'i shall...Blame my Public Relations..." and you... yes you....i had been wanting to say this way back when, but better late than never as they say, and it not only gave me time to collect my ideas but also so much had transpired and water under the bridge i must say helped to reconfirm or at least gave me food for rethinking somewhat all them quandaries upon quandaries...
I must also quickly shift the topic to the Venice Biennale. You know how one year we are pulling out and then now Singapore is staking the participation for ten years or so, right up front as if we are late never mind but we gonna be number 1 from now on like "KIASU boh kiasi"(in Hokkien; "Scared lose but not scared die"). And who gonna bother after all if it does relate to all them problematic questions in the art quandary. To me it is a reality check that this is happening and whatever outcome at this point i am happy it transpired. Although i did not signed the open letter about re-installing our participation in Venice Biennale as drafted by Alvin Tan, Heman Chong and Ho Rui Ann, cause there were a number of arguments in it I could not bring myself to agree with yet I am glad to see a strong list of signatures which i don't remember if at any one time in recent past our local art community had given such concerted response. Hence it is necessary that the decision should be reconsidered if not given a more thorough explanation.
I must admit that although i have participated in a number of international biennales although not the high and mighty Venice as is commonly perceived the pinnacle of best of the best in the world of art shows i never once travelled to one just to see the works exhibited like a pilgrim of art. I did visit the Venice Biennale before Singapore got on the bandwagon but i only went because i was in between gigs. i was stopping by Venice after having participated in an event in Linz Austria and going to another one in Amalfi in South Italy. (After Venice, I was going to meet Boris Nieslony who was performing in another event in a small town in North Italy and together we would travel south to Amalfi by car. ) The Venice Biennale was impressive to me because it was Venice itself more so than how the world flock to see the best of the best in art in such charming fairy tale like scenario. But then i could only afford one night hotel in one that fortunately were making some noisy renovations in the lobby and some rooms, hence giving me a room with discounted rate.
yes i shall blame myself and them damned P.R. people And you and you and you.... but seems like another sudden change in topic but no not actually...
I have always maintained that the world had already ended long ago. This is a response to various so-called doomsday soothsayers or watchers. I see it metaphorically in the sense that the intensity of globalization in the world has in some ways changed the rules of the game for cultural evolution. In the sense that cultures of the past used to have certain level of unique and distinct differences in terms of being able to exist in separate entity from any outside influences in any direct way. The knowledge and perception of reality of a certain people within their own boundaries based on borders if say it were defined as a country would not be easily disrupted.
If there was any specific day we can name to mark the change where cultures that used to grow in isolation opened up to the proximities of other cultural manifestation whereby one world view or perception of reality cannot be taken to be the only one anymore it would be August 27, 1883 the day the volcano Krakatao erupted at a time when technologies like the telegraph were becoming widespread and was used to provide the information increasingly could be disseminated in much shorter time compared to that in the past. Of course cultures did had cross fertilization and contact via trade routes and missionaries etc. zealously spreading their beliefs. However it did not happened at such a fast lightning pace and with the complete availability of information on the internet it is even more so than before as if that the world had died twice over. (a wonderful telling on this phenomenon is Krakatoa: The Day the World Exploded: August 27, 1883 by Simon Winchester that covers the 1883 eruption of Krakatoa.)
I must also quickly shift the topic to the Venice Biennale. You know how one year we are pulling out and then now Singapore is staking the participation for ten years or so, right up front as if we are late never mind but we gonna be number 1 from now on like "KIASU boh kiasi"(in Hokkien; "Scared lose but not scared die"). And who gonna bother after all if it does relate to all them problematic questions in the art quandary. To me it is a reality check that this is happening and whatever outcome at this point i am happy it transpired. Although i did not signed the open letter about re-installing our participation in Venice Biennale as drafted by Alvin Tan, Heman Chong and Ho Rui Ann, cause there were a number of arguments in it I could not bring myself to agree with yet I am glad to see a strong list of signatures which i don't remember if at any one time in recent past our local art community had given such concerted response. Hence it is necessary that the decision should be reconsidered if not given a more thorough explanation.
I must admit that although i have participated in a number of international biennales although not the high and mighty Venice as is commonly perceived the pinnacle of best of the best in the world of art shows i never once travelled to one just to see the works exhibited like a pilgrim of art. I did visit the Venice Biennale before Singapore got on the bandwagon but i only went because i was in between gigs. i was stopping by Venice after having participated in an event in Linz Austria and going to another one in Amalfi in South Italy. (After Venice, I was going to meet Boris Nieslony who was performing in another event in a small town in North Italy and together we would travel south to Amalfi by car. ) The Venice Biennale was impressive to me because it was Venice itself more so than how the world flock to see the best of the best in art in such charming fairy tale like scenario. But then i could only afford one night hotel in one that fortunately were making some noisy renovations in the lobby and some rooms, hence giving me a room with discounted rate.
yes i shall blame myself and them damned P.R. people And you and you and you.... but seems like another sudden change in topic but no not actually...
