原始的皮毛，殇的皮毛
Primitive Fur, Mournful Fur
文/张营营
Author/ Zhang Yingying
（一）
纸质皮毛：雕塑图像
(I) Paper Fur: Sculpted Images
有一个重要的哲学时刻，就是你一直以来都视为理所当然，甚至几乎未曾注意到的事物，突然之间以异乎寻常甚至令人惊奇的方式震撼了你。①
There is an important philosophical moment when something you have always taken for granted, barely even noticed, suddenly shocks you in an unusual and even stunning way. ①
惊奇与困惑如何推动艺术家抵达他想到达的地方？通过塑造起伏，或挖掘洞穴，或潜心滴溅，艺术家伍伟在每一种形式的创作中都寻找到了宁静和沉思的空间，创造出有关凝视、关联、致敬、重组，甚至抵抗和挣扎的微型场面。生命似乎总是注满身体的表皮，在凝固住的某个瞬间，在记录一个稍纵即逝的苦难，一次肢体的攒动，一道穿过云层刺目的闪电之际，疑惑总是随时准备从表皮中挤出——世界何以成为今日？人总有一种渴望，想要到一个充满奇迹的地方，但是这个地方又有如悖论一般：惊奇令人振奋，而困惑使人痛苦。那些最初萌生惊奇和困惑之感的叠层图像，把危机重重又自然而然的历史置于脚下，置于作品结构之中，正如伍伟的作品中时常流露出的惊奇一样，它不止于视觉。
How could surprise and confusion propel the artist toward his goals? Through shaping undulations, excavating caves, or immersing deeply in the process of dripping wax, artist Wu Wei discovers tranquil and contemplative spaces within each form of his artistic endeavors. He crafts miniature scenes about gaze, connection, reverence, reconfiguration, and at times, resistance and struggle. Life seems to always fill the skin of the body, frozen within a singular moment, recording transient hardships, the subtle twitch of a limb, or the dazzling lightning through the cloud; how did the world become what is it today? People always long to go to a place full of wonders, even though this place exists paradoxically: wonder is exhilarating, while perplexity is painful. These layered images, initially evoking sensations of surprise and perplexity, establish a foundation for a history laden with crises, which unfolds naturally beneath our feet and within the very structure of the artwork. This reflects the surprise that frequently permeates Wu Wei's works, transcending the boundaries of the visual realm.
伍伟似乎是在用艺术的手段研究艺术史，他将传统的纸张当代审美化，细腻的剪辑揭露了材料的本质，通过这种揭示传达了材料的意志，并实现了对外交流。“……艺术家一直都是有交流性质的，它沟通着图像和外部世界，艺术家的态度和情感，艺术所处时代的特定文化倾向，艺术自身的物质性和作为媒介的本质。”②
It seems that Wu Wei is using artistic means to study art history. He contemporizes traditional paper, revealing the essence of material through meticulous editing and, in doing so, conveys its intent, facilitating external communication. "...Artists have always been communicative in nature; they bridge images with the external world, reflecting their attitude and emotions, the specific cultural trends of the era in which art exists, the materiality and the essence of art as a medium." ②
“纸质皮毛”可以说是一种全新“造纸术”，纸是发明创造等思想的载体，是人类早期口述语言的媒介和样本。纸，隐喻了文化和创造，在这里，艺术家从平凡的材料中获得了不平凡的体验。正如他自己描述的那样：“我不愿意用‘创作’这个词来概括我的工作，我的工作更像是一种搭建，建立一个概念或将几种材料捏合，然后再建立下一个。概念和材料并不是凭空发生的，我用这些组合拼接成另一个组合，成为彼此符合逻辑或者反逻辑的连线。我也期待搭建一种未知的建筑……”。纸质和“金色皮毛”令人联想起书籍和精神食粮的联系，而柔软的“皮毛”则隐喻了世界表象的脆弱本质：我们看到的不一定真实，真实的也不一定有效；毁灭与重生往往几乎是同时发生的，真实的与模拟的可以随时发生转换。
"Paper Fur" can be considered a new "paper-making technique." The paper has been a medium for conveying thoughts, inventions and early oral language samples. It metaphorically represents culture and creation. Here, the artist derives extraordinary experiences from ordinary materials. As he describes: "I don't want to use the word 'creation' to sum up my work. My work is more like building, establishing a concept, or blending several materials, and then building the next one. Concepts and materials don't just come out of thin air. I use these combinations to create another combination, making logical or illogical connections with each other. I also look forward to building an unknown structure..." The paper and "Golden Fur" evoke the association between books and intellectual nourishment, while the soft "fur" metaphorically represents the fragile nature of the world's appearances: what we see may not necessarily be real, and what is real may not necessarily be effective; destruction and rebirth often happen almost simultaneously, and the real and the simulated can switch at any time.
