Game of Codes | Silia Ka Tung & Ma Li
September 9 – October 21 2016
Migrant Bird Space (Berlin) is pleased to present a two-person show Game of Codes, featuring Hong Kong artist Silia Ka TUNG, who is based in London, and Chinese artist Li MA, who is based in Berlin and San Francisco. This exhibition will present their latest works.
Game of Codes refers to the original source code of game programs, which is the basic command in game development. Here the “game” concept is employed to refer to the two artists’ art practice as an endless language game while the code, as a metaphor, sees the work of the two artists as the process of writing code. Therefore, their unique artistic journeys are formed via continuous “programming”.
The works of this exhibition include Tung’s soft sculptures, installations, and paintings, and Li MA’s sculptures of material collage, video installation and live performance. The exhibition aims to form an insightful dialogue between the world of magic, the surreal, and the mundane daily reality. Both artists devote their artistic practice to explore the playful combination of materials and objects.
Much of Tung’s works are inspired by myths, legends, and the world of magic, reflecting the effects of folk art, comics, and video games. Her work has always been permeated with a kind of vitality and optimism; in her recent soft sculptures on canvas, she attempts to convey the mystery and charm of ancient cultures with a contemporary approach. This kind of mystery and charm make people think of the comfort and happiness of childhood; a mysterious childhood nostalgia also made of disturbing memories and dark secrets.
Tung separates the softness of the materials and cheerful color palette from a latent narrative, which is to indicate both the chaotic conditions of human existence and the natural order of evolution. As she once explained: “This childhood nostalgia filled with metaphors and sinister myths reflects the complex and aimless existence of the present chaotic world, but also represents another world that may allow us to escape from the mediocrity of daily chores. I hope to be able to guide the audience to reflect back on their lives and find the origin of their own escapism.”
Li Ma’s interest lies in exploring the use of conventional materials such as fabric, cardboard, plastic, paper, etc. in unconventional ways. Using these materials found in her daily life, she creates a single piece of sculpture that relates to where the materials where found. Ma then piles up these sculptures to make installations of different scales, creating a surrealistic world that explores the relationship between repeated consumption and social participation. Partial origins of this surreal world are rooted in the Chinese traditional culture she comes from, as she notes on the sources behind her work: “Through the process of misappropriation, breaking away from context, and subverting previously existing processes to construct my sculptures and installations, I create structures to celebrate the ritual and secular; in my world, handicraft/industry, daily/fantasy, traditional culture/ pop culture, natural/artificial and other types of binary-opposition models, everywhere permeated with a celebratory feeling and a nostalgia of identity: from a woman of collective society to a global citizen.”
Ma has created two new pieces for this exhibition: Sieben Sieben Sieben Palace and (D)ance, (D)ance, (R)epublik. (D)(D)(R) is a game-format performance that attempts to create a new form of building a link between outsiders and locals. The performance will lead participants to use physical activity to respond to its visual images and images of their movements will be projected on the gallery’s glass windows. This work is inspired by the morning exercise routine of students in China, which aims to enhance the students’ physical health and uplift their spirits. The work also draws from the visual entertainment elements of the casino game culture, and uses image effects to connect and unify people of various ages and cultures together.
This exhibition is curated by London-based art critic and curator Guo Xiaohui.
About the Artists
Silia Ka TUNG, born in Xinjiang, China. Lives and works in London. Tung obtained a B.A. in Fine Arts Painting at the Chelsea College of Arts (1997-2000), followed by a MFA in Painting at the Slade School of Fine Art (2000-2002). Tung has had numerous group and solo exhibitions in the UK and internationally, including at the Royal Academy of Arts, London; Arti et Amicitiae Amsterdam; Galerie Karsten Greve, Paris; The Rubin Museum, Tel Aviv; KISS Kunst I’m Schloss Untergroeningen; Centre Design Marseille; MoCA Shanghai and the Jerwood Space, London.
MA Li (b. Fuzhou, China) is an interdisciplinary artist based in Berlin and San Francisco. She has a BS degree in Chemical Engineering from Shanghai Dong Hua University, and an MFA from the San Francisco Art Institute (2014). She has been awarded grants from the Pollock-Krasner Foundation, the Santo Foundation and Knight Foundation; a fellowship from La Napoule Art Foundation; and the Murphy and Cadogan Contemporary Art Award, and was a resident artist at Recology San Francisco, Momentum Worldwide Berlin Residency, Vermont Studio Center, Elsewhere Museum, among others. Ma Li has exhibited her work in a range of museums and galleries, including the Asian Art Museum, San Francisco (2015); Manifesta 11 Biennale, Zurich (2016); and Momentum Gallery, Berlin (2016); Alter Space-Peephole Gallery, San Francisco (2015).
About the Curator
Xiaohui Guo is a London-based curator, writer and art critic. Born in Xinjiang China, she obtained an M.A. in Art and Politics (2013) and a second M.A. in Cultural Studies (2014) from Goldsmiths, University of London. Guo has worked as an independent curator, art critic and is currently a contributing writer for Sanlian Life Week (China).
