01 Vanishing as a Commodity
Installation. Iron frames, iron wires, luminescent spray paint, hairpieces, holographic paper, terry cloth, cartoon printed rayon fabric, acrylic toy cups, plastic toy baskets, PVC table covers, neon night lights. 250*150*30 cm.
02 A body so Fluorescent
Sound. 1'03".
In Vanishing as a Commodity I was inspired by the colour schemes of neon commodities. Neon, with its artificial backgrounds and unnatural hues, acquires an innate quality of invisibility, often associated with a marginalised, underclass, anti-intellectual and illegal negative presence. Those who adopt a neon aesthetic run the risk of being filtered by the system, ignored by others and downgraded by society. The phenomenon of fluorescent pigments on everyday objects thus reveals a potential social distinction. Neon commodities have been replaced by iterations of the market for minimalist styles. The offline transactions that take place around these commodities are far from urban centres. The underclass of consumers who are supposed to be the customers of neon commodities are also gradually shifting their shopping targets and preferences. They are in the process of being forcibly disappeared into the hands of invisible people. I use this example to illustrate how people can find opportunities for critique and resistance in the covering up of colour. Fluorescent pigments colour real people in such a way that surveillance continues to miss their public image. When real people imitate the vanishing trick of neon-coloured small commodities, they are placed in the shadow of power. Covered in fluorescent pigments, people hide in neon, triggering shielding mechanisms to become unnoticed individuals, preparing an escape from control and identity.
A Body so Fluorescent (2022)
A Body So Fluorescent is played on a loop to match the installation in an exhibition hall. This soundtrack is a tool to help people relate to small commodities or neon colours. It includes the above-mentioned negative examples of what fluorescent colours represent in real life, and adds some in-store music of so-called tasteful items, such as slightly higher-priced Muji products and cheaper mock-Muji-style or Miniso-like everyday necessities. To create a new soundscape that imagines what a society of people covered in fluorescent colours might sound like, or to define their communities around borders and industries.
Installation view of Vanishing as a Commodity (2022), 250*150*30 cm.
Ambient lighting of Just a Streak of Fluorescence Passing by (2022), red and blue filters for flash.