苍鑫：诸神的人间

Cangxin:THE HUMAN WORLD ALONG WITH THE GODS

出品人 | Producer

罗群毅 | Luo Qunyi

策展人 | Curator

田萌 | Tian Meng

学术支持| Academic Director

朱青生｜Zhu Qingsheng

时间｜2024年11月17日至2025年3月10日

Duration: November 17, 2024 to March 10, 2025

地点｜重庆市渝北区回兴街道湖滨东路59号 华人当代美术馆

Address: Chinese Contemporary Art Museum,

No. 59 Hubin East Road, Huixing Street, Yubei District, Chongqing

诸神的人间

——关于苍鑫艺术中的神秘与现实

田萌

1996年的一天，苍鑫在忧郁中自我封闭地生活了一年之后，突然开始用舌头舔了房间内每一样物品。这一看似疯狂之举，却意外地使其走出忧郁的生活，重启了他的正常生活，也开启了一种新的创作方式——用舌头与万物交流。他将《交流》作为探索味觉与触觉多种可能性的方式，而这种方式具有一种难以言说的神秘力量。

苍鑫对神秘世界的体验或许可以追溯到其更早的童年，但作为一种艺术创作的方法则是从《交流》系列开始的。此后的多年，他用舌头舔日常生活物品，也舔具有象征意义的物品与空间。在这一过程中，苍鑫衍生出了两种创作的线索：一是具有社会属性的表达，比如他在一些公共建筑前的广场上舔地面，换上不同职业身份服装的《身份互换》等；二是用不同文化中的宗教、神话或其他神秘主义的图像与符号来创作。回顾其艺术的历程，我们不难发现后一条线索会更加清晰而完整。

苍鑫/身份互换/行为摄影/2004年

多年来，苍鑫研究了各个文化及其历史中的宗教、神话和神秘主义，并收集相关的图像与符号资料。当这些图像与符号出现在作品中时，一个丰富而奇异的世界也随之展现在观众面前。人们可能会猜测，苍鑫是否是一个巫师？一个祭司？一个牧师？……事实上，苍鑫并不是其中任何一个身份，他只是作为艺术家将这些图像和符号引入了创作之中，并将其与另外的图像重新组合，从而构建出一种新的图像关系，以引起我们对未知世界和现实世界关系的思考。如果深究图像和符号及其组合关系，这将涉及一个庞杂的知识体系。

通过宗教、神话与神秘主义的图像和符号重构一种图像关系，这可以理解为苍鑫的创作方法。任何一种图像和符号，在其自身的文化或信仰体系中都有特定的意义，但要进入每一种图像和符号所象征的神圣或神秘世界，图像和符号的意义就显得神秘且不透明。作为一个艺术家，他所感兴趣的或许正是图像和符号对神秘而未知世界的指涉，以及神秘而未知力量对现实世界产生的有形或无形的影响。事实上，很多宗教、神话与神秘主义都可以追溯到人类文明的早期，其中一些甚至已经消失在了历史中，而有一部分仍影响着人类今天的生活。

在文明到来之前，人类便相信世界的诞生并非是偶然的：世界的一切皆是被设计与被创造的。只是，造物者并不会直接显形，但会以某种迹象显现其存在。现代文明以降，人们越来越相信，任何一种宗教、神话与神秘主义都是人自身创造出来的。人创造了神，又以人创造的神管理着人自身。现代的科学不断瓦解着古老的宗教、神话与神秘主义，并用科学作为替代来解释着世界的一切。可是，科学真的能够揭开宇宙的密码吗？一种由科学带来的创世论便在应运而生，并影响着我们的现代人的世界观——虽然不信仰什么宗教，但相信宇宙有其创造者。