遊戲代碼 | 董葭&馬理
9月9日 – 10月21日, 2016
候鳥空間即將迎來一場由兩位藝術家組成的全新的展覽：Game of codes／遊戲代碼。此次展覽的兩位藝術家分別是居住於倫敦的香港藝術家Silia Ka Tung（董葭）和生活在洛杉磯的中國藝術家Ma Li（馬理），此次展覽將呈現她們二人最新創作的作品。
遊戲代碼原指編輯遊戲程序的原碼，是開發遊戲的最基本指令。在此，“遊戲”的概念則更多是指藝術家的藝術實踐猶如一種無止境語言遊戲；而代碼則暗喻二位藝術家的工作猶如編寫代碼的過程，通過不斷地“編寫”，從而形成了各自獨特的藝術之旅。
展覽展出的作品包括Silia的軟雕塑裝置、繪畫以及 Ma Li 的材料拼貼雕塑、錄像裝置作品和現場表演，形成了一個關於魔幻世界、超現實與日常生活真實界限之間有趣的對話。這兩位藝術家都將自身的藝術實踐立足於材料和物體趣味性組合的探索，力圖突破其固有的一般性的局限並進行全新的詮釋。
Silia的大多數作品的靈感來源於神話傳說和魔幻世界, 反映出來自民間藝術、漫畫和電子遊戲的影響。那些由她重組和演繹中創作出來的雕塑和繪畫，通過將不同的故事，智慧，宗教，以及人格化的魔幻形象與當代語境相融合，試圖使現當代術語重新嵌構遠古文化。 Silia的作品始終洋溢著一種活力和樂觀的基調，她最近的帆佈軟雕塑試圖以當代藝術的方式傳達遠古文化的神秘和魅力。這種神秘和魅力使人聯想到童年的安逸與快樂，卻又不乏神秘和不安的記憶。
Silia將材料的柔軟性和歡快的多重色彩的顏料從潛在的隱性敘事中分離出來，來暗示人類生存狀況的錯綜混亂和經由進化演變而來的自然秩序。 Silia解釋道：“這種充盈著險惡隱喻的神秘的兒時懷舊，體現了處於現今混亂無序的世界中的某種複雜和盲目的存在，也代表著另一個能幫助我們逃逸出平庸的日常瑣事的世界。我希望藉此能夠引導觀眾對他們的生活進行自省並找到他們自己逃避主義的源頭。”
馬理的興趣在於探索如何運用非傳統的材料，如織物，紙板，塑料，紙張等日常發現的材料創作出與這些材料的環境相關的單件雕塑並把這些雕塑堆積、組織成不同體積的裝置，創造出一個超現實世界來探討重複消費和社會參與之間的關係，並且這個超現實世界的部分源頭來自她自身俱有的中國傳統文化的內涵。正如她自己所說，“通過挪用，脫離語境，以及顛覆先前存在的過程來構造雕塑和裝置本身， 我創造了一種用來慶祝禮儀和世俗的結構，在我的世界裡，手工業/工業，日常/奇幻，傳統文化/流行文化， 自然/人造等類型的二元對立模式都處處滲透著一種歡慶的感覺和一種對身份的懷舊： 從一個處於集體主義社會之中的女性到一個國際公民。”
馬理為這次展覽創作的新作是《舞蹈，舞蹈，共和國》（Dance, Dance, Republik Republic DDR)），力圖創造一種全新的形式在外地人和本地人之間建立某種紐帶。本次表演將帶領參與者運用身體活動來響應視覺遊戲，並將這些身體活動的畫面投射在畫廊的玻璃上。此件作品受中國的學生晨操啟發而來，此項運動旨在強健在校學生體魄和提升精神風貌。此作品同時也藉鑑了賭場遊戲的視覺娛樂元素，並運用影像效果連接由不同的年齡、文化以及職業所組成的的人群。
本次展覽是由駐紮在倫敦的策展人和藝術評論家郭小暉進行策劃。
關於藝術家
董葭
出生在中國新疆，目前工作和生活在倫敦。
1997-2000就讀於倫敦的切爾西藝術學院繪畫專業並獲得學士學位；2000-2002年就讀於倫敦斯萊德美術學院繪畫專業並獲得碩士學位。
曾受邀在英國及世界多處參加過展覽。舉辦過的個展與重要聯展包括：倫敦皇家藝術學院、阿姆斯特丹的阿米斯提展覽館、巴黎的卡斯滕·格雷夫畫廊、特拉維夫的魯賓博物館、上海當代藝術館和倫敦的捨伍德藝術空間。
馬理
出生於中國福州，目前居住於舊金山和柏林。
作為一位跨學科的藝術家，馬理擁有上海東華大學的化學工程學士學位，於2014年獲得舊金山藝術學院藝術碩士學位。她先後獲得Pollock-Krasner基金會，the Santo 基金會和Knight 基金會的讚助；La Napoule 藝術基金會的獎學金；the Murphy and Cadogan 當代藝術獎以及多個藝術家駐留項目。
馬理受邀在英國及世界多處參加過展覽最近展覽包括：亞洲藝術博物館，舊金山（2015年）; Manifesta 11 雙年展，蘇黎世（2016年）；Momentum畫廊，柏林（2016年）；Alter Space – Peephole 畫廊，舊金山（2015年）等。
關於策展人
郭小暉
出生在中國新疆，現生活居住在英國倫敦。
2013年獲得倫敦大學金史密斯學院藝術與政治碩士學位，2014年獲得同學院文化研究碩士學位。
2015年至今作為三聯生活周刊海外特約撰稿人，為雜誌每月定期撰寫藝術評 論文章。近期策劃展覽及藝術項目包括：踪跡:勒梅特夫婦國際影像收藏展(北京民生現代美術館,2016)；記憶成為早晨(成都當代美術館, 2016)；遊戲代碼—Silia & Mali 雙人展(候鳥空間,柏林,2016)；程然:奇蹟追踪(特拉維夫,以色列)；衝突之地:藝術家駐留項目(中國, 以色列, 2016-2017) 。
關於候鳥空間
候鳥計劃由盧玫女士於2015年成立於柏林，致力於中國當代藝術的海外推廣以及與國際間的交流互動。機構的主要工作迄今為止候鳥空間已經成功舉辦過多次展覽以及相關的講座、放映等公共文化教育活動；並且候鳥空間特別關注年輕藝術家在國際間的發展和推廣，為此設立的駐留項目也已經取得良好的結果。
