Jony 周宁 Snaps – The Loreli Anniversary Party

Party Shots

The lovely Jony took her camera to Ballhouse two Fridays ago to snap some shots of the Loreli party. Can you spot yourself? Take a look.

Head over to LOOK's November archive to see more of Jony's work and read our interview with her to get a slice of her personality pie. Thanks for the photos, Jony <3

An Art Show – interview with Shannon Lethbridge

Art Spectacular

Interview via email on October 16.

KL: From memory, An Art Show began on an extremely cramped night at 69 Café. Did you realise you would attract such a large crowd on that first night? When organising the first AAS what were your expectations?

SL: I remember being super nervous. It was a lot of pressure for it to be a good night because one, I was organising it, and two, there were so many people involved who had faith in the event.

The good thing about it was that I had little to no expectations, I was just really excited to be sharing my art and it was empowering to be taking a leadership role.

KL: What prompted you to feature artists, writers, and musicians in the same performance space?

SL: My artwork is very much connected to my music, yoga and often inspires my poetry writing. So It only made sense to me to incorporate all three into one show. 

KL: How important do you think collaboration is in the Beijing creative scene?

SL: AAS only came about through collaboration. Simply just talking to other musicians, artists, and poets sparked ideas for all the events. 

From organising events, I realised how different musicians, artists, and poets are to each other. That's a challenge for me to really connect everyone together. The more shows I organise the more creative people I meet and that personally inspires me to push the boundaries, break barriers and continue the attempt to create unity between musicians, poets, and artists. Together we can make a stronger and more lasting imprint on the creative scene.

KL: What do you think are the major problems experienced by artist, writers, and musicians in Beijing? Are they similar problems or unique to medium? Does AAS work to solve any of these problems?

SL: A major problem that has been spoken about is not having a platform to explore and experiment on.This mainly came up with the musicians feeling like there wasn't an audience who would appreciate experimental and improvised music. 

A lot of the artist that I approached weren't doing any art at the time, simply because they were too busy with their jobs or just focused on other creative mediums. AAS gave some artist a reason to create again. There are many artists that have amazing work but don't have the opportunity to share their work, so I think that's why some artist lose interest to create. 

I also had a similar reaction with one of the Chinese poets. His energy was mostly focused on his job. Then after performing at AAS his writing became a priority. The beauty of this story is that AAS inspired him to write again, not for others to enjoy but for his own pleasure. 

AAS is working on providing a platform for creatives to present art/music/poetry that is authentic in a supportive environment. 

KL: How has your personal Beijing story played out? What encouraged you to become a leader/facilitator in the scene?

SL: I originally came to Beijing to reconnect The Plum Trees, a duo band that my brother (Clancy "Oopow" Lethbridge) and I formed back in Australia. My brother had been living here for 2 years already. he just never came back to Australia, so I decided to move to China for a year to record some music with him.

We eventually formed a full band and the music scene was pretty good here compared to back home. This enticed me to stay a bit longer. 

In my second year, I decided to have the hutong experience. No kitchen and an outdoor shower/toilet. During winter was the harshest period for me physically and mentally. It was impossible for me to escape the freezing cold weather and the pollution. On top of that, I had music and singing taken away from me because my neighbours would repetitively bang on the thin walls every time I played. To be fair I played during their bedtime, which is when the creative part of my brain is awake. It was during this time that I used yoga, meditation, and art to get me through it all. 

After all that I had a range of watercolour paintings that were all connected to my mental state of living in a hutong and the distinct seasons in Beijing. I didn't have any new music to share, so I really wanted to share my art but there was no platform for what I had created. 

Anyways, My friend Nathan Borofka (musician and singer/songwriter) organised a Folk Festival (with music and poetry) at 69 Cafe and the Caravan. It was inspiring to see someone create their own show rather than waiting for a venue to contact them. It really changed my view on how the music scene works. I realised that the scene had so much more potential and I felt like I had been limiting myself for a long time.

I pitched the idea to him about incorporating art into his shows. Nathan supported the idea from the beginning and now. I don't think AAS would have existed if it weren't for his encouragement. 

KL: Are there any particular artists, writers or musicians you’d like to advocate?

SL: That's a tough question, there are so many talented people out there !!

I would like to mention my brother Clancy "Oopow" Lethbridge. He's been pushing the boundaries with his solo music as a bass player (as well as in his experimental duo "The Spectacular Fish Riders", "Djang San + Band" and "The Plum Trees") and I'm really looking forward to sharing his projects. He's also a major supporter of AAS and has been photographically documenting the events. 

I would also like to mention Lina, a talented photographer. She's her own boss and had just recently opened up a gallery/cafe' called "L-space" on Baochao Hutong. 

Sintia Amber who first discovered AAS at Bookworm. She contacted me only a few months ago with her first poem she had written. Now she performs at AAS incorporating acoustic guitar, poetry, and photography all together. She's one to look out for! 

