#11 Protective Peach -Tree Story

简体中文

Delighted to learn from Ayse Emel Gümüs about the protective traditions associated with peach tree wood in both China and Turkey . We went searching for peach trees at Yuyuantan park last week.

Ayse offers art workshops at the Turkish Cultural Centre in Beijing .

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Open Call for your tree story on video

Memory Palace of Trees is socio- ecological art practice which invites your participation to tell a story (or give some kind of information) about trees. It is a social enquiry of how to live better with the planet and with people by sharing tree stories.

Memory Palace of Trees will continue throughout 2022. The submissions are video format. If you have a story you can tell in less than a minute , please find your favorite tree and video yourself on your phone telling the story. I can help with adding the English or Chinese subtitles. Please ensure the sound quality of your recording is clear as possible . If you have any questions about this please ask . Also, If you are in Beijing I can meet up with you and assist in the filming .

Looking forward to hearing from you.I can be contacted directly on this platform.

 

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Video 1Empty Tendrils by Yvette Stride

Video 2Pomegranate Tree by Han Chao

Video 3Trees are Like Humans by Jenny Hong

Video 4Old Ash A real survivor by Gillian Cussen

Video 5Tree Rings of Life by Wang Ligeng

Video 6A very Weird Elf by Zhu Jinghua

Video 7Old Crabapple of Wenhua Dian by Matthew Hu

Video 8:   Standing Fast by Joseph Stewart 

Video 9:  Feeling Good  – Tree Song  by Nam

Video 10:  Forest Breath   Niamh Cunningham 

 

I am currently gathering tree stories in the format of one minute videos but in  January 2020 I collected stories in written format .

Most of these are personal stories.  Submissions came from a range of different people in the US, Europe, Australia and Asia including a children’s writer, poets, dendrologists, artists, a dancer, a forester, an ant forest app user, photographers, academics and more. 

See further down this page for these links. 

Gingko Palace  Sucrose Series 83 x 120 cm print on Aluminium  Niamh Cunningham 2020 (week 15)

 

The Second Beech  Niamh Cunningham 倪芙瑞莲2020 (week 17 of the Memory Palace of Trees)

Throughout 2020 different peoples tree stories were gathered from various people writers , artists, foresters , poets, and other people .

Ice Willow , Sucrose 8.7.2020 Print on Aluminium , Niamh Cunningham -Kosimas Willow Story 

Memory Palace of Tree Stories began in January 2020. Throughout 2020 different peoples tree stories were gathered from various people writers , artists, foresters , poets, and other people .

Chestnut – Park Tree Sucrose Series original Sucrose 50 x 50 cm  Niamh Cunningham 2020 (week 12)

 

Open Call for your tree story on video 

Memory Palace of Trees will continue in 2022. This year the submissions will be in video format. If you have a story you can tell in less than a minute (less than 60 seconds), please  find your favorite tree sit under it and video yourself  on your phone telling the story. I can help with the editing and add the English or Chinese subtitles.  Please ensure the sound quality of your recording is clear.  If you are in Beijing I can come and video you if you wish. Please ask if you have any questions about this. 

Looking forward to hearing from you.  Please email me at niamh@niamhcunningham.com

 

 

Jinan Tree Song  Sucrose Series, print on aluminium 158 x 120cm  Niamh Cunningham 2020

 

Here is a one minute video clip  for the November  2020 tree story . 

Ladybird of DongXiaokou (6 min 40 secs) video Niamh Cunningham 2020   Dancer: Zhang Yi , Music Credit: Ciorras 

 

 

#10 Forest Breath – Tree Story

 

Forest Breath Video #10

简体中文

I first encountered  the “Forest Breath” concept when reading David Haskell’s book  “Songs of Trees”. He was discussing the Formosa Pine  and I thought it a fascinating perception that “air is 400 millions years of forest breath”.

You might  wonder  how many times is it possible for  an oxygen  atom  to be recycled  after numerous binding and cleaving,  before it gets ” too old” or if even  there is such a thing as an atom getting old? 

Nevertheless , these basic atoms pass in and out of different life forms  as life evolved on earth. Where will the balance  of this  gas exchange lie  as the globes forests continue to be decimated at break neck speed . 

******

Open Call for your tree story on video

Memory Palace of Trees is socio- ecological art practice which invites your participation to tell a story (or give some kind of information) about trees. It is a social enquiry of how to live better with the planet and with people by sharing tree stories.

Memory Palace of Trees will continue throughout 2022. The submissions are video format. If you have a story you can tell in less than a minute , please find your favorite tree and video yourself on your phone telling the story. I can help with adding the English or Chinese subtitles. Please ensure the sound quality of your recording is clear as possible . If you have any questions about this please ask . Also, If you are in Beijing I can meet up with you and assist in the filming .

Looking forward to hearing from you.I can be contacted directly on this platform.

