Against Step
2019 - Installation (Installation)
14:00 minutes (looped)
Yim Sui Fong
In the nine-channel video installation, Against Step by Yim Sui Fong, a phantasmagorical image of a male dancer appears on a large-scale video projected on a floating retro-projection screen. His cathartic sequence of movements is based on an index of the bodily behavior of random people previously recorded by the artist while observing thousands of Hong Kong citizens in public space. Some of this recorded footage, done in poor mobile video quality, is played on loop in a set of TV monitors placed below the large projection. The dancer’s constant altering of movement patterns (his landing of each step, conscious adjustments, and manifestations of mental states) is a proposed expressive choreography to avoid the detection of ‘Gait Recognition’: the surveillance system that identifies and controls individuals based on their habitual motions and limb movements. Against Step is an exercise of non-predetermined movements, a continuous step/dance of resistance where the price of freedom, for possible escape from surveillance technology control, is based on trading one’s personality—to abandon one’s self. The meaning of surveillance in Hong Kong has radically shifted in the rapidly changing political environment. A police state exercising fear upon the community, driven by the territory’s security legislation after the massive public protests in 2019. A reality that later morphed into a dystopian medicalized control apparatus following Covid-19; numbing the bodies and psyches of its inhabitants. Though this work was made prior to the Covid-19 pandemic, it may well be read within Hong Kong’s inherent societal codes of hygiene and fear that have structured the territory’s collective memory.
Through moving image and video installations, Yim Sui Fong’s practice is primarily focused on her interest in performativity; how an individual or collective body navigates the lines of social mobility in an increasingly controlled public sphere. Utilizing movement and scored actions, Yim explores the uneasiness that individuals face today, highlighting the relationship amongst people and the potential found in collectivity. Through choreographed propositions, her work provides a platform to connect people’s perceptions, while unpacking the perplexity and imagination of social phenomena. Yim’s work often intervenes in real-life space, or borrows from it, revealing relationships among people, objects, and places. Another aspect of Yim’s practice is her interest in oral history, appearing in her semi-fictional and semi-realistic audio-visual narratives. Aside from her practice as an artist, Yim is also an active figure in Hong Kong as co-founder of the artist-run organization Rooftop Institute and member of the artist collective L sub, where she further connects with the larger community.
Colors:
Related works sharing similar palette
/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_asset/file/22496659/ss_856dc0a7fdf8bffb04cff24a3c9176e628879ff5.jpg)
© » KADIST
Chen Chieh-Jen
2010Empire’s Borders II – Passage and Empire’s Borders II – Workers are from the three-channel film installation Empire’s Borders II – Western Enterprise, Inc...
© » ARTS EQUATOR
On Taipei Arts Festival with Tang Fu Kuen | ArtsEquator Thinking and Talking about Arts and Culture in Southeast Asia Articles October 25, 2018 By Yuka Sugiyama (480 words, three-minute read) The Taipei Arts Festival (TAF) began in 1998 as one of the main festivals in Taipei to mark the city’s contemporary consciousness through the staging of multiple artistic activities for international and national audiences...
© » SLASH PARIS
Natalia Jaime-Cortez — Hier j’ai vu une baleine dans la Seine — Espace d’art contemporain Camille Lambert — Exposition — Slash Paris Connexion Newsletter Twitter Facebook Natalia Jaime-Cortez — Hier j’ai vu une baleine dans la Seine — Espace d’art contemporain Camille Lambert — Exposition — Slash Paris Français English Accueil Événements Artistes Lieux Magazine Vidéos Retour Précédent Suivant Natalia Jaime-Cortez — Hier j’ai vu une baleine dans la Seine Exposition Dessin, installations, techniques mixtes Hier j’ai vu une baleine dans la Seine 2023 Natalia Jaime-Cortez Natalia Jaime-Cortez Hier j’ai vu une baleine dans la Seine Encore environ 2 mois : 3 février → 30 mars 2024 Le travail de Natalia Jaime-Cortez se déploie, ou plutôt se déplie, et relève d’un engagement corporel de l’artiste dont les papiers suspendus viennent dessiner des lignes dans l’espace...
© » THEARTNEWSPER
Review into British Museum thefts calls for fundamental reforms Art market Museums & heritage Exhibitions Books Podcasts Columns Technology Adventures with Van Gogh Search Search British Museum thefts news Review into British Museum thefts calls for fundamental reforms The Independent Collection Security Review urges the museum to take urgent action, including fully recording the collection and tough management changes Martin Bailey 13 December 2023 Share The report has been heavily criticised by Ittai Gradel, the Danish gems specialist who privately warned the British Museum about the theft in 2020 Photo: Jeff Whyte The independent review into thefts at the British Museum reveals serious problems with the institution’s governance...
© » SLASH PARIS
Sinae Lee — Exposition personnelle — L'ahah Moret — Exposition — Slash Paris Connexion Newsletter Twitter Facebook Sinae Lee — Exposition personnelle — L'ahah Moret — Exposition — Slash Paris Français English Accueil Événements Artistes Lieux Magazine Vidéos Retour Sinae Lee — Exposition personnelle Exposition Vidéo À venir Sinae Lee, J’ai besoin de la chance, vue de l’installation vidéo à la biennale de la jeune création, Houilles © Marc Domage Sinae Lee Exposition personnelle Dans 8 mois : 2 → 23 mars 2024 L’ahah #Moret est heureuse d’inviter l’artiste Sinae Lee pour une exposition personnelle du 02 mars au 23 mars 2024...
© » KADIST
Vincent Leong
2012The photograph Exquisite Eco Living is part of a larger series titled Executive Properties in which he digitally manipulated the images to insert iconic buildings of Kuala Lumpur in the view of derelict spaces also found in the city...
© » ARTS EQUATOR
What If Your Body Turns into a Sculpture?: Interview with Sasha Waltz on "Körper" at SIFA 2019 | ArtsEquator Thinking and Talking about Arts and Culture in Southeast Asia Articles April 29, 2019 By Winnie Chen Dixon (600 words, four-minute read) Have you ever imagined dancers’ bodies turning into sculptures, as if time stood still? This is the impression of Körper (Body) , the signature dance performance of this year’s edition of the Singapore International Festival of Arts...
© » KADIST
Laura Hyunjhee Kim for Neon Was Never Brighter: A Glimpse Into the Future For the first outdoor contemporary art festival in Chinatown, San Francisco, Neon Was Never Brighter: A Glimpse Into the Future , in collaboration with Chinatown Media & Arts Collaborative (CMAC) and curator Candace Huey, KADIST San Francisco co-presents a new performance, Cosmocrane (2022) by Laura Hyunjhee Kim...