On the Field of Hope
2020
Rows of wooden easels march across an open field beneath an overcast sky, each one holding a portrait from the revolutionary past. The work stages a landscape in which collective memory and political iconography are re-arranged as scenery — a quiet protest staged at the scale of a panorama. Made in 2020, it asks how the slogans and faces of one era become the silent props of the next.
On the Field of Hope, 180×300cm, 2020
Artist’s Statement
At the end of May 2020, there appeared a second spike of COVID-19 in Beijing. The return made me suddenly feel more concerned how I could finish another work, leaving me worried and suspended. Originally, it was scheduled to be shot indoors, inside China National Film Corporation’s film studios in Huairou Township. I planned to rent a studio there. But after I went there, I learned that it would be impossible to shoot indoors because this work would require 500 people to enter the scene. During the lockdown, organizing 50 people to shoot indoors would not be allowed. Being caught off guard, I must give up my indoor shooting plan.
After discussing with the curator, I decided to shoot outdoors. After I made the decision, I drove around to find a suitable shooting location. In the end, when I saw an outdoor scene, I found it not so bad at all. However, I didn’t give up. I still wanted to find other indoor venues. So, I asked private studios in Daxing Township if they allow for 500 people to shoot indoors. Finally, after rounds of communicating with so many people, I learned that no one in charge dared to approve so many humans doing indoor activities during the pandemic. So, I aborted the original ideas.
Then I went to Fangshan Township again to see this outdoor venue. That day I went, it was overcast and grayish, just like the gloomy mood of people under the second wave of epidemic in Beijing. The sky gradually turned orange when driving back to the studio. At sunset, I looked outside the window and “On the Field of Hope” resonated in my mind. I switched on the phone and played this song. Along with the melody, I imagined the outdoor shooting scene, and decided to name the work “On the Field of Hope”.