Throughout November 2024, Vvzela Kook stayed in Poses, Normandy, and Paris for a residency co-organised by Cneai=, Consulate General of France in Hong Kong and Macau, and Videotage. The artist’s research is about the traces of wild animals such as elephants and hippos imported from Africa and Asia to France and Europe as manifestations of power and political gifts during colonisation, while examining the idea of “zoo” under this context.

An open studio at Cneai=’s Maison Floatante was held on 9 November where the artist shared her research, with locals at Poses, Normandy over food that travelled and transformed between continents with humans’ activities.

In November, she continued her research in Paris at Yishu8. She visited numerous places in Paris, including the Château de Versailles, Parc zoologique de Paris, Muséum national d’Histoire naturelle, to explore the history and traces of shipping, gifting, and keeping of wild animals. She also paid a visit to the massive botanical collection Muséum national d’Histoire naturelle and its botanist. A showcase of her research drawing and previous related video works was held at Yishu8 on 23 November.

2024年11月期間，藝術家曲淵澈在諾曼第波斯和巴黎進行駐留計劃，研究殖民時期脈絡下，非洲和亞洲如大象和河馬等野生動物，如何被運送到法國和歐洲成為權力的象徵和政治饋贈，同時探討「動物園」的概念。是次駐留計劃由Cneai=、法國駐港澳總領事館和錄映太奇合辦。

11月9日，藝術家在Cneai=位於諾曼第波斯的Maison Floatante舉辦了開放工作室，與當地居民分享她的研究進程，透過食物進行交流，見證隨著人類的全球化活動如何促進動植物在大陸間流動，並轉變成今天我們餐桌上的食物。

11月期間，她在巴黎的藝術八駐留並繼續進行研究，期間她在巴黎各處如凡爾賽宮、巴黎動物園、巴黎自然歷史博物館尋訪各種野生動物移送、饋贈與保存的歷史與痕跡，亦在特別拜訪了自然歷史博物館龐大的植物收藏與其中的植物學家，並於11月23日在藝術八展出她駐留期間的研究繪畫以及其他相關錄像作品。

Micromegas 2 : Vvzela Kook 微觀巨世2：曲淵澈

19/10-27/11/2024

London->Brussels->Poses->Paris

倫敦->布魯塞爾->波斯->巴黎

Curated by 策劃: Angel Leung 梁安琦

Co-organisers 合辦:

Cneai=

Consulate General of France in Hong Kong and Macau 法國駐港澳總領事館

Videotage 錄映太奇

Residency Partner 駐留夥伴:

Yishu8 藝術八

圖片由藝術家提供。Images courtesy of the artist.