Ziwu

ZIWU

ZIWU DELVES INTO consciousness, identity, AND society, DRAWING FROM PERSONAL AND CULTURAL INFLUENCES TO EXPLORE mortality, memory, AND tranquillity. HER NARRATIVES PROVOKE INTROSPECTION ON EXISTENCE AND TIME.

ARTIST STATEMENT

ZIWU’s oeuvre is saturated with themes of consciousness, fiction, and a pervasive sense of collective identity, all rooted deeply in the soil of her upbringing and life experiences. Her artistic endeavours increasingly occupy spaces that transcend the personal, weaving through broader frameworks of experience, response, and introspection. She perceives the stages of life as intricately linked to the essence of her original art forms. Embarking on a journey to articulate notions of extinction, she intertwines the dual realities of spirituality and emptiness with the complex tapestry of history, alongside discourses on evolving political structures, self-identity, culture, and history. This exploration into the realms of mortality, paired with visual articulation, cultivates a sophisticated understanding of rebirth while engaging with themes of memory, family, and contemporary epochs. Simultaneously, ZIWU orchestrates a delicate interplay of pattern, image, and object to craft narratives about society and revolution, adopting metaphoric and indirect storytelling techniques that underscore themes of tranquillity and gradual erosion.

The aim of ZIWU’s artistic evolution at this juncture is to dissect her creations and link them to a broader societal narrative through the paradigm of art. During her formative years, she was charged with the rudimentary tasks of film development and darkroom work as part of her undergraduate training. Her initial gravitation towards photography was fueled by its potent capacity to encapsulate isolation— a quality she seeks ardently: the photograph emerges as a symbol of eternity and mortality, a vessel for memory, and a medium through which the flow of time can be discerned. Her aspiration is for viewers to engage with and interpret the temporal dimensions ensconced within her photographs, recreating and exploring as they traverse the original visual narratives.

ARTWORK STATEMENT

The set of 2D photographic works emphasises the concept of multistable images, ranging from distorted human bodies to the imitation of a solar eclipse held by hands. It questions the confusion caused by the vision and the sequence of being, leading to a disruption of order.

While each generation refreshes, the heart turns to dust with nothing else remaining, life seems as dead as something long deceased. Thus, it paradoxically adheres to the notion of "stability". OMAKASE, as a cultural product of the capitalisation of traditional cuisine, is linked to the emphasis on the fate of individuals governed by social norms. It represents a culture finding a new form of stability. Yet, it brings no peace, meanwhile, the emphasis on a perspective that shaped my upbringing suggests that "people who refuse to follow the prevailing order can be seen as being abandoned by the generation".

The inspiration for this project came from the OMAKASE box. After photographing, the editing of human limbs and sushi ingredients aimed to create a landscape that expresses the individual’s and society’s lack of choice and place of belonging.

The entire editorial process addresses the dilemmas individuals face in social situations, the extinction of self, and self-determination. The final edition aimed to stimulate the idea of the chisel, differentiation, and repetition, portraying people as unconscious vessels, reflecting on the profound development of relationships between the photographic and the visual.

In your artistic practice, you explore themes of consciousness, fiction, and collective identity. How do these concepts manifest in your work, and what drives your fascination with them?

By observing, audiences may realise the final pieces in this collection are distorted, transforming original images and objects into abstract images manifested in the mind. The intent is to subtly challenge the allegiance to the 'reality' of images, extending to an implicit faith, the narrative collapse, and the placement of human hands beneath planets. 'Planets' here are depicted with a camera-shot sphere and a rotting apple presented together in a photograph. Despite this, I have blended these elements to create a space for representational photography devoid of human presence, adding mystery by removing the human factor, and expanding the opportunity to develop the allegorical aspect.

Your art traverses a diverse range of mediums, from photography to installations, drawing influences from oil painting. How do you navigate between these different forms of expression, and what unique perspectives does each medium offer you? Also, The interplay between three-dimensional works and photography is central to your artistic expression. Could you elaborate on how you use this interplay to convey your artistic vision and engage with your audience?

