Wandering People
“Suppose one sees the clutter of the world and its absurdity but also contains within oneself the hope of happiness and reason. In that case, living is a confrontation with the world. What matters to an absurd person is not to live the best but the most.”
Overview
After almost ten years of studying in the West, it has become increasingly apparent this year that everything I do or every voice I make as a Chinese person in the West is likely to be misunderstood, especially in art. I have even begun to resist being associated with the word ‘artist’. When my Asian female face and Chinese name come together, what my work represents is hardly my opinion. It can easily have political relevance in a social context. We always talk about objective expression, but even the most objective form of expression is subjective if it comes from an individual. The message that the viewer receives and understands is also subjective in the same way. Even so, I believe all expressions and dialogue are about reducing prejudice and not becoming narrow-minded to each other.
The world as I know it is simply the sum of the things and people around me I have access. As someone who has lived half in the East and half in the West, I often have a sense of chaos and tension. More and more people have similar experiences to me but have an entirely different life. I want to talk to such people; I want to know their stories. As ordinary people, being stuck in any political dichotomy is oppressive for the individual. If we don’t talk about politics per se, can we really get around its effect on us?
The project summarizes my study and life in Western. I want to write seriously about my confusion and to understand more about the surrounding people who I could understand. If you don’t know the people surrounding you, you know nothing about the world. Every person is a book, a book with real personal stories. There are no truths or answers in the book, only experiences. I want to record them honestly, to bring out more diverse thoughts in the dialogue and to find a way to be compatible.
Read in Full:
