UNproject program will be supported by UNArt Center over a long period of time, which represents new means of media production, new points of focus, new answers to new questions and new perspectives on new realities.
A relay is an electrically operated switch used to control one or several circuits by the only signal. We invited 9 artists, scientists and designers in different fields, who would join in a relay of creation. Each person's concept of creation should be based on the previous person's. They need to complete the creation within in a given time period, assisted by a network of help of their own. This is an interdisciplinary project that combines social science with art to explore the connection, feedback and morphogenesis of innovative ideas. The final outcome will be presented in an exhibition and seminar.This project provides an observation of how the creators will connect and respond to the feedbacks on the basis of their own expertise and interest when the closed loop is opened, and how they will create different systems of morphogenesis. Essentially, it explores the process of how people are getting connected with each other and how innovative ideas RELAY on.
The project began with the producer's random visit to an artist's studio. They talked about multi-person creation project, a common pedagogical approach in design courses which had been adopted by art projects. As one works on the work of the previous one, the final product will be a collaboration. Interestingly, speaking of a relay, we tend to assume something tangible is passed along from one to another. How about passing ideas along from one to another? The producer mentioned that a game designer participated in a recent project, then the artist recommended another artist friend, which reminded the producer of a recently met professor who studies cinema and literature. Later, the producer got to know a Cybermaker through friends. Much like the theory of six degrees of separation, through friends' referral, we managed to link these 9 people together.
How and why do people accept new ideas and how do these new ideas spread？The creators did not have direct contact at the initial phase of the project. Instead, the producer passed on the written statement (new ideas) of one participant to the next one, just like a messenger. This deliberate obstacle in communication, to a certain extent, allowed the creators to study, think, and ask questions, or simply ignore, which means that information sources may also not be processed after they have been entered. At the same time, there was no centralized goal-setting, which also provided the creators with the space to innovate. The possibility of the co-existence of strong and weak connections, and the uncertainties in passing on from one to another, later formed the network of ideas and the collaboration respectively in practice. Thus, a whole new human experience was produced.
Exhibition period: 2019.2.28-4.14
Opening & Seminar: 2019.2.28, 14:00
Venue: SCA Gallery, School of Creativity and Art, ShanghaiTech University (No. 393 Huaxia Middle Road, Pudong New Area, Shanghai)
Creators: Rebecca & Renyi , LV Huiming, WU Ding, BAO Yanhui, BAO Li, TANG Weijie, NI Hualiang, SHI Qing
Organizer: UNArt Center
Producer: XIE Wen
Graphic Design: Rebecca Bardes
Video Production: Shanghai Feitan Photographic and Design Studio
Exhibition Design： ZHANG Daming
Project Assistant: WEI Jiayi
Support: Shanghai Pudong Media Group, School of Creativity and Art, ShanghaiTech University
