XINYU HAO

This series of works is an offshoot of my Mirage series. I developed this new story and maintained the creation methodology of the previous series at the same time. I chose the layout and the materials of the collage in my scenes after I was inspired by the border areas between sea and land. The process of making the collage and arranging the layout was also a process where I could piece together the relative fragments and complete myself at a particular time. I could dig into and know about myself when I got involved in these scenes. I chose the materials that I thought have a potential connection to these scenes in a relatively conscious state, and after that, I would go back to the scenes in a sort of unconscious state. It’s like a self-portrait in the abstract sense. I also chose a lot of integrated materials in the works, because I think that the materials themselves or the colours themselves have the ability to tell a narrative. When complex fragments collide with each other, the result can be very uncertain, and of course, I hope that these uncertainties would also surprise me.

I used water and earth in this set of works as visual clues to connect the coincidences I created subjectively. They are like the foreshadowing and hints in a movie. The way the exhibition was laid out was a semi-resident process for me. For example, some of the colour blocks and materials that support the main works could form a complementary relationship with each other, or they could meet the sensory needs of the colour block planes on site. From the sea in the window, the water in the pool, to the installation on the engine, and then to the physical installation outdoors, the property of the same item changes subtly in the four spaces, which can give different sensory experiences to people. These are the things that make me feel intrigued.

This series of works is a visual attempt at some subtle emotions that cannot be expressed when I was developing my own creative methodology. In the process of understanding, intervening, and reconstructing large and small spaces in previous works, I have nurtured a sense of closeness and helplessness, that is also contradictive, remorseful, and relieving. The fragmented and instantaneous feelings are constantly interwoven and fused, forming a persistent emotion called "self-pity", which is dormant under sober consciousness like the underwater part of an iceberg. I fought with the shark in this blue space, but it seemed that I could never defeat it. I pulled out one of its teeth with all my strength, but it grew again quickly. These fragments constitute my complete and incomplete unconsciousness, and I try to sort it out, reconstruct it and reproduce it. The identities of "victim" and "perpetrator" conflict with each other while coexisting peacefully; When I am surrounded by self-pity filled with guilt, I try to pull self-pity out of the shadow; Pulled by the two, my personal identity keeps wandering between "self-pity" and "narcissism"; My mind is also constantly wandering between consciousness and unconsciousness. And I kept repeating this process while repairing myself. This perception derived from the contradiction between unconsciousness and consciousness forms Sharks & Self-pity.

Far beyond the end conducts a kind of re-editing, integration, and development of my previous works, combining different understandings and feedback of the surrounding environment in several time periods. Our physical body dissociates and seeks itself in media such as liquid, solid, and gas. Whenever thinking about the relationship between imagination and images, I always feel my brain and soul are triggered by a blurred but charming relationship. This series presents my way of perceiving the world, trying to construct the entrance between the material world and the spiritual world with an objective, poetic and quiet visual language. I do not want to enter or produce a clear result, but inspire viewers to think about more possibilities. In a calm visual context, I critically reflect on my spiritual life, social system, and rules.