Speaking of Austria, I believe that everyone is familiar with the labels: Danube, Vienna, Stephen's Cathedral, music... As everyone knows, in the north of Austria, on the upper reaches of the Danube River, there is a low-key and elegant city - Linz. Every year in September, Linz hosts an audiovisual media art festival, the Austrian Linz Electronica Festival, which is famous enough to cover non-Austrian borders. Every year on a fine autumn day, artists, biochemical researchers and scientists from all over the world are invited to this quiet town to discuss the integration of art, technology and human society at exhibitions and symposiums.
November is also the late autumn season for Shenzhen, the design capital located in the south of China. On November 2, 2019, the blockbuster exhibition "40 Years of Science and Technology Art – From Linz to Shenzhen", co-sponsored by China Merchants Shekou Design Internet, Central Academy of Fine Arts and The Austrian Linz Electronic Art Festival, was also officially opened at the Shenzhen Sea World Culture and Art Center.
(40 Years of Documenta Scene)
Science and technology: humanizing science
The 40th Anniversary Documenta traces the 40-year history of global science and technology art and the development of China's science and technology art, from the digital revolution and the development of the Internet in the 1980s and 1990s to today's biotechnology and artificial intelligence, Western science and technology art has evolved in the infiltration of technology and culture. In addition, it also sorts out the development context of China's science and technology art, showing the new pattern of communication and exchange of science and technology art in various dimensions of colleges, art institutions and the public.
"This exhibition sets its sights on the past 40 years. During this period, the so-called 'digital revolution' has risen rapidly, sweeping the world, bringing subversive challenges to global society... Today, with the development of science and technology, the relationship between human society and science and technology is also evolving, and a new round of paradigm transformation is brewing. One sign is an independent movement of numbers themselves from automation to autonomy. This paradigm shift will not only have an impact on industry, but will also act on every aspect of daily life, forcing us to rethink the definition of human beings. Martin Honzik, senior director and curator of the Linz Electronic Arts Festival, said of the exhibition's theme.
When asked what is the connection between the "40 years of science and technology art" and the two cities of Linz and Shenzhen, Martin told reporters: "What does '40 years of science and technology art' mean?" We call it humanizing science. I hope you can see that we are paying attention to the development of these two cities: on the one hand, Linz was a highly polluted industrialized city in the late 70s, when we had a vision of investing in culture to change our environment and lives. This is not to exclude industry, but to find a way for everyone to participate in and survive and develop well; on the other hand, Shenzhen is also deeply affected by the industrial revolution, and our exhibition is focused on the story of the industrial revolution in human society. A hundred years ago, the Industrial Revolution transformed our society and continues to affect the environment around us, everyone's home, and everyone's behavior. ”
(Martin Hozik in an interview with the media)
For the Sino-Austrian joint exhibition, another co-curator, Qiu Zhijie, the dean of the School of Experimental Art of the Central Academy of Fine Arts and an artist, said: "Forty years is not a long time for ancient Chinese civilization. Looking back at history, Chinese civilization once created the perfect combination of technology and art, and now is the time for us to face the 'Needham problem' again: Why did the once glorious Chinese scientific and technological civilization stagnate? This is the significance of history and archaeology, and the value of documenta, which is carried out at the same time. The cultural identity allergies spawned by the humiliation and existential crisis of recent history are healing, and the self-transformation and transformation of civilization is being completed. Through this Shenzhen experiment, China is re-emerging as a technological civilization and once again confronting the frontier of human destiny. ”
Crystallization is beautiful
For four decades, the topic of the Electronic Art Festival in Linz, Austria, has involved a comprehensive reflection on all levels and angles of contemporary technological progress, combined with artistic processing, which has spawned countless wonderful works.
The reporter saw at the exhibition site that in a dark room of about 10 square meters, there were many audiences. In the middle of the room, a long dress for women with a blue glow was suspended by many silk threads. According to the live explanation of artist Yomi Osaki, this dream dress woven of fluorescent silk is woven using silk from a modified silkworm with luminous jellyfish and coral genes added. Therefore, in the dark situation of the scene, it can still emit a dreamy blue light. By incorporating biological theories of science and technology, she hopes to invite people to think about the limits and limitations of the interaction between art, science and technology.
(Works by artist Yomi Osaki, dresses woven of fluorescent silk)
On the other side of the exhibition hall, the reporter saw a special display case next to many curious audiences. In the display case, there are red and blue experimental bottles, and next to the experimental bottles, there are two genetic maps displayed, and a small text is attached below to explain the taste of the perfume before, middle, and back. This is the work "Human x Shark" by Japanese artist Ai Hasegawa, and the physical part is composed of two bottles of perfume, one is called "Human" and the other is called "Shark". The "human" scent blends the scent of wild jasmine with the grapefruit essence, known for stimulating the sympathetic nervous system, which the artist believes is an aroma that activates pleasure, wildness and inner abilities at the same time. "Shark" mainly uses trimethylamine oxide (TMAO), so that the perfume can visually express the shark's metallic skin, and the seaweed extract that reminds people of the smell of seawater. Japanese artist Hasegawa loves to explore how humans and animals communicate through smells. The artist thought that in the future, biotechnology may also enable humans to reproduce in the same sex or parthenogenesis. In the artist's view, the shark symbolizes "a robust and wild woman who takes full advantage of black technology." The work embodies an exploration of women's identity, which the artist hopes to fully express her attitude of not being bound by any traditional "feminine" ideas. With the help of art and design, she offers a wild poetic imagination of the repression that most Japanese women suffer in Japanese society.
(Japanese artist Ai Hasegawa's "Human x Shark")
In addition, there is also this year's popular network of artificial intelligence robot "Xia Yubing" improvised for the audience and improvised poetry, attracting many viewers to watch. In addition, Isaac Monté and Toby Kiers bring beautiful utensils made from the hearts of discarded pigs, and the artist tries to show the beauty of "deception" in an artistic way, in order to explore the controversial issue of how much technology can manipulate the human body... The variety of exhibits in the forest is breathtaking, and the enthusiasm for exploring the future world is gradually ignited.
(Artificial intelligence robot "Xiaoice" improvised for reporters)
(Artists Isaac Monté and Toby Kiers' works "Deception")
Like the Linz Electronic Arts Festival, the city of Shenzhen has gone through 40 years. As Qiu Zhijie said in his opening speech: "40 years in Chinese culture is not a midlife crisis, it is forty years. 40 years ago, the city was proposed as a great solution, and today, the city has efficient social governance, strong manufacturing capabilities and a vibrant innovative personality; every young person who believes that innovation changes fate and changes the world, they are working hard. Such a city is simply the ideal soil for technology, because every young person here is changing their lives by blazing new trails. He concluded that Shenzhen is the city of Dreams in China. Imagine that in another 10 years, the city of Shenzhen will surely become a new center of science and technology and art in the world. In the process of Shenzhen's rise as a science and technology art center, let us look forward to how it plays its role and assumes its responsibilities.
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