To delve into the term ‘Installation’ suggests exploring a concept that sits at the crossroads between installations and sculpture. This is due to the components of my installations, which I personally prefer leaning towards morphing sculptures to probe possibilities, which means they don't fit neatly into the category of installations alone. Turning to the interplay between photography and painting, I've been captivated by the distinct languages of both mediums. From the initial mimicry and gradual referencing to the potential future renderings, I find the rapid evolution from hours or even days spent depicting an apple to capturing its likeness in mere seconds via photography astonishing. The camera, to an extent, can mimic the texture of an oil painting, maintaining the characteristics of each medium while blurring the lines between photo-like paintings and painting-like photos. This leads me to ponder where the boundaries between these mediums lie. Both photography and painting virtualise a world onto a two-dimensional plane, whereas installations and sculptures bring an abstract concept into reality. Rather than mastering these mediums, I reflect more on their similarities and differences, focusing on the outcomes of their combination.

In contemplating the interactivity between two-dimensional and three-dimensional artworks, we may consider two illustrative examples. Observing the performance art of Yoko Ono, what one sees is essentially a three-dimensional work reprised in the two-dimensional medium of photography. This documentation by photographers captures the essence of the performance, employing props used during the performance itself. This allows the audience a space for reinterpreting the work. Each reinterpretation— whether by the photographer at the moment, deciding from which angle to capture the scene, or by the curator, choosing which props to include— represents a reinvention of the performance art, rendering it into a flattened process. This interaction bridges time and space, enabling a continuous reengagement with the art.

Conversely, examining Sarah Pickering's work on the theme of "Explosions and Fire" highlights the dynamic nature of fire as a photographic subject. Fire, inherently destructive and volatile, moves uncontrollably. Yet its still image in photography suspends it in a way that is beyond human perception. This stillness creates a delineation between reality and imagination, constructing a two-dimensional scene that transcends both. In photography, the viewer becomes an external observer, not immersed in the scene as one might be with a physical piece. Instead, the scene represents a world modelled through the lens of the camera—a world crafted through random operations within the confines of this small, dark box. This transformation of a vibrant, three-dimensional phenomenon into a static two-dimensional image invites the viewer to explore the boundary between the ephemeral and the eternal, between chaos and order.

Could you discuss your approach to storytelling in your art, particularly through metaphoric and indirect techniques? How do you weave narratives about society and revolution into your work, and what emotions or reactions do you hope to elicit from your viewers?

In discussions about photographic narrative, during the creation process, I often attempt to break free from the entrenched notion of the "here and now" that photography imposes on me. For instance, by utilising pre-existing locations, models, and text, I reconstruct the concept of "ready-made objects," thereby dismantling the immediacy of photography. Nonetheless, visualisation, abstract imagination, and cognitive concepts remain integral components of the creative process. Indeed, in many of my works, the steadfast tension between creation and re-creation is consistently contemplated, enhancing the direct link between the immediacy of my creative acts and historical materials.Photography can, in a formal sense, facilitate the coexistence of realism and abstraction.

Your artistic journey encompasses a sophisticated understanding of rebirth and mortality, intertwined with themes of memory, family, and contemporary epochs. How do these themes intersect in your work, and what narratives do you aim to evoke through them? Also, Photography holds a significant place in your artistic evolution, serving as a vessel for memory and a medium to discern the flow of time. How do you utilise photography to capture moments of isolation and eternity, and what significance do these moments hold within your broader artistic narrative?

The idea of rebirth and extinguishment tends to one beginning, while the questions you mention form the process, together shaping this artwork. Initially, when humans grapple with the notions of 'life' or 'death', a simplistic dichotomy tends to position death as the antithesis of life. Yet, in the realm of art, could we envisage death through the lens of Maurice Blanchot's arguments of the first night—a counterpart to daylight where all meaning extinguishes or is already formed, a state where "everything vanishes"? Conversely, as "all things melt away," the emergence of the inevitable second night becomes apparent. If the first night represents life itself, the second night symbolises the epitome of creative expression, and the artistic process explores the essence of death. Intellectual and artistic pursuits seek another night—a form of unforgettable oblivion and memories that never materialise. However, only within the "first night" can one conceive and sculpt the "second night."