I have always maintained that the world had already ended long ago. This is a response to various so-called doomsday soothsayers or watchers. I see it metaphorically in the sense that the intensity of globalization in the world has in some ways changed the rules of the game for cultural evolution. In the sense that cultures of the past used to have certain level of unique and distinct differences in terms of being able to exist in separate entity from any outside influences in any direct way. The knowledge and perception of reality of a certain people within their own boundaries based on borders if say it were defined as a country would not be easily disrupted.
If there was any specific day we can name to mark the change where cultures that used to grow in isolation opened up to the proximities of other cultural manifestation whereby one world view or perception of reality cannot be taken to be the only one anymore it would be August 27, 1883 the day the volcano Krakatao erupted at a time when technologies like the telegraph were becoming widespread and was used to provide the information increasingly could be disseminated in much shorter time compared to that in the past. Of course cultures did had cross fertilization and contact via trade routes and missionaries etc. zealously spreading their beliefs. However it did not happened at such a fast lightning pace and with the complete availability of information on the internet it is even more so than before as if that the world had died twice over. (a wonderful telling on this phenomenon is Krakatoa: The Day the World Exploded: August 27, 1883 by Simon Winchester that covers the 1883 eruption of Krakatoa.)
IF YOU LOOK AT WHAT I AM DOING in this day and age you may see it as retrogressive, if not nostalgia in extreme but this being a conscious choice i snub those privileged standard bearers and arrogant pillars of society and the front runners and trend setters.
Being of relevance to contemporary times, reconciliation of contradictions, and resistance to the bullying tyranny of the status quo- these are my calling cards. All the other points of references may help contribute but may not be as important.
EVERYBODY! 皆さま！ALMAL! TODOS! 모두 TOUT LE MONDE!! SEMUA ORANG! ทุกคน Lahat ng tao JEDERMANN! 大家! 大家 ! ВСЕКИ! Kila mtu !!ALLA! Tout moun! ทุกคน! DENON! ALLE!! ԱՄԵՆ! Te gjitheve! УСЕ! TOTHOM! SVI! VŠICHNI! IEDEREEN! Kõigile! Kaikille! ΟΛΟΥΣ!
יעדער!
الجميع!
And do you think "Everybody" means Everybody the same way to EVERYBODY? OR does it still do??? I doubt. As much the way we introduce ourselves in a biography short and sweet as such....
Lee Wen works (or dies working) as a mixed media artist presenting works as drawings. paintings, installations, photographs, videos, performance and documentations. Then again once best known for his Yellow Man series of work, the multidisciplinary artist is also one of Singapore’s pioneering performance artists. Through unexpected twists of fate, re-construed plays, rites, rituals, games or sports like "Ping-Pong Go Round" and other re-constructed personas such as "Stagger Lee", and sometimes even re-visits of presentations of other origins like "Give Peace A Chance Redux"; the artist re-emerged and plays provocateur for infinite over finite games; motivated by a strong conviction of justice and idealism, with a persistence to stay true to the self in an unsympathetically structured world. Lee often uses his life experiences and personal dilemmas as initial entries into artistic journeys as human encounters, reconciling conflicts, recovering memories and remaking mythologies.
As in trendy po-mo-lingo goes its all about context bro, as such bbbut what is it all about?
Being of relevance to contemporary times, reconciliation of contradictions, and resistance to the bullying tyranny of the status quo- these are my calling cards. All the other points of references may help contribute but may not be as important.
EVERYBODY! 皆さま！ALMAL! TODOS! 모두 TOUT LE MONDE!! SEMUA ORANG! ทุกคน Lahat ng tao JEDERMANN! 大家! 大家 ! ВСЕКИ! Kila mtu !!ALLA! Tout moun! ทุกคน! DENON! ALLE!! ԱՄԵՆ! Te gjitheve! УСЕ! TOTHOM! SVI! VŠICHNI! IEDEREEN! Kõigile! Kaikille! ΟΛΟΥΣ!
יעדער!
الجميع!
And do you think "Everybody" means Everybody the same way to EVERYBODY? OR does it still do??? I doubt. As much the way we introduce ourselves in a biography short and sweet as such....
Lee Wen works (or dies working) as a mixed media artist presenting works as drawings. paintings, installations, photographs, videos, performance and documentations. Then again once best known for his Yellow Man series of work, the multidisciplinary artist is also one of Singapore’s pioneering performance artists. Through unexpected twists of fate, re-construed plays, rites, rituals, games or sports like "Ping-Pong Go Round" and other re-constructed personas such as "Stagger Lee", and sometimes even re-visits of presentations of other origins like "Give Peace A Chance Redux"; the artist re-emerged and plays provocateur for infinite over finite games; motivated by a strong conviction of justice and idealism, with a persistence to stay true to the self in an unsympathetically structured world. Lee often uses his life experiences and personal dilemmas as initial entries into artistic journeys as human encounters, reconciling conflicts, recovering memories and remaking mythologies.
As in trendy po-mo-lingo goes its all about context bro, as such bbbut what is it all about?
Self-portrait, 1978
ink on paper
Footnote:
1. Heinrich Böll; End of a Mission / translated by Leila Vennewitz. – New York : McGraw-Hill, 1967
1. Heinrich Böll; End of a Mission / translated by Leila Vennewitz. – New York : McGraw-Hill, 1967