苍鑫/奇花异草系列/木碳/尺寸:160x40x190cm/ 2010年

苍鑫在创作中不断重复着古老的图像和符号，并在此基础上演绎出新的“神圣”图像和符号。这不仅体现在他的绘画、雕塑和装置中，也在他的行为艺术作品中。其实，即便在科学如此发达的今天，古老的宗教、神话与神秘主义依然影响着人们，尤其是当个人或者社会遇到一些突发极端事件时，这些古老事物更容易重新降临在现实生活。苍鑫对古老的图像和符号的反复使用，甚至在行为艺术表演中对某些仪轨的拟仿，也是基于对今天世界与生活的认识，而不是神秘主义本身。在这个意义上，他将宗教、神话与神秘主义都视为是文化性的，而且是保留在今天日常生活中的文化。

苍鑫对“神圣”图像和符号的演绎和创造，更是基于当代的生活现实。他的《赛博命体》绘画和动画影像，是对一个正在兴起的赛博世界各种病症的命名。这种病症可能有相应的心理学或病理学的解释，但更多的是苍鑫观念性的命名，比如智能瘤、灵中毒等等。如果说古老的宗教、神话与神秘主义是对世界创造者与世界模型的构建，虚拟现实包括人工智能更像是人类对新世界与新生活的创造。科学能将人带向哪里？苍鑫从古老的神秘主义演绎出未来的“神圣”图像和“异变”的形象，这本身就隐含着一种他对当代所信仰的进步论的忧虑。他在2010年以来所创作的一系列碳化雕塑《奇花异草》，是对世界生物另一种演化的可能形态的想象，动物与植物、水生与陆生生物等都可以以新的方式结合成新的生命体。许多科幻影视作品也有类似的想象。或许，从科学的角度而言，这一切都是有可能的——人类渴望成为新世界的创造者。在碳化的形象中，我们仿佛能看到一个未知的黑暗世界。

苍鑫/智能口腔定位/宣纸描金/尺寸:204x270cm/2022年

影响着世界的并不只有人创造出来的“神”，还有那些无处不在的细菌与病毒。2020年的全球新冠疫情的爆发，让人再次陷入到了瘟疫危机。在历史上，人类应经历了无数次类似的瘟疫危机。现代医学为人类提供了更多的安全，以免遭病毒的威胁。可是，病毒与细菌依然以各种方式突然降临，威胁着人类的生活。苍鑫对细菌和病毒主题的关注可以追溯到2020年之前，苍鑫就将像艾滋这样的病毒通过绘画的方式放大，并将其表现成一种可见的美丽形式。在新冠疫情的三年里，他不仅看到了人类的脆弱，更看到了病毒并不仅是一个医学问题，还是一个政治问题。基于在具体情境中的感受，他创作了《城市疗愈》系列行为艺术作品、《智能口腔定位》系列绘画装置作品以及《拳力》大型纸本绘画作品。除了病毒对生命的威胁，那些对生命尊严的践踏的现实同样需要面对与深思。

苍鑫的作品对图像和符号的使用，总给人一种神秘感，仿佛将人带入一个返魅的世界。然而，他最终都是为了言说他对身处时代的感知和回应。在这一宏大的命题中，苍鑫感受到了一种人自身的脆弱与现实的荒诞，他渴望一种具有超越性的救赎与爱。于是，他在脆弱中持续创作了《脉搏日记》——在一年中做333天的心电图，并在每张心电图上以日记的方式写下他对当下的思考和认知。又通过公众参与的方式在全球内收集3300枚眼泪，并将3300枚眼泪和3300本圣经做成了《哭墙》。

苍鑫/哭墙/行为装置/尺寸可变/2022年

古老宗教、神话和神秘主义不但在我们的日常生活中，也在今天不同国家的政治或文明的冲突中有影响，只是，它们已经演化为另一种形式，弥散在今天的国家、民族与文化中。从今天政治或文明的冲突来反观苍鑫对古老神秘图像和符号的反复使用，我们可能会思考，在二十一世纪的前四分之一的时间里，全球仍没有在关于“人”的世界的认识上达成一个真正的共识，并没有建立共同的底线。人们为各自的信仰而战，为各自的国家利益而战，却不能为“人”的共同底线而努力。在这个意义上，我们的人间或仍是诸神的人间——无论诸神是真正的神，还是由人类自身创造的神，又抑或是由新的技术所产生的一种控制力量。在诸神的人间，人该如何思考人的处境与命运？这大概是苍鑫的作品抛给我们的一个问题。

