Hell, the circumstances this year haven’t been agreeable for grand anything. While the duck and cover
approach by arts institutions—often symptomatic of beleaguered fi- nances and diminished resources—has been understandable, if not absolute, it’s also scarily the first potential step to obscurity. We’re experiencing grave loss; it’s estimated at least a third of museums in the U.S. won’t re-open. Our pre and post-Covid framework is being cemented day on day, and one wonders, once the dust finally settles, what supply and demand will actually mean, and who will have endeavored through, from then... until now. What’s been fascinat- ing, perhaps, in the hour of Covid-19, despite it all, is artistry’s remix and repositioning, the requisite relinquishing of control, because we don’t have it.
And so: an opportunity for birth, in a moment when we find ourselves famished of inspiration and expression. Enter Beijing’s new X Museum—founded by Flaunt alum, Michael Xufu Huang, and Theresa Tse—an experimental new private, contemporary art institution with a panoramic sensibility, bolstered by an enthusiasm for youth art and education. Given its proximity to the pandemic’s early impact, X Museum faced all kinds of challenges, postpone- ments, and delays in its efforts to open. Virtual X, an innovative digital experience platform that harnessed the momentum of the museum’s anticipated doors’ opening, was launched in the process, and will remain a programming accent here forward.
In May, X Museum finally opened its doors—not to the interna- tional art set that was anticipated, but a veritable swath of Chinese art influence from all over the country. The apropos titled exhibi- tion, “How Do We Begin?”, curated by Poppy Dongxue Wu— the first edition of the X Museum Triennial series—is an ambitious and exciting survey of contemporary consideration and flair. Flaunt hand-picked five artists from the group, one of whom—Melting Wang—created the cover of this issue, and the fascinating and hy- per relevant conversations are featured below.
Wang Yuchen (Melting Wang)
Wang Yuchen (meltingwang) lives in Beijing and work encom- passes painting, design, moving images, and site-specific installa- tion. With a primary focus on context-generating practice, Wang’s
exhibits are often delivered collectively by juxtaposing interrelated pieces of work.
In 2015, the artist initiated a series of practices under the cyber avatar–meltingwang. Registering both the substantiality of life in the age of the Internet and the void between online and offline spaces, Wang’s works are not only doses of playful reflections, but also counterforces of such status, including the recurrent topics of regimen and evolution in his recent practice.
For “How Do We Begin?”, Wang exhibited “WEBhood JAM”,
a context-specific installation that is composed of daily commodi- ties, performance records, videos and sounds, aiming to create an integrated experience with the spirit of WEBhood (both sporty
and Internet-aware). In contemporary daily life, we are in a state
of constant switching, between physical bodies and our respective virtual avatars. “WEBhood JAM” originates from the inertia of thinking and transference generated during the switching between the Internet experience and real life, and such transference is also constrained by the physical attributes that humans cannot get rid of. The work extracts and presents the paradox and potential possibili- ties in the void between online and offline spaces.
How has the pandemic affected your artistic practice?
My practice was indeed once stagnated due to the pandemic. It is on the one hand the delay of logistics, but more importantly, the psychological effects that the pandemic has brought to me. I spent some time to rediscover the overall social context we are in, and to establish new routines. I believe these effects will be reflected in my future works.
What aspects of your work would you describe as intimate or connected to intimacy.
If I look back at my past practices, I would say I have been getting inspirations from a lot of embodied experience and feelings from life, and I’ve also been using elements of everyday objects and scenes. These could all be the source of feelings of intimacy. To cre- ate a relaxing viewing atmosphere is quite important to me, because I believe a relaxing atmosphere is very helpful in terms of building connections.
When has science or the work of scientists compelled you to live with purpose? When has science or scientists made you feel de- featist and that life is not worth the effort?
I often am skeptical about the results of scientific research,
130
I