London’s Trafalgar Square got an unusual new artwork to go alongside its historic sculptures of war heroes and kings — an empty plinth where members of the public stand for an hour at a time.
The project is the brainchild of artist Antony Gormley and will see 2,400 people stand on the empty plinth for an hour at a time, 24 hours a day, between now and Oct. 14.
Gormley says it aims to paint a picture of modern Britain — and provide a contrast with the monuments to historic figures like Admiral Nelson and King George IV which surround it.
“It’s not about the past, it’s not about the dead, it’s not about war, it’s about now and about later,” Gormley told reporters.
“I hope that we’re going to learn ... the things we find funny, the things we find scary, the things we fear and the things we love and that’s the idea.
“It’s a composite portrait of the UK now in all its wonderful, multicultural difference.”
Those taking part had varied plans for their hour in the limelight.
Art graduate Suren Seneviratne, 22, was dressed as a panda and carrying a sign featuring his mobile phone number so passers-by could call him, while housewife Rachel Wardell, 35, filled balloons from a helium cylinder.
Nurse Jason Clark, 41, from Brighton, southern England, was one of the first to take part.
“Normally the plinths are reserved for generals, kings, people who have done heroic deeds — this is a chance for ordinary people to get up there,” he said.
“I’m going to get up there and not actually do anything ... I’m going to take in the ambiance of the square and take some photos — and if the worst comes to the worst, I’ll sit down and read a book.”
Afterwards, he described the feeling of being on the seven-meter high plinth as “invigorating.”
The launch of the work was briefly disrupted by a protestor who climbed on to the plinth carrying a banner saying, “Save the children. Ban tobacco and actors smoking.” Gormley jokingly hailed the protestor as “a warm-up act.”
The installation is taking place on the fourth plinth at Trafalgar Square, which was empty for some years but has recently hosted a succession of modern art works by the likes of Marc Quinn and Thomas Schutte.(AFP)
倫敦特拉法加廣場上的戰爭英雄和君王雕像旁,出現了一座奇特的新藝品──民眾以每人一小時的方式站上一座空的基柱。
這場展覽是由藝術家安東尼.歌姆利策劃,即日起至十月十四日止,將可見兩千四百位民眾以每人一小時的連續接力方式,站上這座空的基柱展演。
歌姆利說,這場展演旨在描繪出當代英國風貌,並突顯這些小人物和週邊如艾德麥羅.尼爾森、國王喬治四世等歷史人物的差異。
歌姆利對記者說:「這非關過去、非關已故者、非關戰爭,這反映的正是當下和未來。」
「我希望我們能記住…那些我們覺得有趣、恐怖、畏懼和所愛的事,這就是我的概念。」
「那是當今英國精采多元文化差異的綜合寫照。」
那些參與民眾對站上舞台一小時的計畫各不相同。
二十二歲的藝術學士蘇倫.塞尼維拉特尼打扮成貓熊,手裡拿著寫有自己手機號碼的牌子,讓路過民眾可以打電話給他;而三十五歲的家庭主婦瑞秋.瓦德爾帶了氦氣鋼瓶在現場灌氣球。
來自英國南方布萊頓的四十一歲護理人員傑森.克拉克是首批表演者之一。
他說:「通常這些基柱是專屬於將軍、國王,或有過英雄事蹟的人,這個活動讓普通人有機會踏上去體驗看看。」
「我要站上去,不是真的要做什麼…就是享受一下廣場的氣氛,拍點照片,而最壞的情況就是坐下來看書。」
事後,他形容站在這座七公尺高的基柱上令人「振奮」。
活動開始一度中斷,因為有抗議民眾帶著一張寫著「救救孩子。禁止香菸和演出中有抽菸行為」的海報爬上基柱。歌姆利打趣地稱這名抗議民眾的行為是「暖場演出」。
該藝術裝置就在廣場的第四基柱上展出,這座基柱數年來一直空著,但最近已接連做為馬克.昆恩和湯馬士.舒特等人的當代藝術作品展場。(法新社╱翻譯:袁星塵)
South Korea’s famous kimchi is falling victim to climate change, with scientists, farmers and manufacturers saying the quality and quantity of the napa cabbage that is pickled to make the ubiquitous dish is suffering due to rising temperatures. Napa cabbage thrives in cooler climates, and is usually planted in mountainous regions where temperatures during the key growing summer season once rarely rose above 25 degrees Celsius. Studies show that warmer weather brought about by climate change is now threatening these crops, so much so that South Korea might not be able to grow napa cabbage one day due to the intensifying heat. “We
It’s widely recognized that there are far more right-handed people than left-handed people in the world. Being right-handed simply means preferring to use one’s right hand for tasks that involve only one hand, such as writing and eating. But have you ever wondered about the possible reasons behind the global dominance of the right hand over the left? As with many complex biological questions, multiple factors appear to be at play. First, one reason seems to be genetics. __1__ Therefore, the global dominance of right-handedness is something that has been passed down through many generations of humans. Next,
A: What’s even more horrible is that the five suspects who purposely supplied ketamine to actor Matthew Perry were all his “friends.” B: Who exactly are the five suspects? A: They include Matthew’s two doctors, a broker, a drug dealer, and even his live-in assistant. B: Those scumbags should go to jail. A: Yeah, one of the doctors may be sentenced to up to 120 years in prison. A: 更可怕的是,提供男星馬修派瑞「K他命」的5人全是他的「朋友」。 B: 嫌犯是誰啊? A: 其中包括他的2位醫生、1位仲介、1位毒販、甚至他的同居助理! B: 那些人渣真該去坐牢。 A: 對啊,其中1位醫生可能面臨120年徒刑。 (By Eddy Chang, Taipei Times/台北時報張聖恩)
Continued from yesterday(延續自昨日) https://www.taipeitimes.com/News/lang Finally, cultural influence also plays a role in which hand people prefer. Historically, items that require physical manipulation have been designed for right-handed use. For example, tools like scissors and musical instruments are often constructed with right-handers in mind, making it difficult for left-handers to use them. __4__ While these factors offer some explanation, they remain speculative. The precise reasons for the global prevalence of right-handed people continue to be debated. Nevertheless, left-handedness will remain a phenomenon of great curiosity among scientists and researchers for many years to come. 最後,文化影響也在人們偏好哪一隻手上扮演一角。歷史上,需要用到肢體操作的物品都被設計來供右手使用。舉例來說,像是剪刀、樂器等工具常常就是考慮到右撇子而打造的,造成左撇子難以使用這些工具。因此,許多天生就是左撇子的人可能就必須透過學習使用右手來適應。 雖然這些因素都提供了一些解釋,但它們仍是推測而已。全球右撇子如此普及,確切的原因仍持續被爭論著。不過,在未來的許多年裡,左撇子依然會是科學家和研究人員相當好奇的一個現象。 What Did You Learn? (A) Specifically, different areas of