KL: These events have become a regular occurrence, how difficult or tiring is it logistically to put on a regular event?

SL: It's very time consuming since I pretty much organise every aspect of the events. I'm also very detailed when it comes to these events which means more work for me to do. At the same time, I push myself really hard to get my own art and music projects done in time for the events. 

I book venues at least two months in advance and by that time I also have concept ideas and artists who want to get involved. Usually, I'm organising two events at a time. All the music and poets are booked a month and a half in advance so that all the advertising can be done a month before the show. 

KL: What has been your proudest moment running AAS?

SL: My proudest moment was being able to share my brothers travel photography at DDC. He's a very modest guy who is very talented. It was a big thing for me to see his work displayed and given recognition by the creative community.

KL: What do you have planned for the future? 

SL: I'm not planning too far ahead, however for the next year I want to continue organising AAS and continue to build on concepts and make them a reality. To be more specific about the shows I definitely want to involve more visual arts such as animation and film that is connected to poetry and music. 

KL: What would you say to entice the reader of this interview to your next event?

SL: It'll be building off the previous concepts of nature and there'll be more collaboration between art, music, and poetry.

We are still deciding on the venue and date of the next event. Hopefully a sneaky show in winter. 

Li Linlin 李琳琳 - Dreams, Subconscious and Mythology

Artist

Interview via email with Deva Eveland translated by Jacques Qu

DE: What role does theatricality play in your work?

LL: In my work, the role of theatricality is to escape from reality. The social problems in China’s reality are everywhere and there is no way to avoid them. But I think excessive concern about social problems would harm the freedom and diversity of art. Nowadays many Chinese artists are hijacked by social problems. I hope to find in my art an approach of mythology and prophecy, which is linked to reality, too, but not without a proper distance. 

DE: 戏剧性在你的作品扮演着什么样的角色？

LL: 戏剧性在我的作品中起到的作用是离开现实。在中国社会现实中的问题比比皆是，让人无法回避。但对社会问题过度关注我认为会损害艺术的自由和丰富性。当下中国的很多艺术家都被社会问题绑架了。我希望在自己的艺术中重新找到一种神话和预言的手法，这种预言同样与现实相关，但又有一层距离感。

DE: What about the grotesque?

LL: I don’t think my works are grotesque. All my works are from personal experiences in my real life. There experiences altogether form my creation. So there is no intention to be create something grotesque.

DE: 怪诞呢？又是什么样的角色？

LL: 我觉得我的作品并不怪诞，我的所有作品都来自于真实生活中的个人体验，这些体验混杂在一起形成了我的创作，所以并没有去刻意追求怪诞。                      

DE: Are the different parts of Savage Garden linked by a common theme or narrative? Or is each rabbit hole its own little world?

LL: Actually the eight boxes belong to the same theme, but it’s not obvious due to the loose arrangement in the expression. The theme is about the birth of a life and the confinement of the life by the social system, as well as the rebirth of a new life once the system collapses.

DE:《野人花园》的各个部分是通过一个共同的主题或者故事相联系吗？还是说每个兔子洞都通向它自己的小小世界？

LL: 其实这八个箱子是有一个共同主题的，但因为表达的方式比较松散所以不容易看出来。这个主题是关于一个生命的诞生和社会体制对生命的禁锢，以及整个体制崩溃后新生命的重生。

DE: Both Savage Garden and the piece with the school desks have an Alice in Wonderland-like quality. There's a rich interior world hidden behind a mundane façade. Can you discuss this?

LL: Many friends also say that this work looks like Alice In Wonderland. But when I first had the idea, it was like Decameron, expressing the same theme with various styles. I like giving people surprises. The appearance and the meaning of the work are in two completely different styles. Each box differs from all others in its style, but they are telling the same story. The peep from under the bed is the beginning of the story and the birth of a life. Mushrooms growing on the electric appliances are the end of a story, but also represent the rebirth of new lives.

DE:《野人花园》和30个课桌的作品都有《爱丽丝梦游仙境》的质感。在平淡无奇的外表下蕴藏着丰富的内在世界。你可以具体讲解一下吗？

LL: 许多朋友也说这个作品像《爱丽丝梦游奇境》。其实这个作品在开始构思的时候是延续了《十日谈》的手法，用不同的风格来表达一个意思，我喜欢给人惊喜的感觉，作品的外表和内在完全是两种风格，每一个箱子的手法都是有区别的，但它们讲的都是同一个故事，床下的偷窥是故事的开始及生命的诞生。电器里长蘑菇是故事的结束，是代表新生命的重生。    

DE: Your work has a lot of mushrooms growing out of it. What do they mean to you?

LL: Different from other plants, mushrooms contain a unique meaning. Normal plants get energy from the sunshine, but mushrooms get energy from the dark, so it is most suitable for the theme of death and rebirth.

