Abstract
An installation of a 1996 gold proof half-sovereign as a switch-button, a light box, an engraving in aluminium, a pile of newspaper, an audio and motor system.
Two parts of the installation are set around 40m away from each other and the audience cannot see both at once. First is a set of a light box, a push-button below it and an aluminum engraving. On top of the light box is the engraving, "No politics today!" quoted from a Mainland Chinese student who shouted this out when Taiwanese singer-songwriter Deserts Chang held up the Republic of China flag on stage during her live concert at the University of Manchester in November 2013. The image of the light box is the Free Trade Hall, public venue in Manchester for civil activities, from political forums to music concerts until 1996 at an original site of struggles for democracy. It was later sold to a private developer and turned into a 5 Star-hotel with the original facade partly remaining. The coin mounted on the push-button was minted in 1996 with St. George killing the dragon on this side and Queen Elizabeth II on the other. The aluminium engraving is the front page of Hong Kong Standard on June 16, 1996. It reported the IRA bombing that wounded 200 and killed nobody, and was a strong hit at the commercial heart of the city during an economic depression. (Afterwards the UK government provided strong support to Manchester for the economic recovery.) On the same front page, famous jazz singer Ella Fitzgerald was reported dead on the same day.
The second part is a pile of used newspaper standing up to the ceiling. When the push-button is pressed (that turned off the light box to reveal "No politics today!" clearly), the newspaper column collapse on the other side but slowly resurrects again with the music "Love For Sale" by Fitzgerald.
Two parts of the installation are set around 40m away from each other and the audience cannot see both at once. First is a set of a light box, a push-button below it and an aluminum engraving. On top of the light box is the engraving, "No politics today!" quoted from a Mainland Chinese student who shouted this out when Taiwanese singer-songwriter Deserts Chang held up the Republic of China flag on stage during her live concert at the University of Manchester in November 2013. The image of the light box is the Free Trade Hall, public venue in Manchester for civil activities, from political forums to music concerts until 1996 at an original site of struggles for democracy. It was later sold to a private developer and turned into a 5 Star-hotel with the original facade partly remaining. The coin mounted on the push-button was minted in 1996 with St. George killing the dragon on this side and Queen Elizabeth II on the other. The aluminium engraving is the front page of Hong Kong Standard on June 16, 1996. It reported the IRA bombing that wounded 200 and killed nobody, and was a strong hit at the commercial heart of the city during an economic depression. (Afterwards the UK government provided strong support to Manchester for the economic recovery.) On the same front page, famous jazz singer Ella Fitzgerald was reported dead on the same day.
The second part is a pile of used newspaper standing up to the ceiling. When the push-button is pressed (that turned off the light box to reveal "No politics today!" clearly), the newspaper column collapse on the other side but slowly resurrects again with the music "Love For Sale" by Fitzgerald.
| Original language | English |
|---|---|
| Publication status | Published - 27 Sept 2014 |
| Event | Harmonious Society - Centre for Chinese Contemporary Art (CFCCA), Manchester, United Kingdom Duration: 27 Sept 2014 → 23 Nov 2014 http://www.newexhibitions.com/uploads/upload.000/id30769/press_release.pdf |
Research Keywords
- contemporary art
- installation
- research-based artistic practice
- interactivity