Following her immersion in film, video, installation, and sculpture, the Chinese artist Yi Zhou (b. 1978) has seen her career skyrocket both in the art world and in the film industry. Relying on a very personal language, her short films frequently deal with the ephemeral as well as decomposition and fluctuate between reality and fiction against a very poetic background. After working in film for the past eight years, Yi Zhou feels equally at ease with animation and projects involving professional actors. She is a talented artist and has the ability of never running out of stories, or topics, for new projects.Where some video artists struggle to find a coherent theme, Yi Zhou is just bubbling with ideas. With a wonderful sense of aesthetics, she has aimed at completing projects that bring together some of the best representatives of their discipline. In the interview with the Asian Art Newspaper, she discusses her work as well as her upcoming projects.
AsianArt Newspaper: Could you say something about your background and how yougot to video, film, sculpture, performance, and installation?
Yi Zhou:I was born in Shanghai, and raised in Hangzhou Many Chinese contemporaryartists come from Hangzhou - they attend the famous Art Academy there. So, Iwas raised in a very ‘artistic’ place. I lived in China with my grandparentsuntil the age of nine before joining my parents, who were then living in Rome,Italy. Whilst going to school, I also studied drawing and painting at theAcademy of Arts in Rome. I subsequently went to university in London, spendingmy last semester in Paris studying political science and economics. After mygraduation in 2001, I started to do my first animations and films, whichinitially were just simple flash animations. Then, I had the opportunity to besupported by the gallery that presently still is my French dealer, GalerieJérôme de Noiremont in Paris.
AAN: When did the transition from politicalscience and economics towards the art world take place?
YZ: I started doing my films and animationsright after I graduated in 2001. I was then offered a solo show in 2002 with myParis gallery. Jérôme de Noirmont came to my studio, liked my videos, and weagreed to put together a show that was based on flash animation. Such projectstake time, require hard work, research, references, and a team. I startedcollaborating with one animator and I slowly moved into trick animation, a morecomplex process. I began working with an animation agency in 2003, now wecreate a lot of 3D animation and films. I also started to do some sculpturalpieces; some are from items from my films while others could be the basis andinspiration for a future film.
I am interested in the transition between differentuniverses and use various media in order to develop something that is alwaysnew and surprising. I am trying not to fit too much into what is happening inthe art world, or in the world in general. I am simply trying to create my ownlanguage with my own research.
AAN: I find it quite difficult to label yourwork because of that personal language. How would you summarise it?
YZ: I would consider myself a video andinstallation artist. Film is a very important element within my work, but thereare also sculptural pieces that are as important and essential to theunderstanding of how elements, things, and different universes can fluctuatefrom one field to another. The video Paradise(2006),for example, was a combination of video and 3D animation projected ontomarble. It was the first time I explored the association between something thatwas completely new such as 3D animation as a form of art, and a traditionalmedia such as marble. With this juxtaposition, I created something new. Oncethe video and the installation were finished, I took out of its contextone of the elements that was in the video. I tried to put it together into afountain by using drawings. The fountain ended up being a sculpture as well asbeing a flash animation based on 20 drawings.
AAN: Since it is difficult to frame yourwork, what would you say are your sources and influences? Art, travels, dreams,daily life, or simply a combination of all these elements?
YZ: I would say a combination of all of them.All the elements are a perfect basis for me to try to do something with theseemotions. I guess it is important to be able to draw as much as we can from allthe experiences that life can bring us on a daily basis.
AAN: What does film mean to you?
YZ: I think that in my films there is a lot ofresearch about dreams, about the subconscious, and about unexpected elements.Therefore, I would consider film, the medium that I started with, as the mediumthat I really feel comfortable expressing whatever I would like to express.
AAN: You have completed animation videos aswell as videos with actors. Are you planning on further exploring videosinvolving actors, or would you rather like to fluctuate between animation andfeature movies?