DE: 你的作品里冒出了很多的蘑菇。它们对于你有什么意义？

LL: 蘑菇与其它植物相比是有特殊含义的。一般植物吸收的能量来自阳光，而蘑菇的能量来自黑暗，所以它最适合表达死亡与重生这个主题。

DE: When I visited your studio, it was hard not to notice the shelves of neatly organized animal skulls and the plastic containers stuffed with little bones. When you work with them, do you have a sense of holding in your hand something that was once a living creature? Or does it become just like any kind of material a sculptor might use?

LL: In my eyes, they’re a material representing life and death. I don’t think too much about the lives that once inhabited in them.

DE: 在造访你的工作室时，我很难不去观察架子上整齐摆放的动物头骨和塞满细小骨头的塑料容器。当你摆弄它们的时候，你会感觉到手心里是一个曾经拥有生命的活物吗？还是说它们之于你仅仅好比某种材料之于雕塑家？

LL: 在我看来它们就是一种代表生命和死亡的材料，我不太会去想它们是生命本身。

DE: Is it awkward to purchase large numbers of cat and dog skulls? Do you have to explain what you’re doing with them?

LL: Actually I’m more passive in choosing animal bones. I use whatever I can find for my work, and I hope these bones are from dead animals.

DE: 购买大量的猫和狗的骨头——这让你感到尴尬吗？你买的时候需要解释吗？

LL: 我在选择动物骨骼上其实是被动的。我把自己能找到的材料做成作品，我更希望这些骨骼的来源是已经死去的动物。

DE: I think you mentioned you have done some of your own taxidermy, though we were communicating half in gestures due to the language difference. Is that right? If so, I want to know more!

LL: Probably it’s due to the language difference. I bought the bones from specialists of taxidermy. I don’t make them myself. But I did make the mushroom by myself. 

DE: 我记得你提过有些标本是你亲手制作的（不过因为语言的障碍，我们有一半时间都在用手势交流）。事实情况是否真的如我所想？要是果真如此，我很想知道更多细节！

LL: 可能是语言的问题，这些骨骼是我从制作标本的专业人员那里买来的。我自己不会做动物骨骼标本。蘑菇的部分是我自己做的。

DE: Your artist statement mentions that your work is more connected to concepts like dreams, the subconscious and mythology rather than social reality. What draws you to these fantastic themes?

LL: What I meant was I didn’t show social reality directly, but rather established the linkage between myself and reality through dreams, subconscious and mythology. The themes of my work originated from some very private experiences, and also some inspiration from movie scenes.

DE: 你的艺术家自述中提到，你的作品与梦境、潜意识和神话有深层次的联系，而非社会现实。是什么吸引你选择这些奇妙的主题？

LL: 我的意思是我没有直接表达社会现实，而是通过梦和潜意识、神话等手法来实现自我与现实之间的联系。作品的主题来源于一些很个人的私密体验，也有一些灵感源于电影的场景。   

DE: I’d love to have dreams that take place in Savage Garden. Do you ever dream about your art?

LL: I guess I never did. To me, creation is a conscious process. Every scene is constructed through a lot of design work and experimentation.

DE: 我很想做一个在《野人花园》里发生的梦。你梦到过自己的艺术作品吗？

LL: 没有梦见过吧。对我来说创作是一个有意识的过程。每一个场景都是通过大量设计和实验来完成的。

李琳琳可以将自己的领悟深入到微观世界，例如一只蘑菇。但是她没有将世界理解为孤立的大小，而是相互关联和不断结构的存在，这就是为什么她希望通过一件作品的制作讲述“不同的故事”的原因。艺术家说她喜欢安排戏剧，可是发生的一切都是真实的，一出戏就是一个事件，你不能假设那是虚幻的艺术，而另外的事件是具体的现实，换句话说，世间的一切都是真实的或虚幻的。生活经历的复杂性影响着人的理解，组织戏剧和引导观看成为李琳琳的兴趣中心，只是，一旦演出开始，演出就不属于你，作品开始干扰或者引导观众的心理，即便艺术家自己也深入到作品中，成为其中的角色。——吕彭

Li Linlin can look deep into the microscopic world, such as mushrooms, to comprehend it. She does not look at the world only by the size of a single piece, but also by how they interrelate and how the shifting structures present continuously. That is the reason why she hopes to make a work about "different stories". The artists said, she likes to arrange a drama stage. However, everything that happened are all true. A play is an event, and you cannot assume one of them is illusory while another is concrete reality. In other words, everything in the world is a mixture of reality and illusion. The complexity of life experiences affects people's understanding. To organize a drama scene and guide people to look into it, that becomes the focal center of Li Linlin. Although, once the show began, the show does not belong to you. The audience’s psychological reaction begins to be manipulated and guided by the artwork, even the artist herself goes deep into the works and becomes one of the character. 

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