在纸质皮毛中，物质蜕变为一种新的周期，一种变幻与流动的状态，本着这一基本理念，皮毛系列让观众陷入沉思，甚至冥想。
Paper fur facilitates the transformation of matter into a new cycle, a state of constant change and flow. Guided by this fundamental concept, the Fur series engages the audience in contemplation and even meditation.
皮毛：重复&再生
Fur: Repetition & Regeneration
在十余年的创作生涯中，伍伟一直非常注重纸质皮毛的物质语言的延续性，甚至超过了观念的创新。他的作品往往以简洁而准确的语言营造出一种心理上的“仪式感”，他的创作始终遵循着一套严谨的艺术观念和构成方法，以激活往日图像和材料的真实意义。“仪式感”在艺术家创作的过程中扮演着重要的角色，在这种仪式感中，隐藏着对材料本身的敬畏。
Throughout his decade-long artistic career, Wu Wei has greatly emphasized the continuity of the material language of paper fur, sometimes even surpassing the importance of conceptual innovation. His works often evoke a psychological 'sense of ritual’ with concise and precise language. Wu Wei's creative process consistently adheres to a strict set of artistic concepts and compositional methods aimed at reactivating the true significance of past images and materials. This 'sense of ritual' plays a crucial role in the artist's creative process, revealing a profound reverence for the materials themselves.
伍伟遵循着东方哲学的核心思维模式，并将自己视为多种艺术类型的牵线搭桥者。通过作品，观众可以与“历史的另一面”或与“早期历史”建立联系，并投以致敬和赞美的目光，或者批判和警惕的目光。
Wu Wei adheres to the core thought patterns of Eastern philosophy and positions himself as a connector across various art forms. Through his works, the audience can establish connections with the 'other side of history' or 'early history,' casting either admiring and appreciative gazes or critical and vigilant ones.
极简主义的造型和形式，是其通往东方哲学和西方现代艺术史的独特路径。凸起的黑色皮毛在金色皮毛的基底中显得格外耀眼，金属铜片的光泽在黑色纸质皮毛的背景中给人一种被压迫感。无论是现成的古典雕像，还是古典图像和宗教绘画中被挖凿出的“洞与洞穴”，在这里，对躯体的破坏、修复和改造都可以被视为是对死亡、衰落和重生的一种纪念。这也是生命本身的一种静态仪式。
The minimalist style and form serve as a unique pathway to both Eastern philosophy and Western modern art history. The raised black fur stands out vividly against the backdrop of golden fur, while the metallic copper sheen on the black paper fur background evokes a sense of oppression. Whether it's ready-made classical statues or the "holes and caves" chiseled out of classical images and religious paintings, here, the act of destroying, repairing, and transforming the body can all be interpreted as a commemoration of death, decay, and rebirth. This is also a static ritual of life itself.
社会是一个大号的媒介空间，艺术家总能将经验转化成个人审美，并在智识中存留，在有意无意间从层层的皮毛缝隙中显露。在河南郑州做书店的经历深刻影响着伍伟与书籍和纸张的关系，记忆中许多图书的状态，叠压或坍塌，开启了他一部分表达的欲望。这个阶段，不仅是对艺术家生存能力的历练，更重要的是它造就了他对“书的可能性”的敏锐捕捉，并施与形象。伍伟喜欢从线上、线下搜集各种有色纸张，并将这些简单而富有文化意义的材料堆积，或整齐的摆放于工作台，或直接散落在地板上，呈现出一种堆叠出的“壮观”。多层复合的叠压形态形成了一种美感，内在有自然主义的原始气息，外在是工业秩序的韵律。有时他随手将一张打印好的图片扔在纸堆上，纸堆便莫名与其中的图像建立了联系，图像也与空间体积发生了反应，最终在艺术家的“悉心照料”下融为一体。从长远来看，文化和艺术、历史和今天、媒介和手段并不受时间和空间的限制，将持续不断地互动和融合。
Society serves as a vast medium, within which the artist consistently transforms his experiences into personal aesthetics, preserving them in his intellect. These transformations may manifest intentionally or spontaneously, revealing themselves through the layers of fur. Wu Wei's experience of running a bookstore in Zhengzhou, Henan, has profoundly shaped his relationship with books and paper. The memory of numerous books, either stacked or collapsed, has ignited his desire for creative expression. This phase is not solely a test of the artist's survival skills; it is, more importantly, a period that has honed his acute perception of the "possibilities of books" and allowed him to incorporate these ideas into his artwork. Wu Wei takes delight in collecting a wide variety of colored papers, whether online or offline. He piles up these seemingly simple yet culturally significant materials, arranging them meticulously on his worktable or casually scattering them on the floor. The result is a visually captivating "spectacle" formed by the multi-layered, stacked forms. These forms evoke a sense of beauty marked by an innate naturalistic primal essence, while their exterior embodies the rhythm of industrial order. At times, he casually tosses a printed image onto this pile of paper, and a mysterious connection emerges between the paper stack and the image within it. The image also responds to the spatial volume, ultimately merging seamlessly through the artist's "careful curation." Taking a long-term perspective, culture and art, history and the present, media and methods are not constrained by the limitations of time and space; they are destined to perpetually interact and converge.
“皮毛”：分裂&混合
"Pelage": Disjointed & Blended
许多以黄色、黑色、粉色、橘色为基调的大型皮毛作品，都是作为一种拟人化和组织化的形态皮毛语言不断完善的结果。伍伟的主要研究方向是对“激活〞和“无限”进行概念化的呈现，他的作品反映了我们对事物的微妙感知，除了皮毛“虚拟”、“仿真”和“拟人”的质感外，还反应了对历史、文化、传统视野和手工技艺这四者之间的依存关系。
Many large fur works, characterized by hues of yellow, black, pink, and orange, are the evolving results of a personified and organized fur language. Wu Wei's primary research direction is the conceptual presentation of "activation" and "infinity," and his works reflect our subtle perception of things. In addition to the textures of "virtual," "simulated," and "personified" fur, they also mirror the interdependence between history, culture, traditional perspectives, and craftsmanship.
“皮毛”是一系列具有生发性的作品，是艺术家持续十年之久慢慢演化的语言，它甚至有些“以假乱真”。皮毛作品内容抽象、形式简洁，造型时而庄重，时而纯粹，制作上是优雅的重复。该系列作品表现了动物皮毛的微妙表情和情绪，近距离观察时，它们还保持了纸作为基本材料的所有物理特征。“以假乱真”的造型常常会被理解为是真实的皮毛，但当谜底揭晓时，观众往往投来诧异的目光和难以置信的惊喜。没错，它原来是纸！
"Pelage" is a series of evolving works that the artist has been meticulously crafting for over a decade. These artworks can even be described as "deceptively authentic." They feature abstract content, simple yet occasionally solemn and pure forms created with an elegant repetition. This series effectively captures the subtle expressions and emotions associated with animal pelage and upon close examination, these artworks still retain all the physical characteristics of paper, their primary material. The deceptive realism in their appearance often leads to an initial misconception that they are genuine fur. However, when the truth is revealed, viewers often react with astonishment and disbelief. Yes, these intricate works are indeed crafted from paper!
皮毛系列的核心是对材料特性的一种全新解读。在社会性和手工性的互相配合下，纸质皮毛被塑造成为生物的、有机的、有生命力的，同时又是理性的、结构化的、秩序化生产和人造的，它被赋予了有机构成的能力。因此，“皮毛”既是社会学的，也是艺术的和手工的，是长时间以来纸张本身的自觉和默许。
The core of the “pelage” series lies in a novel interpretation of material properties. Through the synergy of sociability and craftsmanship, paper fur is molded into something that embodies qualities like organic, vibrant, while also being rational, structured, orderly, and man-made. It possesses the capacity of an organic constitution. Therefore, "pelage" encompasses elements of sociology, artistry, and craftsmanship, all of which have long been an inherent part of paper's consciousness and tacit acceptance.
伍伟以医用人体学、美学、视觉秩序和人类灾难作为研究路径，试图重新审视艺术在现代社会中的悖谬和生存困境。他将图像、纹样、手工技艺和历史材料收集与改编，通过个体记忆和研究，编织出一些关于此时此刻，关于一个群体，关于古老生活的样本和叙事。对艺术家来说，过去是一片领域，是一个人们可以选择性失忆的地方，我们和过去之间总是存在着一些距离，这使得艺术家能够开始重新处理和想象历史的本质。艺术帮助我们接近并回应了那些激发我们灵感的事物，并在这一过程中帮助我们体验更多的连续性和整体性。
Wu Wei explores a path of inquiry encompassing medical anatomy, aesthetics, visual order, and human tragedies. He aims to reexamine the paradoxes and existential challenges that art faces in contemporary society. He gathers and adapts images, textural patterns, craftsmanship, and historical materials, weaving them together through individual memories and research to construct samples and narratives about the present moment, a community, and ancient life. For the artist, the past represents a domain where selective forgetfulness becomes possible. It is a place that maintains a certain distance from our present, enabling the artist to embark on a fresh exploration and reimagination of the essence of history. Art aids us in approaching and responding to those aspects of life that inspire us, facilitating a deeper experience of continuity and wholeness in the process.