 

Video 1Empty Tendrils by Yvette Stride

Video 2Pomegranate Tree by Han Chao

Video 3Trees are Like Humans by Jenny Hong

Video 4Old Ash A real survivor by Gillian Cussen

Video 5Tree Rings of Life by Wang Ligeng

Video 6A very Weird Elf by Zhu Jinghua

Video 7Old Crabapple of Wenhua Dian by Matthew Hu

Video 8:   Standing Fast by Joseph Stewart 

Video 9:  Feeling Good  – Tree Song  by Nam

 

I am currently gathering tree stories in the format of one minute videos.  In  January 2020 I collected stories in written format .

Most of these are personal stories.  Submissions came from a range of different people in the US, Europe, Australia and Asia including a children’s writer, poets, dendrologists, artists, a dancer, a forester, an ant forest app user, photographers, academics and more. 

See further down this page for these links. 

Gingko Palace  Sucrose Series 83 x 120 cm print on Aluminium  Niamh Cunningham 2020 (week 15)

 

The Second Beech  Niamh Cunningham 倪芙瑞莲2020 (week 17 of the Memory Palace of Trees)

Throughout 2020 different peoples tree stories were gathered from various people writers , artists, foresters , poets, and other people .

Ice Willow , Sucrose 8.7.2020 Print on Aluminium , Niamh Cunningham -Kosimas Willow Story 

Memory Palace of Tree Stories began in January 2020. Throughout 2020 different peoples tree stories were gathered from various people writers , artists, foresters , poets, and other people .

Chestnut – Park Tree Sucrose Series original Sucrose 50 x 50 cm  Niamh Cunningham 2020 (week 12)

 

Open Call for your tree story on video 

Memory Palace of Trees will continue in 2022. This year the submissions will be in video format. If you have a story you can tell in less than a minute (less than 60 seconds), please  find your favorite tree sit under it and video yourself  on your phone telling the story. I can help with the editing and add the English or Chinese subtitles.  Please ensure the sound quality of your recording is clear.  If you are in Beijing I can come and video you if you wish. Please ask if you have any questions about this. 

Looking forward to hearing from you.  Please email me at niamh@niamhcunningham.com

 

 

Jinan Tree Song  Sucrose Series, print on aluminium 158 x 120cm  Niamh Cunningham 2020

 

Here is a one minute video clip  for the November  2020 tree story . 

Ladybird of DongXiaokou (6 min 40 secs) video Niamh Cunningham 2020   Dancer: Zhang Yi , Music Credit: Ciorras 

 


Overview of Memory Palace of Tree Stories

 

Tree Planter Workshop – FOR 觅 Gallery

Tree Planter Workshop简单中文

Saturday August 20th was a joy ! We had the first “Tree Planter workshop” for a range of young learners at For Gallery at Grasse Town, Tongzhou.

We discovered some information about the resilience of the Gingko leaf having withstood polluted air erupting  from volcanoes at the time of the dinosaurs, these trees are  now often a choice for town planners all over the world for city roads. We learned how it was propagated first in China over a thousand years ago then spread throughout Asia and the rest of the world .

Other origami leaves we made included the pear leaf and a double leaf.

Some young people were very adventurous and tried versions of their own design. The dead crabapple tree ( donated by the Beijing Forestry association ) was brought back to life with a variety of leaves.

The second part of the workshop “My Forest” was a collaborative construction of various kinds of trees , we learned how monoculture of the same tree type cannot support biodiversity of other plants and insects . “My Forest” was packed with various trees of all types with strange insects and surprising animals. We also looked at the idea that oxygen gets recycled again and again and the possibility of the air that we breathe is 4 million years of Forest Breath .

 

 

The energy of being in a room full of young people concentrating on their work was invigorating, the diversity of  paths they choose matched the diversity in the forest they made. Some children thought they had finished early and walked away but came back for another 20 minutes of work. There is a joy in being with people when they create new and unexpected things , when they discuss what they want to do and their decisions, whether they are young learners or seasoned professors , it always feels like a special moment.

Huge thanks to the organizers of this workshop

Little Maupassant Cup International Art Union

and gallerist Peng Chun Hui of FOR gallery

 

 

Because of this workshop,  in early October I will go to Changping to plant a number of trees , which I will document in a future blog .

 

 

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A big thank you to my translators Wang Haoning (Summer) workshop 1 and my son Fionn Cunningham Clifford for workshop 2

Workshop 2 (August 27th ) was a delight with mostly very young learners yet still wonderfully talented

 

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Previous workshop in 2019

 

 

 

 

 

 

#9 Feeling Good -Tree Song

Click here for 简单中文 

Nam’s Tree Song

This was a spontaneous moment on an artist residency last October 2021 in Xishuangbanna, Yunnan .see ”Rhythm of Life“ blog Our group of artists were exploring the largest protected tropical forest in China. We arrived at a giant buttress tree and took a rest and some photos. Dai zu artist Nam broke out into this short song of joy. Accompanying her on beats is fellow Dai zu artist Tie Farong . It only lasted 25 seconds but I was very glad to have been next to her to catch this moment .