2024年11月11日星期一

THE HUMAN WORLD ALONG WITH THE GODS

(Tian Meng)

After a whole year of solitude and confusion life in 1996, Cang Xin suddenly explored the world by licking.It was this abnormal trying that raised him from the depression, and also hinted him a new art form----licking is way to learn about the world.Then ,he made the work Communication a starting point to detect the felling of touch and taste,which was vivid with mysterious power.

Some anonymous experience haunted Cang early in his childhood,but it only got started as an art form from the work Communication.Years later, he still licked the world during life time, some typical matters and spaces were involved.This whole procedure left him two different clues to art life: one is the social-trend communication,such as licking on the square of the public constructions with various professional costumes, another is the combined signs and art works in perspective of religion , mythology and other kinds of mysticism. Looking into the whole art life of Cang, it is obvious that the later one is more clear and systematic.

Cang inspected different kinds of cultures and religion,mythology,and mysterious historically over years, while he collected affluent image and sign materials ,which demonstrated a colorful speculated world.People may wonders if Cang is a wizard,priest,preacher or not.No, he is nobody but a authentic artist who composed all the images and signs in his works, those which realized some new relevance and triggered some concept about the relation of the future world and the current ones.AS refer to the rules of the combination ,it would be a colossal academic system.

We can regard this reconstruction of images and signs in religion ,mythology and mysticism way as a Cang’s art approach.Although any image and sign owns some specific meanings in its content,it is mysterious and abstruse when we try the symbolized world it hints. Cang devotes to discover the reference of the image and signs in a unknown world,to find out the exact influence by some anonymous power .Indeed, religion ,mythology and mysticism generated from the very beginning of our human beings civilization, but some had disappeared and some is influential.

Before the civilization time, our ancestors thought the world was created and designed but not formed by chance.They also believed in that the creator had come to the world with no embodiment but some traces and marks.Since the modern civilization,people considered the different way as their forefathers,and took all the religion ,mythology and mysticism as the product of their own .Human beings created god ,which managed the whole world.The modern science and technology increasingly ruined and analyzed the religion ,mythology and mysticism.The problem is that how can the science decode the world?The answer to that question leads to a notion of genesis and changes the modern perspective--- believe in no kind of religion ,but believe in the universal Creator.

Cang composed repeatedly with the ancient images and signs, and got some sacred new ones in his pictures ,sculptures ,installation and performance art works.It is inevitably that the old religion ,mythology and mysticism affects our scientific society. That is , they comes to us by accident.Besides , Cang also followed some rites form in his art , only based on a recognition of the world life but not the mysticism.Therefore, the essence of religion ,mythology and mysticism in Cang’s work is cultural ones in daily life.

Cang’sperformance and creation of the sacred images and signs are always in the light of life time. The work Cyber Body is just the miniature of a pandemic worldwide, which has some related definition in psychology and pathology.He made some idea name for it,such as intelligence tumour and toxic spirit.

As the ancient religion ,mythology and mysticism embodied the Creator and the world,virtual and intelligent world shaped the current world and society.Where is our science destiny ?Cang made the Sacred and old images and its Variant to show his concern and worries about the belief of the theory of evolution.The sculptureseries of Exotic Flowers and Rare Herbs foreshadows the evolution and regeneration of the animal and plant on the land or in the submarine world.Maybe,it is possible in the horizon of science and technology---for human beings want to create a new world,we can make a dark world in coming.

It is not only the crated God influenced the world ,but also the virus changed the world. We confronted COVID-19 in 2020, which spread all over the earth.We went through this plague time and time again ,and the science protected us much from the viruses.Cang amplified the Aids-like virus under his pen in an art form ,through which he showed that those viruses were the crash both in politics and medical science.The performance series of Cure the City, the installation series of Locate the Cavity by Intelligence and a large-scale paper painting the Power of Fist formed at that time. Those works talked the threat we confronted and the lost dignity and pride .

