Glass Heart Crystal Dreams (2022)
Artist book. Coated paper. 210*148*3 mm.
This text is a companion piece to the installation and expands on the central theme and research material. It presents a price comparison of different transparent materials and outlines the hierarchy that generally surrounds the commodity market, which refers to mass production with the lowest priced materials. However, the production of crystal coffins also follows the same process of sifting, resulting in the symbolic enhancement and diminished materiality of crystal coffins. The text is inspired by the narrative in Qiu Miaojin's book Notes of a Crocodile, which predicts how crystal coffins will serve as a weapon against linear time. It compares the differences in meaning between the original English name and the Chinese translation of the film Mad About Men, highlighting the purifying and dispelling effects of hysteria within the crystal coffins. It also illustrates the forms and functions of the glass uterus, associating the poetic language evoked by Poem from the Glass Womb and considering it as an independent female voice. By tracing in detail the train of thought that women refuse to enter into the stream of time, the text aims to provide the audience with a complete guide to active resistance.
Selected chapter from Glass Heart Crystal Dreams (2022), 210*148*3 mm.