Taking a risk
I have been thinking a lot recently about what risks I am prepared to take in my intervention work in a different country and what the consequences of my actions may be. In the UK I do sense a little danger when I do things in public or in a professional situation were there are a certain set of assumptions and rules placed on how we should behave. I can see the potential of having a studio of my own in China to make work in and having a private, controlled space to invite audiences into. Now I know I am going to contradict myself here but for me there is something about that unpredictability of the outdoors, the risk of mis-behaving in a professional situation that makes me feel alive and an intense temporary connection with people.
In December I was invited to give a performance lecture at the Chinese Arts Centre to an invited audience who were participating in a short course run by Kai-Oi Jay Yung, Cornerhouse: The Art of Social Engagement. Ying Mei Duan the resident artist had been collaborating with different people and artists whom performed individual pieces in different parts of the gallery space (http://www.yingmei-art.com/en/). I was in the basement and set the space up like an official artist talk, although I turned the expectations onto the audience by making them carry out a series of actions exercising my temporary control over them. I ended the talk by playing an intro to a song, speaking over the top of it about the choice we all have, whether to stay or to leave, then I just walk out of the room, leaving the audience wondering if I will come back.
I went to the Negotiable Values exhibition last night at the Chinese Arts Centre (http://www.chinese-arts-centre.org/). Jamie Lau is showing work as part of his Whisper residency and I was really impressed with the amount of work he had made in just 2 weeks. This has got me starting to feel a little nervous about filling a gallery space, as I am not an object-based artist. There is an opportunity today to talk about the residency with Yan Yan the director of 501 Artspace as he has co-curated the Negotiable Values show. There will be a round table discussion about the current exhibition and a chance to talk about Chongqing.
