(Durational performance 2011)
Tile Factory
“Shanzhai” refers to Chinese imitation and pirated brands and goods, particularly electronics. The title “Seven Shanzhai Pieces” refers to Marina Abramovic’s “Seven Easy Pieces”. For this project, Lan Hungh chooses 7 performances, as she did, but only in search of inspiration: instead of intending to keep the history straight, Lan takes these historical pieces as his “found objects” and reproduces his own experience of them. The work poses questions about the possibility of “copying” performance art and ironically reflects about the copyright of some pieces that where conceived against the market and against any idea of ownership.
Seven Shanzhai Pieces
Shanzhai (Chinese: 山寨; pinyin: shānzhài; alternatively spelt shanzai or shan zhai) refers to Chinese imitation and pirated brands and goods, particularly electronics. Literally “mountain village” or “mountain stronghold”, the term refers to the mountain stockades of regional warlords or bandits, far away from official control. “Shanzhai” can also be be used to refer to people who are lookalikes, to low-quality or even to improved plagiarisms, as well as to parodies.
This title, “Seven Shanzhai Pieces”, refers back to Marina Abramovic’s “Seven Easy Pieces”. In this work she reproduces very respectfully pieces of her choice. She asked the owners for permission and followed all copyright laws. In an interview in New York Times in early November 2005, Abramović explained her impulse for the creation of her most recent performances, stating that “she felt a strong need to preserve the memory of performances that had influenced her as an artist. ‘There’s nobody to keep history straight … I feel almost like obliged.. I felt like I have this function to do it.’ And this sense grew stronger when she began to see ideas behind many important performances borrowed or appropriated by advertising and fashion and with no credits or reference.”
Beginning on November 9, Abramović presented Seven Easy Pieces at the Guggenheim Museum. On seven consecutive nights she recreated the works of five artists originally performed in the 60s and 70s. In addition she performed two pieces by her.
For this project, I also choose 7 performances as she did, and try to get inspired by them (not to reproduce them) but with a different intention. Instead of thinking whether we are keeping history straight, I try to take history as my “found object” to reproduce my own experience from these pieces. They maintain a similar shape but never the same approaches they had.
All the names of artists and pieces are changed (Shanzhaied), and no one was asked for giving me the copyrights to perform. Most of the mentioned artists are still very active today and they are representatives of performance art nowadays.
Performances are sometimes risky in some ways (as the idea of Shanzhai is), but the main issue lies in the words “reproduced” or “inspired by”: In the market, it could lead to a power game or to big brands starting to sue Shanzhai companies when they get bigger and therefore more menacing (see Apple vs. Samsung). In art, styles can be copied, a concept can be copied, but, how can we judge similarities? Visually? By feeling? By concepts? By names and texts? What is the content of performance art? Can a sculptor sue a performer? Can actions be copyrighted (like smartphone multi-touch gestures)?
Another approach in this work refers to the definition of “performance art” and “performing art”; while a performance is being reproduced, is the artist who is reproducing it trying to pretend that he was the original artist? Do we call it theater? When reproducing is the very intention, should it be called “conceptual art” or still “performance art”?
These pieces are not homages, they are not copies, but they are new pieces that are inspired by these respectable artists, or by works that touch me. In these new pieces I’ll put my personality and character as I always do, and no matter how similar they are, my focus is on their differences.
1. Bruce Newman: Press Body *1
Instructions:
Press Body
Use your body; try to press it against the surface in front of you.
Do as strong as possible. Try to turn your face aside.
Be focused and push strongly.
Open your hands, either side is OK.
Imagine your shadow on the opposite side pressing against you, very hard.
You feel the force against you, but you also push hard against it.
Think of its pressure.
Move forward your body more into the surface.
Forget about the air in between you two.
(Compress the air.)
Feel each part of your two bodies touching each other,
How they touch, feel if they are the same part of body or different ones.
Think of other person’s body pushing yours.
Guess if he is facing you or giving his back to you.
How much surface connects both parts when touching.
Think of your muscles, if they are relaxed or maybe not.
Whether your joints hurt or not, what are the shapes of your muscles while pressing;
Focus also on your sweat, smell (odors) and pores.
This is definitely a sensual experience.
Bruce Newman, Press Body, 2011, © Jerusalem
2. Mariyoko Abramonoic: Cut Rhythm Piece 0 *2
Instructions.
On the table you can find 72 objects, including many pairs of scissors. You can use them on me as desired.
Performance.
Do actions to the artist as if I were an object.
If you choose scissors, please cut a piece of my clothes.
Law and Moral are ALWAYS above Art. Think of it before doing anything!
3. Moma Kaboom: Negotiable *3
I’ll be tied up, by you.
I’ll be wrapped, by you.
Please Free Me, I have to do performances.
4. Hsie Taiching: one performance; Life is Art When You are in a Show *4
You can turn your Life into Art.
5. Joseph Boys: Wie man dem Publikum, das Hasen vortäuscht, das Bild erklärt *5
You are the Dead Hare and you do art.
6. Oh!Lan: Le Baiser du Public *6
Artists need money, Artists need audience too.
7. Lie Zi: The foolish old man who removed the mountains *7
Story by Lie Zi from “Lie Zi. Tang Wen Section”, Wrote around 460 B.C. Warring States Time.
There is an ancient Chinese fable called “The Foolish Old Man Who Removed the Mountains”. It tells of an old man who lived in northern China long, long ago and was known as the Foolish Old Man of North Mountain. His house faced south and beyond his doorway stood the two great peaks, Taihang and Wangwu, obstructing the way. He called his sons, and hoe in hand they began to dig up these mountains with great determination. Another graybeard, known as the Wise Old Man, saw them and said derisively, “How silly of you to do this! It is quite impossible for you few to dig up those two huge mountains.” The Foolish Old Man replied, “When I die, my sons will carry on; when they die, there will be my grandsons, and then their sons and grandsons, and so on to infinity. High as they are, the mountains cannot grow any higher and with every bit we dig, they will be that much lower. Why can’t we clear them away?” Having refuted the Wise Old Man’s wrong view, he went on digging every day, unshaken in his conviction. God was moved by this, and he sent down two angels, who carried the mountains away on their backs. Today, two big mountains lie like a dead weight on the Chinese people. One is imperialism, the other is feudalism. The Chinese Communist Party has long made up its mind to dig them up. We must persevere and work unceasingly, and we, too, will touch God’s heart. Our God is none other than the masses of the Chinese people. If they stand up and dig together with us, why can’t these two mountains be cleared away?
[Citation from Comrade Mao Tse-tung's concluding speech at the Seventh National Congress of the Communist Party of China.]
*1 inspired by: Bruce Nauman‘s Body Pressure.
*2 inspired by Marina Abramovic‘s Rythm 0 and Yoko Ono‘s Cut Piece.
*3 inspired by Mona Hatoum‘s Negotiating Table.
*4 inspired by Hsieh Tehching‘s Art/life. One year performance.
*5 inspired by Joseph Beuys‘s Wie man dem toten Hasen die Bilder erklärt.
*6 inspired by Orlan‘s Le Baiser de l’artiste.
*7 Lie Zi was his true name and his story happened centuries before Francis Alÿs created When faith moves mountains.