 

Nam  is from Xishuuanbanna  Yunnan. Her monk name is Ānandī (欢喜 ) meaning happy . 

******

Open Call for your tree story on video

Memory Palace of Trees is socio- ecological art practice which invites your participation to tell a story (or give some kind of information) about trees. It is a social enquiry of how to live better with the planet and with people by sharing tree stories.

Memory Palace of Trees will continue throughout 2022. The submissions are video format. If you have a story you can tell in less than a minute , please find your favorite tree and video yourself on your phone telling the story. I can help with adding the English or Chinese subtitles. Please ensure the sound quality of your recording is clear as possible . If you have any questions about this please ask . Also, If you are in Beijing I can meet up with you and assist in the filming .

Looking forward to hearing from you.I can be contacted directly on this platform.

 

Video 1Empty Tendrils by Yvette Stride

Video 2Pomegranate Tree by Han Chao

Video 3Trees are Like Humans by Jenny Hong

Video 4Old Ash A real survivor by Gillian Cussen

Video 5Tree Rings of Life by Wang Ligeng

Video 6A very Weird Elf by Zhu Jinghua

Video 7Old Crabapple of Wenhua Dian by Matthew Hu

Video 8:   Standing Fast by Joseph Stewart 

 

Overview of Memory Palace of Tree Stories

月亮之约——夏日展览,通州

《被困的明亮树枝》 蔗糖混合媒材,直径40cmNiamh Cunningham 倪芙瑞莲 2018

Click Here for English
衷心感谢艺术家/策展人吕美邀请我参加这次五位艺术家共同参与的展览,也十分感谢FOR觅艺术空间主理人庞春慧。非常感谢一同参展的各位艺术家同行陈庆庆、秦秀娟、吕美和张戈。

这是一个令人愉快的下午,在很长一段时间减少出行居家办公之后,很高兴能与这么多新老朋友相谈甚欢。

 

《月亮之约》开幕式 20226

 

 

展览概况链接  《月亮之约》

 参展艺术家:   陈庆庆,秦秀娟, 吕美, 张戈, 倪芙瑞莲-Niamh

媒体链接 2

几幅蔗糖系列作品在本次展览中展出.

地球之柱-奥林匹克公园蔗糖系列 40 x 30cm Niamh Cunningham 倪芙瑞莲 2018 

 

元大都城墙遗址公,蔗糖系列 40 x 30cm Niamh Cunningham 倪芙瑞莲 2018 

迷雾露珠——武侯祠 蔗糖系列 100 x 50cm Niamh Cunningham 倪芙瑞莲 2018

蔗糖系列

蔗糖系列作品通过一系列过程和材料的运用,探索失去与改造。在创作过程中对作品画面多次干预,探索材料本身的物理性质如何推动了改变的进程。有些干预如同缝补画面,“烧掉”表面的数字图像,添加色彩,改变的过程当然也包括糖的结晶所产生的影响。艺术家完成了“蔗糖绘画”之后,结晶过程有可能持续使画面发生变化,擦除。画面的自然风景和环境取材于城市中的公园绿地,这些地方强烈地吸引着艺术家(这些地方包括她家附近的奥林匹克森林公园,她曾参加划龙舟训练的后海)。她的作品反映了我们生活中存在的张力,来自于转变和摧毁、建设与解构的过程对我们的塑造。

 

版纳漩涡  Niamh Cunningham 倪芙·瑞莲 布面丙烯  120x100cm 2021

版纳林冠  Niamh Cunningham 倪芙·瑞莲 布面丙烯  100x120cm 2021

参展作品除了蔗糖系列之外,还有两幅“森林的呼吸”布上绘画,这两件作品是在去年云南西双版纳在地艺术项目中创作的。

本次展览也是装置“种树”首次展出,这是一个社会生态艺术实践,旨在向公众宣传植树并用来支持当地植树项目。展览中使用的海棠树由昌平的北京林学会捐赠。这棵树整个夏季结出的“果实”将捐赠给北京林学会种树项目。

策展人吕美向媒体介绍“种树”

纸做成的树

这棵海棠树由北京林学会捐赠,它所结的“果实”将捐赠给植树项目。树上的叶子是折纸做成,花是用一元人民币纸币做的。

种树”使用流通中越来越少出现的纸币,以此促进人们对物质世界的觉察。所有物质都有物理持久性,其中一些物质,比如水可以改变其物理状态,变成冰或者蒸汽。就像水一样,实物的现金也具有转化能力,在这个项目中,纸币的物理形态将转化为即将种下的小树苗……在这里,纸用来种树。

更多相关阅读请点击链接 摇钱树的传说

非常感谢通州格拉斯小镇的FOR觅艺术空间。展览将在夏天持续整整两个月。如果您对“种树”工作坊感兴趣请与我联系。

 

Moon Covenant – Summer exhibition in Tongzhou

‘Bright stick trapped’ sucrose mixed media, 40 cm diam Niamh Cunningham 倪芙瑞莲 2018

Click here for 简单中文

A big thank you to artist/curator Mei Lu for inviting me to this five artist exhibition and also to gallerist Hui Peng Chun of For Mi Gallery and to fellow participating artists including Chen Qingqing, Xiujuan Qin, Mei Lu ,Ge Zhang.

