Caméra-stylo As Such, the solo exhibition by Hong Kong moving image and sound artist Anson Mak will be held from 4 to 30 May 2019. Supported by Hong Kong Arts Development Counil, this exhibition will present two sets of new works: One Place, Two Systems, Ten Years explores Kwun Tongers everyday-life spatial practices, as well as objects and landscape of the Kwun Tong Town Centre through photography and moving image; Never Cross A River Twice, a single channel film explores the notion of disappearance, memory, and ways of seeing. A series of outdoor screenings and artist talks will be holding during the exhibition period.

Artist Statement

As It Is, Face to Face With the Relative

After I turned the milestone age of fifty, I came to realize that my pursuit of art has nothing to do with the artistic style, nor self-expression. Instead, it is to entice people (audience) to feel and revisit the shared experiences that we are bound to go through in this world – the good; the happiness; the pain; the death; the union; the separation; the existence; the evanescence; the somatic the spiritual; the human, animal and plant; the natural or artificial environment. For the cause and effect, or the old and new, they seem contrary to one another, and yet, there are overlappings and one, as shown in the case of the bittersweet, death is rebirth, separation heralding reunion, or reappearing follows disappearance, one’s mental state is the body and the environment, and how humans, animals and plants live together in symbiosis. Actually, cause is the result and vice versa.

The temporal dimension is the axis of the lens-based and sound media. Sound and moving images unfold to the viewer over time. The objective measurement of time forms only a face value; one’s sense of time varies. When we consider our mind as a time machine, we do not just insinuate the subjective dimension of time – of its length or quality, but stressing time has no inherent particularity. The profundity experienced in an artwork defines the depth of the work, as well as its relevance to the viewers. The stronger the relevance, the more interesting it is, because the difference between “I” (or “my” artwork) and “others” will be attenuated and dissipated.

Brief as momentary photography, or, detailed as ethnographic moving images in slow motion, nothing and everything arises from it. In making art, it is “I” who makes the work. Yet, I often keep in mind to focus on the “making” itself, rather than to put emphasis on “my” work, “being vs the I”. Through sounds and images that depend on and yet, detach from relative reality, I hope, we can revisit the shared collective experience and the multitude of feelings aroused. It is also what lens-based media and ethnography can most possibly offer – making the connection possible.

About Anson Mak

Anson Mak is a moving image and sound artist. She currently works as Associate Professor in Academy of Visual Arts in Hong Kong Baptist University, Hong Kong. Besides single channel film/video, she also does phonography sound art and web-based projects. She is especially interested in experimental ethnography and manipulation of super 8 film in the digital era. In the last few years, she is interested in research-creative works, bridging conventional researches methods and creative art works in the field of visual ethnography. Recently, she is interested in lens-based inter-media works (photography, video and super 8 film), pantam culture and performance.

Her film/video works are shown in many festivals and countries, e.g. Hong Kong International Film Festival, Internationale Kurzfilmtage Oberhausen, Vancouver International Film Festival, Digital Cinema Seoul, Taipei Golden Horse Film Festival, South Film Festivals of Tainan, Loop Festival of Barcelona, Barcelona Independent Film Festival, The Los Angeles Asian Pacific Film Festival, and International Documentary Film Festival Amsterdam etc. Her works are also included in groups shows at galleries, M+’s moving image shows, 1A space, Para site Artspace, Taipei MOCA, FACT Liverpool, Whitechapel Gallery London, CAFA Art Museum Beijing, RockBund Art Museum Shanghai, Hanina Contemporary Art Israel, etc.