YZ: I think both combinations are fascinating.With films, I am using real people as a sort of reinterpretation of reality ofwho they are and the way I see them. I am intrigued by the juxtaposition of theway I portrait them with 3D animation, where everything has to be created. Iwill certainly keep on exploring that. However, at the same time, I amalso extremely interested in new materials. Last year for example, I did a filmcalled My Heart Laid Bare,featuring an anachronic heart. I completed that heart in Aerogel by studyingwith scientists for a few years, trying to figure out a way of creatingsomething out of nothing – the air – then transform it into a sculptural piece.In my films, I am concentrating on everything that is new and unexplored,trying to create new emotions.
AAN: You just mentioned My Heart LaidBare. Do you find it difficult tohave professional actors to commit to short projects?
YZ: This particular project, featuring CharlotteGainsbourg, was an idea of mine. I wrote a story thinking about her, andcontacted her in order to show her my idea. That was before she shot the filmwith Lars von Trier, and she really liked the project right away. I likeworking with actors, not with all of them, but specific people. They can addsomething to the film, which is not just about acting. I like to choose thembecause of the way they are in natural life, because of their natural side,their non-artificial side. Of course, there is a difference when working withprofessional actors: it is much easier because they are used to doing that typeof work, and I just need to brief them. In addition, I also expect them tobring their own touch, a certain improvisation to the film. However, I alsofind it very challenging to use people that have never been in front of acamera before. They have a certain kind of gesture, a certain look, a certainexpression. There is a sense of insecurity you can see through their eyes, andsometimes I like to see that embarrassment. Steeling these embarrassed momentsis also a way for me to draw emotion out of the experience.
AAN: Have you shot films involvingnon-professional actors?
YZ: Yes. Another short film I did was Avatars (2007), which isbased on writings by Jean Baudrillard. He explores the relationship betweenSiamese brothers, and I thought it was interesting because I believe there issomething of Siamese brothers in all of us. In order to explore that, I asked aproduction company in Rome to help me cast the twins. We ended up finding twoChinese Siamese twins, who had never participated in any films, and wereworking in a small town near Rome. It was much harder for me to get somethingout of them, but once again, that kind of innocence, that kind of embarrassmentis something that a professional actor would not show as much, because they aremore in control of their image and their emotions.
AAN: For Paradise (2006), you completed asculpture (a fountain). Is sculpture something you try do to in conjunctionwith most of your projects?
YZ: Yes. Back in 2002, I showed some of my filmson some marble plates. To me, that is an essential element because in a way, itis not only a sculptural piece, but also one can also carve the marble so itbecomes a stand-alone piece. However, when associated with a video, it addsthis narrative to it, creating an interesting dialogue between the two: themovie and the image with something that is more ancient and traditional.
Also, for myupcoming show at Contrasts Gallery in Shanghai this autumn, I am finishing anew short film based upon a novel, which has always been like an obsession forme. It is based on a short story by Gogol called The Nose, which is a type of thriller. I am using it as my departure point, andthen I wrote a completely different story based on my own imagination, on myown references. It is the story of a man who loses his nose. As a whole, hisnose becomes a sculptural piece. It becomes crossed by a bridge, and thisbridge turns out to be the central theme of the film, and is also one of theprojects I am working on. It is a public project in Baku, Azerbaijan alsoinvolving Jean Nouvel and Cai Guo-Qiang. I think this is a further step to justsimply doing a film or a sculpture itself. It is a challenge for my film andfor my imagination, a challenge I could recreate through the help of 3D means.I also have the chance of making this project a reality, to turn it into ahard-core architectural piece for a landscape. I think it is more monumentalthan anything I accomplished so far.
AAN: When will the Baku project becompleted?
YZ: So far, it has been presented as a projecttogether with the one by Jean Nouvel. If it gets through, it should be builtaround 2013 with the bridge located on the Caspian Sea. Once again, I like themixture between this free style, between fantasy as reality, and reality mixedwith fantasy which all gets confused, but ultimately becomes coherent when seenas a whole.
AAN: The video Paradise (2006) presents avery lively vision of paradise. What are the lyrics of the accompanying songabout?
YZ: It a very traditional romantic Japanesesong. The text basically says, ‘I looked at the sky and cried’. Initially, Iwanted the music to be a little bit more experimental, but in the end, when Isaw it, I thought it was interesting to have that juxtaposition.