It was a really pleasant afternoon connecting with people, old and new friends after a long spell of isolation.

 

 

Opening Reception  Moon Covenant June 2022

 

Link to the overview  with details of the five participating artists  Moon Covenant  Media Link 1

Chen QingQing, Xiujuan Qin, Mei Lu, Ge Zhang and Niamh 

Media Link 2  

Several of  the sucrose works are exhibited at this venue.

Pillars of the Earth OP , sucrose series mixed media oval 40 x 30cm Niamh Cunningham 2018

Yuan Dadu Relics Park canal , sucrose series mixed media oval 40 x 30cm Niamh Cunningham 2018

Foggy Dew- Wu Hou Ci.  (武侯祠)  sucrose series 100 x 50cm Niamh Cunningham 2021

The sucrose series explores loss and reclamation through process and materiality. It involves a sequence of multiple interventions and explores how the physical matter itself can continue to push the creation event. Some of the interventions include sewing, ‘burning off’ the digital image from the surface, adding colour and of course the crystalisation process of sugar. Once the artist has stopped working on ‘sugar painting’ the process of crystalisation may continue to transform and obliterate. The imagery itself is of nature and the environment in urban park areas for which the artist has a strong affinity. (These places include areas around Beijing such as Olympic Park where she lives next door to and Hou Hai where she used to train in dragon boat racing) Her paintings reflect the tensions we experience in lives which are shaped by the processes of transformation and obliteration .

Banna Vortex  Niamh Cunningham 倪芙。瑞莲 acrylic on canvas 100x120cm 2021

Banna Overstory Niamh Cunningham 倪芙。瑞莲 acrylic on canvas 100x120cm 2021

Apart from the Sucrose work there are also  two “Forest Breath” paintings on canvas which were made last year during an artist residency in Xishuangbana Yunnan. 

This exhibition is also the first time to show “Tree Planter” which is a socio eco practice aiming to inform the public and support local tree planting initiatives . The crab apple tree used here was donated by the Beijing Forestry Society in Changping and the “fruits” it yIelds over the Summer will be donated to their tree planting program.

Curator Mei Lu talking about “Tree Planter” to media.

Paper Makes Trees

This Crab Apple Tree was donated by Beijing Forestry Society, the “fruits” that it yields will be donated to tree planting programs.  The leaves are made from origami leaves and flowers made of one yuan bills.

Tree Planter uses a bank note that is decreasingly being used in circulation to raise awareness of our material world. All material matter has a physical permanance although some matter such as water can change its state for example  to ice or steam . Like water, physical cash also has transformative power and in this case the physicality of paper notes will be transformed into planting new saplings. .. paper is used to grow trees.

Read this link for ancient folklore on money trees.

Many thanks to the gallery  “For觅 “ in Grasse Town Tongzhou . The exhibition runs throughout the Summer for another two months. Please contact me if you would like to participate in the Tree Planter workshop. 

 

#6 A very weird elf -Memory Palace of Tree Stories

 

 

简体中文

Memory Palace of Tree Stories on video continues with a story from wood sculptor Zhu Jinghua . 

 

 

 

Hello, I am Zhu Jinghua from China. Today, I will share with you a story of tree roots and elves. The trees we usually see are  tall canopies,  composed of branches, trunks and leaves.

But we overlooked a very important part, the roots of the tree. In order for the tree roots to absorb nutrients, they grow many interesting roots with different textures, shapes, and thicknesses. These roots are organized together, and you will find emerging from this , is a very weird elf.

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I recently met Zhu Jinghua on an artist residency in Yunnan, yet we both live in Beijing .  He is a practitioner and also teaches woodcarving at China Academy of Arts .

 

 

 

 I had in fact met him briefly two years previously but I was not aware of who he was . We first encountered each other in a very deep nitrate cave behind a waterfall in Sichuan near the town of Shawan . I have even used images of his outline in an artwork and now I know who that figure is. 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

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Open Call for your tree story on video 

Memory Palace of Trees is socio- ecological art practice which invites your participation to tell a story (or give some kind of information) about trees. It is a social enquiry of how to live better with the planet and with people by sharing tree stories. 

Memory Palace of Trees will continue in 2022. The submissions are video format. If you have a story you can tell in less than a minute , please  find your favorite tree and video yourself  on your phone telling the story. I can help with adding the English or Chinese subtitles.  Please ensure the sound quality of your recording is  clear as possible . If you have any questions about this. Also, If you are in Beijing I can meet up with you and assist in the filming .

Looking forward to hearing from you.   I can be contacted directly on this platform. 

 

The Rhythm of Life -Xishuangbanna artist residency on local ethno- and bio-diversity Nov 2021

简单中文

Dai Zu artists Han Xuan  (Nam) singing and Tie Farong on beats at the giant Buttress tree. 

