Jiangmeiling Xu

Jiangmeiling (Shila) Xu is an artist and designer currently studying Information Experience Design at the Royal College of Art. Her works explore relationships among individuals, social groups and society. She combines this with inner exploration, bringing her own experience into conversation with other perceptual fragments to form and reshape outputs.

Her work employs diverse forms including installation, moving image and sound, drawing on the affordances of different media to transform and express information.

Past award: London International Creative Competition, "World, Chinese Contemporary Art Exhibition"

Throughout history, human beings seem to have opened the door of virtual dimensions. We are groping and exploring in the cyber world, from two-dimensional to three-dimensional, from three-dimensional to AR, from AR to VR, and now to the meta-universe, our pursuit is from the digitization of life to virtual space, virtual world to virtual reality, and the boundary between real reality and virtual reality is blurred. While we enjoy the satisfaction and convenience brought by this digitization, the real effect is that it subverts identity, culture, self, reality and order beyond imagination, and becomes a silent cyber invasion！

Cyber invasion is a critical project that explores this dynamic relationship between the physical and virtual space and the possible consequences of technology. The project uses the concept of the door as a metaphor for the boundary and connection between the two spaces，and uses the concept of the “peephole” to allow the audience to see through the physical installation and explore this dynamic between the physical and the virtual space. There also be a moving image piece that works with the idea of the "virtual space invading physical space" .

The aim of my project is encourage the audience to engage more critically with technology, to question the benefits and consequences of these developments. We seem to be conquering technology, but at the same time, humanity is actually being invaded by technology. We are paying a large price invisibly.

Door represents both the boundary and connection between real and virtural spaces. To visual display of force, both "pushing hand" and "turned handle" represent strong pushing force, also represent the aggressive force of “invasion ”from both side, The force of the handle pushes from the outside to the inside, and the force of the hand pushes from the inside to the outside, creating a two-way squeeze and penetration. The soft fabric creates a sense of fragility and tearing, representing weakening boundary.

CYBER INVASION -- Installation -- Door, laser fabric

Medium:

laser fabric

Size:

140*75cm

I added the concept of the "peephole" to allow the audience see through the physical installation to explore the dynamic between physical and virtual space.

I drew inspiration from human actions of observing unknown spaces, and I created an animation demonstrating how when the audience looks into peephole, the virtual side is also peeping at the real.

Deepening Relationship – Appearing — Snooping — Probing — Entering —Invading

Combined with the "Peephole" on the installation, I created video to let the audience enter this scene: from appearing, snooping, probing, entering, invading, experience this digital interface of "virtual space invading physical space"，and make a connection between installation and video.

Dynamic Moving image Sound Art

CYBER INVASION -- Leaflet Design, media item 1

Give the audience a warning: “Technology controlled by capital is eroding and dissolving human beings! ”

Jiangmeiling Xu

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Royal College of Art