WEARING THE FOG

Performance and video artist Qi Yafei held a solo exhibition in Berlins Migrant Bird Space from April 20 to June 7， coinciding with her tenure as an artist-in-residence at the Federal Foreign Office in the German capital.

Among the works featured in the Hebei artists first exhibition in Germany was her highly personal 2016 piece “Wearing the Fog，” awarded “Best Experimental Film” at Brooklyns Broadway Film Festival in 2017. Filmed with her parents in their Shijiazhuang flat， the work is a double-screen video with a non-linear narrative structure that explores themes of intergenerational differences and the environmental implications of Chinas rapid modernization. The domestic setting is juxtaposed with Shijiazhuangs smog-choked urban spaces， the latter gradually emerging as a metaphor for the fog of indifference， routine， and conflict within the home.

The video performance “I Wonder Why” （2017）， another deeply personal piece， explores divergent reactions to the end of the artists 11-year relationship with an ex-boyfriend. As an unmarried 30-year old Chinese woman， Qi confronts the psychological damage stemming from her clash with traditional Chinese values that stigmatize her as a “l(fā)eftover woman” （剩女）. Staring defiantly into the camera， Qi films herself from the shoulders up as a succession of unidentifiable figures momentarily interrupt the scene in what appears to be an endless loop. A slapping sound is heard; a picture of a male exposing himself from the waist down flashes instantaneously; and Qis face reappears， grimacing， with tousled hair， before the screen fades to black. The subversion of stereotypical female passivity exposes the violence inherent in gender politics and forces the viewer to confront the gender roles that arbitrarily subordinate women in society.

Liminal， indeterminate spaces， such as art galleries， offer possible sites for disrupting and displacing deeply embedded cultural narratives， practices， and structures. The transnational setting of the Migrant Bird Space creates still more room for contemporary art to engage thematically with pressing global issues such as gender inequality， generational conflict， environmental degradation， and more. And artists such as Qi， whose work is inflected with a compelling form of hybridity， demonstrate the continued value and necessity of art that operates within the slender margins between cultures.

– Brian Haman

Migratory Media

Berlin has become a home base to an array of international artists， writers， and filmmakers—and the Chinese are no exception. From Berlin University of the Arts graduate Shen Han， the genre-bending visual artist Xiaoer Liu， to documentary filmmaker and LGBT activist Fan Popo， increasing numbers of creative Chinese are drawn to the cosmopolitan city by its affordable （though rising） rents and infamous permissiveness.

The Migrant Bird Space， which first opened in 2015， promotes emerging and established Chinese artists through lectures， an artist-in-residence program， and exhibitions in Beijing， Berlin， and Shenzhen. Founder Lu Mei （盧玫） and lead curator Dr. Eva Morawietz discuss with TWOC how they sustain a successful contemporary art gallery and balance divergent cultural expectations toward art：

How do you identify which artists to exhibit？

Morawietz：We choose artists based on a number of criteria， including their education， the type of media in which they work， their background， and their seriousness as artists.

Lu：We do try to tailor our choices based on our respective audiences in Berlin and Beijing. Having said that， we are primarily interested in artists working with photography， film， and new media.

What are the differences between the two countries views of contemporary art？

Lu：For Chinese audiences， an artists character and background are very important， which is quite different from Western audiences， who want， at least initially， to interpret a work of art before considering the artists biography.

Morawietz：Chinese viewers and buyers also have a preference for painting [over] new media and even photography. Whereas so much of contemporary Chinese art is promoted， discussed， and even bought and sold online via platforms such as WeChat and Weibo， Western art buyers revolve around a mix of gallerists， collectors， and curators.

Selling contemporary art can be challenging. What are your long-term aims？

Morawietz：We are not necessarily interested in the “Chineseness” of an artwork， but rather in great works of art by serious artists. We work with a broad spectrum of artists from diverse backgrounds—mostly Chinese and European—and we want to continue to promote and highlight the importance of intercultural dialogue.

Lu：One of our main aims is encouraging an exchange of ideas and communication between different audiences. Art should be public and social， and we want to bridge the gap between the two cultures that we represent. – B.H.