The role of art and culture have important roles in advancing human partnerships with nature. An ecocentric orientation in our cultures could provide landscapes for new stories of sustainability.

 I was very excited to be invited to be part of this residency at a time when both art practitioners and art academia are more committed to supporting and building better stewardship for preserving the environment .

This residency had an earlier rendition during the Dai Zu “water throwing festival” in April. During that time Covid restrictions were more relaxed and the artists had a number of academic evenings with scientists learning about their work at the tropical botanical research centre based inside the park. Unluckily for me, the Oct/Nov residency (running at the same time as the Dai Zu  “Opening door festival”)   was no longer possible to enjoy such presentations at the research centre due to the recent restrictions for Covid control.

I did however have a couple of really nice chats with prof Harald Schneider who sat on my corner of the studio for 20 mins one day. He observed that the particular Bauhinia flowers outside from where I painted were pollenated by bats rather than insects.I took great pleasure in this new knowledge, I felt enriched by it and it made me aware of how little I know of plant and animal life .

Over fifteen Chinese and foreign artists participated in the project with a supportive painting postgraduate team and also a documentary film team from Yunnan University, Kunming.  Here we can take a quick look at only some of the artists and their work and where possible I will interweave a little environmental philosophy, history and systems thinking.

 

Participants :

 

Duan Jianwei 段建伟, Chen Nan陈楠, Han Xuan罕璇, Mica米卡, Che Bai 车白, Bowa Gonggao博瓦·公高, Wu Hong武宏, Gaoxiang高翔, Zhangxin张鑫, Zhu Jinghua朱景华, Zhou Rui周睿, Dao Jun刀军 , Huang Yan黄燕, Yan Wen岩纹, Wang Wei王伟, Niamh Cunningham 倪福。瑞莲, Zhao Weijia 赵伟家, Zhao Zijie, 赵紫婕, Wang Cenjun, 王岑君 , Shang Heng, 尚恒 , Chen Tiantian, 陈甜甜 , Wang Chu, 王楚,  Zhu Xiangqi, 朱祥琦, Guo Ziyuan, 郭子媛, Tie Farong, 铁发荣, Huang Shunfu 黄顺富 

18:8 M:F (26)

 

DocumentaryTeam: Wang Yue, 王跃 , Li Sihan, 黎思涵, Luo Wenxin 罗文鑫

Duan Jianwei 段建伟

Artwork by Duan Jianwei, 段建伟

Duan Jianwei’s work focused on stylised studies of Dai Zu community in Xishuangbanna . I really enjoyed the honesty of our chats in the evening at dinner, such as the uncertainties and discomforts of beginning a work. It was easy to understand the high respect he had earned from all around. Later I realized there was burnt orange wall of the Daizu village“ opening door festival” we visited earlier and wonder if this was what caught his eye. I will ask him as I hope to visit his studio here in Beijing some day!

Photo taken on a visit to Daizu village celebrating the “Opening Door festival”.

with graduate student Zhao Zijie, 赵紫婕 and Menglun resident  Xiao Yu 小玉

 Chen Nan, 陈楠

Artwork by Chen Nan 陈楠

During the first week Chen Nan explored symbiotic relationships with organic plant and insect life. And so I was surprised  on the second week to see him working on  primitive icons of ethnocentric icons. The ‘bird man’ painting above is my favourite !

Hanxuan 罕璇

Artwork by Hanxuan

Xishuangbanna artist Hanxuan  (also known as Nam) was one of my favourite artists at the residency. She had the  gift of being able to share her good will with ease and  grace . She has impressive Dai Zu tatoos on her upper arms extending over her shoulders reaching the upper neck. HanXuan also has an amazing  singing voice (see video at the start of this blog) . Her paintings explored her native culture and stories she heard as a child.

Mica

Artwork by Mica

German digital artist Mica presented his Tree of Life to the upper floor of the guest house restaurant. Tree of Life is a special digital work on canvas where he invited all the artists to add and contribute drawings. His newly created work is of carefully trimmed exotic flora that merges into a ferocious dragon.  Mark Elvin (The retreat of the Elephants ) referred to flower viewing  as an instinctive remembrance to the lost world of human interaction with an untransformed nature. I  believe  here the notion of ‘Untransformed Nature  is turned on its head ! Mica was incredibly helpful when I had computer problems and gave me a crash course in storage of digital data. 

 Che Bai, 车白

Artwork by Che Bai

Local artist Che Bai 车白 is of Jinuo nationality. When we were on the road travelling, Jinuo mountain was pointed out to me “That is where Che Bai’s people live”. The Jinuo are specifically located in Xishuangbanna. He has been called the Picasso of Jinuo ethnic minority 基诺族. During the two weeks he painted several different ethnic groups in exaggerated styles with figures in motion.