It proves that the composition of images and signs in Cang’s works convey some mysterious world with covers.You also cannot deny that he pondered and responded the reality.He discovered the world fragile and a bad joke,and desired for help and love from the world beyond.Then the work Pulse ‘s Diary came out in that way----he made a diary on 333 days of electrocardiogram with his opinions and thoughts.He also conducted the public and collected 3300 drops tears, with which and 33oo Bibles he made another work Crying Walls .

The old religion ,mythology and mysticism is living with us ,and playing his part in politics and civilization conflicts in scattering way hither and thither.When we read about the composition of Cang ,we will find some enlightenment for all the conflicts .Meanwhile，we have to reflect that a quarter of 21century has passed, there is no consensus about human beings limitation. We fight , struggle for religion and economy reason but not the exploring and protection of that limitation.

So,we have no choice but live with gods---maybe the Creator,maybe the Created ones ,maybe some kind of technology power.Cang inquired where is our destiny ,where is our way to the destiny?

展览部分作品

苍鑫/量子虫 2/宣纸设金/尺寸:133.3x200cm/2020年

艺术家简介

苍鑫

1967年出生于中国内蒙古包头市，1986年考入天津音乐学院，1988-1989年进修于南开大学、天津美术学院。1991年开始自学绘画，直至1993年进驻北京“东村”。“东村”时期，苍鑫逐渐成长为一名活跃国际的中国行为艺术家。同年，苍鑫分别创作出《病毒系列》、《踩脸》、《舔系列》等行为艺术作品。1995年包括苍鑫在内的北京“东村”艺术家集体创作的行为艺术作品《为无名山增高一米》横空出世，成为中国当代艺术在90年代的代表作之一而蜚声海外。苍鑫的艺术秉承了“萨满”的精神气息，他的行为作品总以一种异想天开的身体感官方式体验世间万物，将自身作为维系自然及社会的焦点。展览包括2013年《惊雷》蒙特利尔Arsenal Montreal画廊，2011年《精神的转译》美国圣地亚哥中国文化中心，2009年《物性道场》北京C－空间，2009年《苍鑫的萨满视觉》首尔Space Can，2008年《苍鑫神话》北京今日美术馆、 香港十号赞善里画廊，2007年《生存的转译 苍鑫个展》巴塞罗那Espace Cultural Ample，2006年《身份互换》伦敦红楼轩基金会 2020年《恒常与异变》麓山美术馆等。苍鑫现居成都。

Cang Xin

Born in the city of Baotou in Inner Mongolia, Cang Xin entered the Tianjin Academy of Music in 1986 and studied at the Nankai University and Tianjin Academy of Fine Arts from 1988-1989. Cang started painting in 1991 and moved to Beijing’s “East Village” in 1993. During this period, he began a series of performances such as the Trampling Faces, the Lick series, and the Virus series. In 1995, Cang joined a group of other “East Village” artists to produce one of the most well known Chinese contemporary artwork of the 90s—To Add One Meter to an Anonymous Mountain. In his artistic practice, Cang plays the part of a “Shaman,” experiencing the world and its multifarious things through his bodily senses. Cang carries himself as the focusing medium that connects nature with society. His selected exhibitions include: Like Thunder out of China at Arsenal Montreal (2013), Cang Xin: The Spirit of Translation at The Gallery of Chinese Cultural Arts in San Diego (2011), Rites of Nature at Beijing’s C-SPACE (2009), Cang Xin's Shamanic Vision at Seoul’s Space Can (2009), Cang Xin`s Mythology at Beijing’s Today Art Museum and Hong Kong’s 10 Chancery Lane Gallery (2008), Identity Exchangeperformance at London’s The Red Mansion Foundation (2006), etc. Cang Xin presently resides in Chengdu.

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