香港活動影像及聲音藝術家麥海珊個人展覽「如此，攝影筆」將於五月舉行。是次展覽與錄映太奇合辦，由香港藝術發展局資助，將展出兩組全新作品，包括《一地．兩制．十年》錄像裝置，結合攝影與超八電影，探索觀塘人的日常空間實踐，以及觀塘核心地區的物事和景觀；《一河不二渡》單窗影片，探索關於消失、回憶和觀看方法。展覽期間將舉行《一河不二渡》戶外放映，其中兩場設藝術家座談，由藝術家麥海珊及藝評員黃小燕主講。

藝術家自白

如是，相對

半百之年，察覺創作的目的，不是獨特風格，也不是表達自己為主，而是，讓人感受和再思考相類的經驗，在這個世間必然的經驗──美好快樂、痛苦死亡、一起、分離、存在、消逝、身體的、心靈的、人的、動物植物的、大自然的、人造環境的。因與果、新與舊，貌似相對但卻重疊的，快樂也是苦，死也是生，分離又一起，消逝又重生，心理狀態就是身體，環境與人和動植物相互共生的定律，因果無別。

聲，與影像，拼湊在時間中被經驗。時間，鏡頭與聲音媒體的軸心。時間的客觀量測只是表面的相對性意義，時間的經驗不一，我們的心就是時間機器，不只是說時間的經驗是主觀的長與短，重與輕，而是，時間本身確然沒有特定性。藝術作品能使我們產生多深刻的經驗，就是作品的深度，和與人相應的程度。相應越深越有意思，因為，「我」的作品與「他」者的分別會比較鬆開、消融。

暫如照片，或細節如民族誌研活動影像慢鏡再現，所顯非真宛然而顯現，如世間一切。做作品，某程度（在這個世間的呈現）是「我」做的作品，但做的時候一直提醒自己，是自覺「做」作品本身，不是做「我」的作品 。願，依屬卻又脫離相對現實的聲畫，能讓我們再探共同（跨文化性）的相類經驗，和因此而生的多樣情感。這是鏡頭媒體，和田野紀錄藝術，最可能做到的，連繫。

麥海珊簡介

麥海珊是一位錄像及聲音藝術家，現任香港浸會大學視覺藝術院助副教授。除了單頻道電影／錄像作品外，她同時創作攝影﹑聲音藝術及網路藝術項目，並特別鑽研實驗民族誌電影錄像及超八電影。近年，她藉研究／藝術創作將常規的研究方式和藝術的創作於民族誌的領域中連結起來。她的電影／錄像作品曾於不同電影節中展出，包括香港國際電影節﹑德國奧柏豪森短片影展﹑溫哥華國際電影節﹑韓國首爾數位影展﹑台北金馬影展﹑南方影展﹑巴塞隆納獨立電影節﹑洛杉磯亞太影展及阿姆斯特丹國際紀錄片節。她的作品亦於本地及海外展覽中展出，包括M+流動影像展覽﹑1a空間﹑Para Site藝術空間﹑錄映太奇﹑台北當代藝術館﹑利物浦FACT﹑倫敦白教堂美術館﹑北京中央美術學院美術館﹑上海外灘美術館及以色列特拉維夫 Hanina Contemporary Art等。

One Place, Two Systems, Ten Years Exhibition
Date: 4.5 – 30.5.2019
Opening hours: Mon – Sun, 1200 – 1900
Location: Videotage (Unit 13, Cattle Depot Artist Village)

Opening ceremony with Never Cross A River Twice Outdoor premiere screening
Date: 4.5.2019 (Sat)
Time: 1800
Location: Cattle Depot Artist Village

Never Cross A River Twice Outdoor screening with artist talk
Location: Open Space, Cattle Depot Artist Village
Date: 11.5.2019 (Sat)
Time: 1930
Speaker: Anson Mak, Phoebe Wong

Date: 25.5.2019 (Sat)
Time: 1930
Speaker: Anson Mak

《一地．兩制．十年》展覽
日期：4.5 – 30.5.2019
開放時間：星期一至日，1200 – 1900
地點：錄映太奇（土瓜灣馬頭角道63號牛棚藝術村13號室）

開幕暨《一河不二渡》戶外首映
日期：4.5.2019（六）
時間：1800
地點：牛棚藝術村

《一河不二渡》戶外放映暨藝術家座談
地點：牛棚藝術村戶外空間
日期：11.5.2019（六）
時間：1930
講者：麥海珊、黃小燕

日期：25.5.2019（六）
時間：1930
講者：麥海珊