Bowa Gonggao, 博瓦·公高

Artwork by Bowa Gonggao, 博瓦·公高

The Losuo river flowed a couple hundred metres from our Octagon guest house and Bowa Gonggao’s panorama of the tropical forest park reflected in its red clay waters with four local figures guarding the river banks. A second work by Bowa was a dance of wildlife with Dai zu roof architecture in the background . GongGao brought cheer where ever he went and is another new friend I hope to see again .

My current reading “The Retreat of the Elephants- an environmental history of China“ by Mark Elvin Yale University Press refers to an official of the Ministry of Works in  nearby Guangxi province Xie Zhaozhe’s publication “ Fivefold Miscellany”(published in 1608) The people of Yunnan rear elephants the way those in the heartland of China rear cattle and horses. They ride them on journeys. They load them up with grain…”

However by late imperial times the only elephants survived in the southwest (ie here in Yunnan ) and for palace ceremonies in the capital .

Wu Hong, 武宏

Wu Hong, 武宏

Wu Hong explores  natural earth pigments in his work. His filtering and sieving processes suggested pharmaceutical precision of locally sourced clay. He painted meditative patterns  of the Bodhi leaf motif, his intentions also include making floor installations with his pigments.

Art work by Gao Xiang, 高翔1

Art works by  Gao Xiang 高翔2

Gaoxiang is known for his large scale, contrasted impasto brushstrokes. On a previous residency I really enjoyed watching him think and pace around his canvasses before he rushed to stab them with the brush. On this occasion we were opposites sides of the wall and could not observe his process this time. His vibrant wildlife cycles of life and death such as the deer caught in the leopards mouth is a figure reworked on large canvasses. A paper in Biological Conservation (Rostro- Garcia et al 2016) listed the Indochinese leopard having only 7 viable populations , extinct in Singapore , likely to be extirpated in Laos and Vietnam, and almost extinct in Cambodia and China , with small distributions in Malaysia, Myanmar and Thailand. (Study published over 5 years ago.)

The Octagon House  ( where we slept )  &  Restaurant and  other buildings where we made studios 

Zhang Xin, 张鑫

Kunming artist Zhang Xin workspace was under the roof of the Octagon house. He layered sheets of pigment both acrylic and oil. This layered materiality made me think of the layers of time,  the eons , our notions of history are often so limited to our own era.  Zhang Xin’s work helps us put into perspective a wider history of our planet and its materials.

 

 

A mechanistic world view : 

Eco philosopher Carolyn Merchant in her book The Death of Nature (1980) examined the mechanistic world view of modern science which she claims sanctioned and gave license for the exploitation of nature. For me there is some difficulty in accepting this view, my early adult academic training is in science, I have respect for the sciences and now I discover that I identify with them which is why I am a little “put out”. The more I learn about ecophilosophy, I see contradictions are inherent in complex systems of knowledge, meaning and behavior.  But surely it was more economics that gave that licence.

 Zhu Jinghua, 朱景华

 

ZhuJinghua interweaves machinery into the  wood of the Black heart tree . When his wood arrived we all gathered in his studio /shed after dinner that night to marvel at the dark centre of the wood, feel and smell the sap. Zhu said the wood is strong and can quickly resprout and grow. Local residents grow it in front of their house as fuel for their homes to avoid deforestation.

I hope to visit Zhu Jinghua in his studio in CAFA Beijing  soon and he might even have a tree story for the ‘Memory Palace of Trees’.

Zhou Rui 周瑞

Artwork by Zhou Rui 

Xishuangbanna artist Zhou  Rui explores the roots of his native land, both in painting  celebratory ethnic dance , Dai Zu architecture and peace of place. Zhou Rui is also organizer extraordinaire, he is the other half of the curatorial team with Gao Xiang . Throughout the two weeks if he wasn’t at his easel he was moving about trouble shooting and fire fighting ensuring a safe passage for the project.

Dao Jun , 刀军

Art work by Dao Jun

Local artist Dao Jun was always up  very early and cheerful . We shared opposites sides of the studio shed .  He kindly provided me with insect repellant  rings to burn in the late afternoons and evenings. He focused on the Daizu  culture in his work . Weaving is a fascinating subject for me and  I loved this dramatic composition .

 

 Huang Yan, 黄燕

Xishuangbanna artist Huang Yan was the only artist  to  work on  paper, using ink and brush to investigate patterns of nature .

 

Wang Wei 王伟

Yunnan artist WangWei made small scale but powerful studies of tropical plant and animal life .

 

Niamh Cunningham 倪福。瑞莲

 Artwork by Niamh Cunningham

Entering the forest for one last walk was a highlight  of Xishuangbanna for me.  I walked in silence and paused when it started to rain, to listen to the drumskin thuds of different leaves and tried to distinguish different sounds coming from which exotic tree. The paintings were studies of the tree canopy and the huge butteress featured in the video at the beginning of this blog. They are giants of the forest and although roots are not embedded very deeply, their height is stablised by these wide extension structures.  Trees that look perfectly straight from a distance can often be spiral like when viewed from the base.

