Walk into the dim eerie building in Chuwei that once housed a chicken farm and peer into the darkness: a soft red glow emanates from the floor.
The piles of rocks, cement and sand, seemingly left over from some archaeological dig or perhaps a mystical sign from some witch, sit in little erect formations contrasted with the red luminous resin disks that sparkle like amber. Set on a diagonal access, the disks are placed into six shallowly dug holes. Welcome to the world of artist Lu Pei Lin, whose work "Floating V" is on exhibit at the Bamboo Curtain Studio until Nov. 21. In the Floating Series, Lu uses holes, fluorescent tubes, water, earthy materials and technological equipment to evoke the state of the body.
Two years ago, Lu jack-hammered into the concrete floor of the Bamboo Curtain Studio, making six holes for his piece "Floating IV." The holes appeared as disembodied heads. Nearby, resting on surgical tables, six plastic human-shaped forms filled with water and live gold fish were connected to a large fish tank complete with water plants that created an ecosystem. After the show ended, Lu covered the holes, where they remained dormant. Since the holes were already dug, Lu chose to reuse them for his latest work.
Living in an urban environment caused Lu to experience an alienation akin to floating; the anti-gravitational feeling results from the powerlessness he felt due to outside forces. For Lu, his holes intensify the psychological feeling of a void while also creating a sense of weightlessness.
In a typical art exhibition, one walks around the perimeter of the room peering at eye level the works on the walls. This perspective changes for Lu's exhibition since the work is installed in the ground. So ignore the walls and get low to the ground to hear the soft gurgling sounds emanating forth. Each of the six holes contains a light box and an air compressor with its exposed tubes running in and out; the air blows steadily into the small puddle of water and shampoo to create foaming bubbles. The holes are filled in with clay and an inserted fluorescent tube bisects them and shines through the resin, giving the work a sexual appearance. The red glow and the low gurgling sound make it hypnotizing to watch as new bubbles aggregate and conglomerate.
Lu does not actively connect his work to the human body; instead he admits that his work is comparable to what an archaeologist does: to exhume, to discover and to come up with an interpretation that may differ with that of its maker. "When we wash with soap, making many bubbles, each one is unique and that is similar to how we read documents or images," Lu offers, "and each one is special according to how we interpret it." The floating pieces play on the tension between combining electricity with water but also contains a spiritual earthiness akin to primeval art. Commenting on the current state of human life, Lu shows us that the natural body is heavily imbedded with technological and social meanings. However, by introducing technology into his work, he shows us that Edenic utopias are no longer possible. The murmuring sounds and the thin transparent tubes are reminiscent of a hospital patient's life support system and the tubes hint at a life force draining from or into the body.
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