AAN: You are presently using a material foryour sculptures. - Aeorogel - that presents very special qualities. What makesthat material so exceptional?
YZ: The lab that I developed the material withis connected with NASA. It is not NASA itself, but they are subcontractors forNASA. Basically, the lab creates all these blocks, a material that has numerousisolation properties, therefore it is very expensive. It is used by NASA tobring particles back from the sky. The material itself had been patented sincethe 1930s, but applied by NASA. I am always researching new technology for myfilms and sculptures. Finally, when I had the opportunity to do My Heart LaidBare, I thought about doing something based upon a medical heart. I made amould in aluminium and through a process of reactors, we managed to bring theair to the furthest level. This is how we created that piece. It was verysimilar to a James-Bond type of action.
AAN: Time seems to be a central theme inyour work.
YZ: Time is indeed a very relevant element in mywork. I find it interesting to project ourselves into a very far future, apopular future, and a non-existing future.
AAN: Are you planning on moving towardsfeature film as opposed to short films?
YZ: I think it could be both. At the right time,with the right opportunity, I would also do a feature film. Once again, the borderlinebetween cinema and contemporary art is really shrinking. Some of my films arealso selected for film festivals. In that sense, I find it quite flattering tobe able to fluctuate between exhibitions, art films, and to be able to also beaccepted with a legitimate role by the cutting edge film industry.
AAN: How do you see the evolution of yourwork since 2002?
YZ: I think it has evolved a lot. I believe thefirst animations were much simpler, but they also represented a necessary stepfor the more complex works that have been developing in recent years. I hopefor the best in the future.
AAN: You have a very diverse background. Hasthat been an advantage for your videos and films?
YZ: Yes. I try to be as complete as possible. Myfocus during my studies was drawing, painting, and economics, but I alsotook theatre, singing, and classical ballet classes. I find that in a way, allthese different disciplines are helping me. When I have to direct an actor orsomeone who is not an actor, the fact that I know the type of expression I wantthem to have and how they have to act with their body. I have a betterunderstanding of how I have to proceed because of my former theatre and balletclasses. Also, when I am choosing the music or working with a specificcomposer, the collaboration with the musician is much easier. For example forthe film Hear, Earth, Heart(2008), which is a 3D animation, and where the music was especially composed bya French band called Air,it was interesting to work with the musicians on specific tracks. As I hadnotions of music through my studies, it also helped me to get a sense ofrhythm. That sense of rhythm is also applied when I do the editing of a film.My intuition helps me to cut it, to edit it, with the way it should flow. So ina sense, it all comes together.
AAN: How did Hear, Earth, Heart come about?
YZ: I did the piece last year, and I wanted todo it as an homage to Pandora’s Box, or what is left of it after hope. I wantedto do something that was completely based upon my imagination. The departurepoint was a white box: I just saw birds coming out that were more or less thesame birds as the ones in the Paradise video. I could visualise a landscapeinside that box. I saw myself diving into that landscape which is completelymetastatic and represents the opposite of the idea we all have about animation.When we generally think about animation, everything is falling apart, drifting,flying, and moving. Consequently, I deliberately wanted to make it veryslow, based upon drifting time, upon drifting to this landscape where thebeginning was the end or where the viewer just finds himself inside a loop.Perhaps it is just a dream sequence where the viewer is above and below thewater. There are very fast time lapses. It is very abstract, almost like acontemplation – this was the kind of piece that I wanted to complete.
AAN: Could you say a few words about theperformance aspect of your work? Is it something that you want to pursue or isit something that is now behind you?
YZ: Yes, I am pursuing it. I am actuallycurrently working on a project in 2010 for the band Air (who wrote the musicfor one of my films). I will collaborate on a performance project with themwhere I will decide what kind of music, theme, lighting, sculpture, and rhythmthe show will have. It will be a show for them by me, a show that may beentitled The Theme of Yi.
AAN: And your upcoming projects?
YZ: My upcoming show at Contrasts Gallery thisfall, the Baku project for 2013. I am currently also working on a new shortfilm to be featured in the French Pavilion at the World Expo in Shanghai in2010.
OLIVIA SAND
Yi Zhou website: www.yi-yo.net