In artistic creation, this second night is merely a state of questioning, doubting, and approaching, much like the 'death' mentioned in your query— it is merely "dying more," yet never truly "dying." It exists in a perpetual state of unformed chaos, straddling visibility and invisibility, light and darkness, the internal and the external— difficult to define, or perhaps best described as estrangement and separation. Following this logic, the desire for the "second night" could be seen as an estrangement from the "first night." The process of creating the second night (the artwork) is also a process of distancing. In this exploration, the essence (concept, fact, anything in itself) is perpetually receding, with human consciousness replacing historical consciousness and conceptual thinking being supplanted by a second-order imagination.

Similarly, the moment of capturing an image does not represent a specific period. The term used here, "here and now," expresses a moment when the act of pressing the shutter is deliberate and direct, evident from its captured content. The camera's narrative shifts into time— not only as a piece of art but also as the artist. The narrator becomes a character and engenders transformation, in these re-creations, I become the one who governs time and its changing rules.

Your recent project, "OMAKASE," explores multistable images and questions the confusion caused by vision and sequence of being. Could you delve into the inspiration behind this project and how it reflects your artistic inquiry into stability and disruption? Also, The editing process in your work often involves creating landscapes that express the lack of choice and place of belonging for individuals in society. How do you navigate the complexities of social dilemmas and self-determination through your artistic practice?

In essence, OMAKASE originated from the common quandary faced by diners, particularly when presented with an array of sophisticated seafood options such as sea urchins, seasonal fish, and various cuts of fish. This concept alleviates the discomfort associated with the inability to navigate such a diverse menu. Historically, the barrier to entry in sushi restaurants was not just about palate sophistication but also societal standing, making it challenging for those unfamiliar with the etiquette to step into a professional sushi setting. OMAKASE, as a commodified expression of traditional Japanese gastronomy, ties into societal norms that often dictate individual destinies, symbolising a new form of cultural equilibrium.

The genesis of this project was the OMAKASE box, which inspired me to photograph and edit human limbs alongside sushi components to craft a visual narrative that explores the interplay between individual and collective identities. Furthering this exploration, I sculpted and merged images of human limbs with sushi elements, achieving a cohesive visual synthesis that reflects on themes of standardisation, interchangeability, and the illusion of individualism, pointing to a broader cultural homogenisation.

Technological advancements have reshaped both production and cultural engagement, diminishing face-to-face interactions and fostering a climate where ideas and values are passively absorbed over time, leading to pervasive intellectual and cultural stagnation. In this context, the prevalent culture of the capitalist era, marked by its formulaic and standardised nature, employs interchangeability to capture public interest. This mirrors the personal challenges I address through my artistic process.

My approach to photo editing, inspired by the OMAKASE method of ingredient selection and preparation, underscores a perspective deeply rooted in my formative experiences. It suggests that rejecting conventional order might be viewed as a form of abandonment by society. This reflection delves deeply into the themes of struggle, powerlessness, the fear of uncertainty, and the randomness of success, offering a more profound contemplation of these disruptive social dynamics.

In your view, how does art serve as a tool for introspection and reflection, both for the artist and the audience? How do you hope your viewers engage with and interpret the temporal dimensions ensconced within your photographs and installations?

My interpretation of this question is based on the realm of photography and film. When individuals in real life are subject to the dictates of ideology, every action is reduced to puppetlike motions. These abstract systems continue to exert their influence. Conversely, the order within the world of photography is not characterised by descriptions of 'good' and 'bad', but rather stitches the viewer into a realm of chaos. This stitching defines the subject and then situates the observer within it. The world crafted by the artist evolves into an artwork that melds two realms: that of 'absence' and 'presence'. The world of 'absence' morphs into a domain of 'fantasy', intertwining with another realm of 'presence', necessitating a semantic exchange between the material and the fantastical.