 

A note of gratitude:

A huge thank you to all the artists for their excellent company and from whom  I have learned so much . Also a big thank you to the postgraduate students and local artists who were ever so helpful. Special thank you to Wang Cenjun, 王岑君 and  Yan Wen岩纹. Also a big thank you to Yu Jin 玉金 manager of the Octagon(八角楼) guest house.

Many thanks to the great curatorial duo team Zhou Rui and Gao Xiang. Sincere thank you to Xishuangbanna Culture and Tourism Bureau, Xishuangbanna National Museum and all the departments involved in ensuring this artist residency a success.

 

 

The  following links have some good overview  videos

 

Media link One 

Media Link Two 

 

Working with DNA as an art material -Hair Lock and Hair Skull showing in ‘ Linear’ at LangKong, 798 -July2021

Hair Skull,artists hair, Niamh Cunningham 瑞莲 2013

简体中文

The exhibition Linear is currently showing at LangKong art Museum(朗空美术馆)   in 798 (situated 3 doors away  from Red Gate gallery )

The Hair Skull has not been exhibited in 798 since 2013 so if you are in 798 please come along, you can also see the Hair Lock. These are works made over 7 years ago. The Hair lock was exhibited in New York (2015) and Taipei (2016) with the Intimate Transgressions project.

Hair Lock, artist’s hair, Niamh Cunningham 2015

Working with DNA as an art material :

Physically knitting your own genomic material is a very contemplative process. Each strand is tested for strength, elasticity and tensility before being selected for specific sections of the sculpture. The white hairs are strong and tensile and suspend the skull with ease. The coloured hair is soft but elastic and resilient.

All perceptions are acts of interpretation:

Being able to see through own genome and acknowledging it as your “coded” self as well as your personal story or experience, this screen of transparent knitted hair frames your world view. Holding on to the idea that it is my perception, acknowledging my referenced life (family traits and other things that are contained in my genome) and personal experience, this is what is framing my view of the world.

 

Consciousness is controlled hallucinations:

This is an interesting soundbite worth looking into. We know now that green red and yellow colours are not objective properties of objects in the world, they are just attributes of reflected light. And as the brain works out calculations of wavelengths of light it determines what colour something is. So we don’t even passively receive colour from the world but we actively attribute it to things in the world.

Neuro scientist Anil Seth talks about controlled hallucinations as being our consciousness and says it is not just our perceptions of the outside world but also ourselves, our memory, everything we perceive is a construction.  According to Seth instead of perception depending largely on signals coming into the brain from the outside world, it depends as much, if not more, on perceptual predictions flowing in the opposite direction. We don’t just passively perceive the world. We actively generate it. The world we experience comes as much, if not more, from the inside out as from the outside in.

Hair Skull, artists hair, Niamh Cunningham 2013

Cultural perception and our ecological crisis:

This brings us back to our ecological crisis. How can we change our perspective and ways of relating to ‘life’ as a planetary process. Developing a cultural ability to see our actions and the changes we can make, to view this from a systemic perspective would be a good goal. I believe culture and the arts have a vital role in shifting these norms of perception to positive changes in consumer choice which will leading to new industries and economies which are actually sustainable.  

 

******************

Many thanks to curator Chang Feng, whom I have known many years and for whom I have the highest respect. Also to director Li Zheng 李征 of Langkong Art Museum  and all the hardworking team involved in ‘Linear’ .

Opening of ‘Linear’ at Langkong art Musuem 798  on Sat 10th July 2021

Linear will be exhibited till Jul 30th. There are amazing works showing by these artists ,

阿德里亚·彼得斯Adrian Peters(德国)\阿莲娜Alëna Olasyuk(乌克兰)\比尔·彭伯恩Bill Pangburn (美国) \陈澈Chen Che \高风Gao Feng \张丹Zhang Dan \李家瑞Li Jiarui \李沅Li Yuan \邵维春Shao Weichun \卢琳Lu Lin \王世龙Wang Shilong \王琪Wang Qi \夏国Xia Guo \杨志凌Yang Zhiling \张庭群Zhang Tingqun \张泓Zhang Hong \冉启泉Ran Qiquan \ 李永庚Li Yonggeng \ 吉苏•金Gisoo Kim(德国) \ 丁文尧Ding Wenyao \何红云He Hongyun(德国)\瑞莲Niamh Cunningham(爱尔兰)\刘水洋Liu Shuiyang\奥罗拉·诺雷纳·佛朗哥Aurora Noreña(墨西哥)\青木健二Kenji Aoki(JAPAN/USA)\陈学刚Chen Xuegang.          

 

At the opening on Saturday it was great to see old friends from projects years ago such as

张庭群Zhang Tingqun

I first met  Zhang Tingqun at an exhibition in Ordos, Zhang’s focus on the line is tantamount to his control of the brush.

李家瑞Li Jiarui

Over the years I often bumped into Li JiaRui on different projects in Qingdao , Ordos  and even the Gobi Dessert ! His supersaturated infusions of line and motion create space and time yet to be imagined.

