Conversation

Philip Courtenay writes:

Today I had a great conversation with Hangfeng.

We were catching up with ourselves after the weekend, reflecting on some of the topics of conversation. Hangfeng had heard how fascinating the discussion had been on Sunday, especially the discussion between the am space group and Jay Yung. Topics for us could include:

• wondering about the function of the spectacular type of art, in both the Biennial, Biennale and Liverpool '08 context.
• talking about working through process in a context where the fact of 'art as object' still seems to have a status that overides the value of 'things happening'.
• valuing collaborative processes.
• wondering about 'international art'! Is it international, or in fact, art world parochial?
• connections between people in different locations may be international, but they are also local.
• How are we going to make a different art for the e-space lab international?

What do you think?

Hangfeng speaks such good English. I feel embarrassed at my lack of a reciprocity in the language department. He speaks English in his everyday life as a matter of course, and this suggests a cultural environment of the exchange of concepts, and the interpretation of ideas that I do not have access to here in the UK. Translation as a process will always produce new consciousness, the discovery of other ways of thinking. My best hope is that visual material can contribute to communications in a non verbal, but nevertheless in a linguistic way. Connectedness in meaning is an ambition that continues to have appeal, along with the idea that at some points along the journey I can stir myself awake through the struggle.

We love the support we are getting from the Bluecoat and everyone involved in Shanghai and for those of us on the UK side I think it is worth pointing to something Hangfeng said in passing about the fact that in China there is no equivalent as yet to public institutions like the Arts Council in England supporting the arts and artists. There are issues to explore in this territory. I would like to suggest a project dedicated to Jin Shan and Hangfeng called "we still gonna do it too, plan still on..."

We were talking about songbirds in birdcages, and songbirds that fly away. The green ring necked parakeets of Esher in southwest London. The parrot as the proof that there are miracles (see green ring necked parakeet in picture by Jan Van Eyck). The sounds of the city and laughter as a sound. The richness in these topics will come through in the art we make. Of this I am convinced.

Hangfeng is going to take some video for me of the people in Shanghai who take their songbirds in cages to the park which are then placed near other caged songbirds, so they can sing together.