The structure of photographic works resonates with the viewer's daily experiences, while the style, script, narrative, and setting of films enhance creativity and the opportunity to venture into worlds of fiction, despair, and fantasy. As audiences engage in this experience and understanding, they simultaneously negotiate on cognitive, emotional, and narrative levels. Whether in photography (static) or film (dynamic), these are transformed by the artist into a symbolic space where viewing encompasses both an understanding of concepts and a 'reading' of them. This 'reading', in turn, holds symbolic significance, the viewer is subverted, altered by its echoes, and mimicked by its matrix, tying the fractured logic of the entire work to the audience. Regardless of external occurrences, humans inevitably face a fundamental chasm that they bridge by relating familiar aspects of artworks to themselves, thus averting a sense of alienation and strangeness. Emotion drives this fragmented narrative order, akin to a nonlinear narrative framework.

Even as virtual and physical worlds merge, audiences maintain a collective emotional sorrow for the past and an unconscious hope for the future. Yet, behind the scenes, it is only the storyteller who decides to impose order on this transient world, crafting a sequence of events and a logic of cause and effect, obscuring the precise timing or perception of time, and inviting musings on the unknown. As certainty fades, the actual meaning of the story is veiled, revealing only the fragmented recollections of the impending narrator (creator).

ARTIST BIO

ZIWU (B. 2001), NOW MOSTLY based in London. AS A multidisciplinary artist ACTIVE IN VARIOUS FIELDS, ZIWU HAS RECENTLY BEGUN TO FOCUS HER ART PROJECTS MORE ON photography and installations, WHILE STILL DRAWING ON INFLUENCES FROM oil painting. HER WORKS DELVE INTO A RANGE OF ISSUES CONCERNING humanity, generations, and society, ENGAGING DEEPLY WITH THESE THEMES AND LINKING THEM TO THE PASSAGE OF time, societal relationships, cultural heritage, AND THE realm of cinema.

ZIWU'S ECLECTIC CREATIONS ARE GREATLY INFLUENCED BY THE diverse cultural backgrounds AND historical traditions SHE WAS EXPOSED TO DURING HER UPBRINGING. TO DESCRIBE ZIWU’S CREATIVE PROCESS, ONE COULD HIGHLIGHT HER USE OF VICARIOUS INFRA-MINCE AND METAPHORS, ESPECIALLY THE INTERPLAY BETWEEN THREE-DIMENSIONAL WORKS AND PHOTOGRAPHY—THE CAPTURE OF fleeting moments—AND THEIR CURATION, WHICH ARE CENTRAL TO HER ARTISTIC EXPRESSION.

REVIEW

Ziwu's artistic journey is a profound exploration of consciousness, identity, and societal constructs. Through a range of mediums including photography and installations, she delves into themes of mortality, memory, and societal evolution with a depth and complexity that captivates the observer.

Her work challenges conventional norms, offering nuanced perspectives on the intricacies of human existence. By intertwining personal experiences with cultural influences, Ziwu crafts narratives that resonate with a sense of tranquillity amidst the constant flux of change. Each piece invites viewers to embark on a reflective journey, prompting introspection and contemplation of the delicate balance between existence and time.

In her recent project "OMAKASE," Ziwu explores the concept of multistable images, questioning the confusion caused by vision and the sequence of being. Through a meticulous editing process, she creates landscapes that express the lack of choice and sense of displacement experienced by individuals within society. This project serves as a poignant commentary on societal dilemmas and the struggle for self-determination.

Ziwu's artistic vision is not confined to a single medium, rather, it transcends traditional boundaries to weave together a tapestry of visual storytelling. Her ability to navigate between different forms of expression, from photography to installations, demonstrates a versatility that enriches her artistic narrative.

Through metaphorical and indirect techniques, Ziwu intricately weaves narratives about society and revolution into her work, evoking a range of emotions and reactions from her audience. Each piece serves as a catalyst for introspection, inviting viewers to engage with the temporal dimensions ensconced within her photographs and installations.

Overall, Ziwu's artistic practice offers a profound exploration of the human condition, prompting viewers to confront the complexities of existence and the passage of time. Her work serves as a poignant reminder of the ever-changing nature of reality, inviting us to contemplate our place within the vast tapestry of life.