陈学刚Chen Xue Gang

I first met video artist Chen Xue Gang  on the train to Hohot in 2015 for an exhibition . I remember his GIFS and our conversation back then. His current video work is a delightful morphing of human form .

杨志凌Yang Zhiling

I met Yang Zhiling a few years ago on a special visit to his impressive studio. 

陈澈Chen Che

This week I have found a new friend in Chen Che whose interests also strongly interweave fragmentation with nature. He has great English and kindly helped me with translation during speech time.

阿莲娜Alëna Olasyuk

Olasyuk takes penmanship to a different level, my personal favourites are her black works which defeat the limits of the paper surface.

王琪Wang Qi

 

There are many more participating artists I am looking forward to getting to know . 

‘Linear’ will run till July 30th at Langkong Art Museum in 798 , Beijing , it will then tour other cities such as Shenyang, Chengdu and Shanghai. Please click on the links for a more detailed overview of this exhibition. 

To see an overall view of the artworks by these artists please click on the links

 

Link 1 https://mp.weixin.qq.com/s/LDdm7QCVhqhEmKZFikABvA

 

Link 2 http://www.ym-china.com/zhanhuizixun/5787.html

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

New Interpretations of Art and Heritage -Suzhou Classical Gardens

Winding Wall  – Sucrose Series Niamh Cunningham 2021 

 

“Silent and Soft – It moistens everything -New Deconstruction of Art and Heritage” 

This current exhibition held at the Couples Garden Retreat  which is one of the nine World Heritage Gardens in Suzhou Classical Gardens .

 

 

 

 

 

The exhibits involve sculpture, painting, calligraphy, photography, video and installation. These works of art use contemporary art language and garden heritage dialogue, in the deep courtyard of classical gardens, “moisten things silently” into the garden, into the world cultural heritage.

 

A special thank you to curator Rong Chen, and all the Suzhou team involved.

Thank you also to artist friend 朱志刚 Zhu ZhiGang  

For a long time, I have been fascinated by the complicated and often disorienting landscapes of Chinese gardens. In these highly regarded gardens, scholars borrow from the Confucian geometric order, the Taoist search for an elixir (which is closer to the natural world than Confucian ceremonial). Gardens can also assist in meditation, as in Buddhism. The picture extends in an uncanny way in time and space, revealing long-ago insights into the natural world.

 

Participating artists: 

DIRD / Cai Dongdong / Chen Rong / Chen Naiqian / Cong Yunfeng / Donal Turner / Dai Jiafeng / Ding She / Fang Minyao / Guo Kewei / Hang Tianyi / Liu Changming / Liang Yajie / Lu Junzhou / Luo Bonian / Ni Fu Ruilian / Qian Ruya / Rushi Humanity Space / Sun Cunming / Tang Huawei / Tong Yan Runan / Wang Dameng / Cao Yonghua / Wang Qingsong / Wang Yabin / Wumen Aesthetic Art Institute / Wu Mengyuan / Yang Lidan / Zhu Xinyi / Naga Art Studio / Zhao Rongjun / Zhu Zhigang

 

 

The UNESCO World Heritage Training and Research Center in the Asia-Pacific Region (WHITRAP) is UNESCO’s Category 2 International Institution (Category 2 Centre), the first professional institution in the field of heritage protection established in a developing country. It serves the signatory countries of the World Heritage Convention in the Asia-Pacific region and other UNESCO member states, and is committed to the protection and development of world heritage sites in the Asia-Pacific region. The UNESCO World Heritage Training and Research Center in the Asia-Pacific Region is composed of three centers in Beijing, Shanghai and Suzhou. Suzhou Center (contracted by the Suzhou Municipal Government) is mainly responsible for traditional building technology and restoration, analysis of protection materials, and restoration and maintenance of historic gardens.

 

润物细无

艺术与遗产新解

Silent and soft, it moistens everything

New Interpretation of Art and Heritage

2021.6.12 — 7.11

开幕时间:6.12 下午1:00-2:30

分享时间:6.12 下午2:30-3:30

苏州耦园  

苏州市姑苏区仓街小新桥巷6

 

主办单位 Organizer:

联合国教科文组织亚太地区世界遗产培训与研究中心(苏州)

The World Heritage Institute of Training and Research for the Asia and the Pacific Region under the auspices of UNESCO(Suzhou)

 

苏州对外文化交流促进会园林文化专业委员会

Suzhou Association for the Promotion of International Cultural

Exchanges, Suzhou Gardens Committee

 

苏州吴门美学艺术研究院

Suzhou Wumen Institute of Art and Research

 

承办单位 Undertaker:

苏州市耦园管理处

Management Office of the Couple’s Garden Retreat

 

支持单位 Support unit:

西湖当代美术馆

Moca Westlake

骆伯年艺术基金会

Bonian Luo Art Foundation

如石人文空间 

Rushi Cultural Space

 

 

To view all the participating artworks in this project  the below links can be autotranslated into English

 

Link 1

 

Link 2

 

Link 3

 

Link 4 

 

Link 5 

 

Link 6