Marginalized Art

On December 19， 2014， the exhibition Marginalized was launched in the museum of Central Academy of Fine Arts （CAFA）. “Marginalized” does refer to the “marginalized community，” as one might guess. But taken deeper， it also connotes an active or passive detachment from mainstream culture and social norms in terms of concept and behavior， usually with a physical state of wandering. Such “marginalized” groups could be socially vulnerable groups， such as farmer migrants， vagrants， homosexuals or avant-garde artists who own cultural capital but actively resist mainstream cultural tastes.

Since the Enlightenment， rational and scientific concepts have seen extremes and the governing principles of economics and technology have tended to dominate the social structure. Art， however， has always been concerned with the human living state， psychology， nature and imagination， and so has always been dispelled by mainstream society and avoided inclusion with mainstream culture. As various artistic reforms occur internally， art maintains its nature as free， drifting and marginalized. Accordingly， artists， as a “marginalized”group， live in society acting as rebels， betrayers and even subversives of modern material-consuming society in pursuit of only efficiency.

As time goes by， “marginalized” artists find new cultural backgrounds， since they were born in an era featuring diverse cultures and globalization. As the “marginalized” individuals， they all share something in common — facing the big gap between different cultures — they lack roots in both body and soul， drifting and wandering in different physical spaces. But they are relentlessly exploring issues of mutual communication and self-existence in the context of cultural differences. For them， there is no absolute Eastern or Western， only “marginalized” destiny forever.

This exhibition features six young artists from different countries. With existing memories of their original cities and new perceptions shaped by later experience， they created works echoing contemporary urban cultural phenomena. Through installations， images and videos， they presented their unique thoughts about urban culture， collective mentality as well as individual existence. Their works express the group’s mentality and physical state in contemporary life.

Artists who leave their home country to live in another perceive the issue of “mar-ginalization” most directly. For them， homeland is always a dream-like memory while they are excluded， estranged and attracted by foreign cultures. Those artists are often inspired by the collision and integration of two cultures， so new experience is generated. More concisely， they are more “marginalized” in terms of physical space and cultural identity. Obviously， not only Chinese artists studying overseas， but foreign artists in China， face the same confusion. The two foreign artists in this exhibition find Beijing not so old， tranquil and as static as they had imagined， and feel the city rapidly fostering， extending， blending and transforming Chinese and Western cultures. Therefore， they strive to find and identify familiar cultural symbols in the new environment， as well as changing their memories about Chinese cities from “marginalized.”

Qian Honglin， as an exchange student studying in Germany， is perplexed by“unlanded” mentality in a different time and space， and by the absence of selfidentity. With digital voice and images， the artist compares beliefs and looks between Chinese and Western in his work Measurement. In an absurd manner， he shows a collision of civilization and conveys his disagreement with conventional ideas about the comparison.

Although both international students at CAFA， Gabrielle Petiau and Hannah O’Flynn have starkly different backgrounds and art styles. Petiau is from France as a“fan of China.” She began studying Chinese when she was 15， has been to China three times， and can speak and write Chinese well. Transplant and exchange of Chi- nese and Western cultures and reconstruction and experimentation with physical fragments are within her focus. In her work Transplants， the artist rearranges different items symbolizing Chinese and Western cultures into a new “species，” like animal or plant specimens exhibited in a museum so as to simulate and recreate “marginalized” Western observation and cognition of the marriage and rebirth of cultures from a scientific perspective， as well as reconsidering cultural diversity through collecting the fragments and arranging them in a rational order.

Hannah O’Flynn is Spanish with German and Irish ancestry. Now she commutes between UK and Beijing. For her， the concept of home is absent. With her Lost in Translation， an installation consisting of a lantern， LED lights and a poem describing her experience in Beijing in Morse code， she discusses the possibility of communication between different cultures， focusing on the language barrier in translation. In the artist’s eyes， the loss of original meaning in translation is perpetual， and the“marginalized” state of cultural identity and language can never be reversed. Such a rebellious voice against cultural commu- nication inspires some reflection of today’s discussion of cultural diversity.

Additionally， “marginalization” also reflects young Chinese artists who were born and grew up in a transitional period of China. Rapidly-changing society results in the crisis of a loss of identity and diverse values. In an era featuring an information explosion， culture tends to be commercialized， entertaining and popularized. People easily fall into anxiety， confusion and loneliness and are physically and psychologically wandering and marginalized， which is conveyed by young artists Yang Mo， Yu Tianwen and Liu Peng.

Yang Mo， a university instructor， created a “marginalized” suitcase. By putting selected items into the suitcase， she preserves different memories of different cities. Traveling through different places with the suitcase， she finds new possibilities. The suitcase roaming all over the world shows the artist’s concept of being actively marginalized.

With Enclosure， Yu Tianwen depicts the impact of cultural differences on the individual， inspired by his personal experiences living in a former heavy industrial base in northeastern China as well as in ancient capital cities in the Northwest. With an old and shabby Chinese herbal medicine cabinet and traditional Chinese medical prescriptions， he relates them to the destiny of migrant workers. He uses common social symbols to demonstrate“marginalization.” For instance， the cabinet stands for a city， the drawer for the narrow living space of people， the recruitment ad for prescriptions and the railway ticket for migrant residents of cities. Each person has a certain medical property and is destined to fulfill his or her mission and value in different cities. Most of the “marginalized，”those in the lowest social rank， will be buried in history like the dregs of construction. But their efforts and struggle， sweat and blood have built prosperous cities. The work shows the artist’s reconsideration of the value of the “marginalized.”

In his video work Marginalized， Liu Peng records the daily life and philosophy of the artists participating in the exhibition， as well as stories behind it （including those who failed to be selected for the exhibition）. Living in the “marginalized” state， Liu Peng tries to observe and interpret such life and mentality from an outsider’s perspective.