（二）“关于触感的习作”：致敬经典
(II)"Study on Touch": A Tribute to the Classics
“关于触感的习作”是一件具有特定文脉的作品，它关联了艺术史。它所致敬、延续和再创造的作品，是艺术家弗兰西斯·培根（Francis Bacon）的三联画《以受难为题的三张习作》(Three Studies for Figures at the Base of a Crucifixion)。《以受难为题的三张习作》是1944年培根用油彩和油蜡笔在一种木质纤维壁板上创作的，据说用了两周的时间。这幅画是基于古希腊悲剧之父埃斯库罗斯（Aeschylus）的著作《奥瑞斯泰亚》里面的厄里倪厄斯（Eumenides），即希腊神话中的三个复仇女神。作品的背景以焦橙色为主，以联画的形式组成，咆哮而畸形的肉体像拖着粘液的蜗牛，隔着作品仿佛都能听到里面邪魅的尖叫声，直击心灵。
"Study on Touch" is an artwork rooted in a specific cultural context, relating to art history. It pays homage to Francis Bacon’s triptych titled "Three Studies for Figures at the Base of a Crucifixion" by referencing and reimagining Bacon’s original, which was created in 1944 using oil paint and pastel on Sundeala fiber board and completed within two weeks. Bacon drew his inspiration from the Eumenides, a trio of female chthonic deities of vengeance in ancient Greek mythology, as depicted in Aeschylus' renowned work 'Oresteia.' Aeschylus was an ancient Greek tragedian and is often described as the father of tragedy. The background of the artwork predominantly features shades of burnt orange, arranged in a triptych format. The roaring and distorted figures resemble snails dragging with them a viscous trail of mucus. It's as if one can hear the eerie shrieks emanating from within the artwork, a direct assault on the senses.
1944年，人类的残暴在科技的辅助下得到了进一步的释放，重型枪扫射、榴弹炮轰炸、装甲洪流的你来我往。当时的英国正在承受德军V1火箭的袭击，死亡的气息混合着培根工作室里强烈的酒香，《以受难为题的三张习作》就在战争的瓦砾堆中诞生了。
In 1944, with the assistance of technology, human brutality was further unleashed—heavy gunfire, artillery bombardments, and the back-and-forth of armored forces. During this time, England was enduring attacks from the German V1 missiles, and the scent of death was mingled with the strong aroma of alcohol in Bacon's studio. It was amid the rubble of war that "Three Studies for Figures at the Base of a Crucifixion" was born.
“关于触感的习作”这件三联皮毛装置，描述了关于人与受难史之间、精神现象学与艺术本体论之间关系的构想。伍伟放弃了对原始图像的再现，而着重展示了内在结构的力量：被纸元素包围的黄铜在画面中若隐若现，锐利的四边形仿佛是一种裂隙，隐约地折射出人们与眼前的现实。这件作品的感染力在于，它是对当今重复且持续受难的人类社会中个人（即小我）心理状态极端变形时的内在刻画——人们的精神总在破碎中不断修复。
Wu Wei’s triptych installation "Study on Touch" delves into the intricate relationship between individuals and the history of suffering, while also exploring the interplay between the phenomenology of spirit and the ontology of art. Wu Wei diverges from merely replicating original imagery; instead, he showcases the power of inner structure. Brass, ensconced within paper elements, subtly emerges in the composition, and sharp quadrilaterals appear akin to crevices, subtly refracting individuals' engagement with the immediate reality. The impact of this artwork lies in its portrayal of the extreme distortion of individual psychological states amid the ongoing suffering prevailing in contemporary society—where the human spirit continually mends itself amidst the fractures.
这件作品既是对经典的致敬，也是对艺术作品中所能蕴含的精神力量的一次膜拜，艺术家通过细腻且中性的纸质皮毛，将艺术表达的核心动力重新定位在这片温婉的橙红色之中。
This artwork serves as both a tribute to the classics and a reverence for the spiritual power that art can encompass. Through the delicate and neutral paper fur, the artist repositions the core driving force of artistic expression within this gentle shade of orange-red.
“身体阅读”&“神圣解剖学”：制造惊奇
"Body Reading" & "Sacred Anatomy": Creating Surprise
惊奇因素是获得审美满足的必要条件。格林伯格在其文章《惊奇因素》中写到：在杰出的艺术品中惊奇因素是永恒的、可重复的、可更新的，就算你了然于心的东西也依然能够让你感到惊奇。在“身体阅读”中就有这样一种“惊奇”：对我们完全熟知甚至经常忘却如何运作的身体结构的再造，以创造出空间生长出别的东西来；其次，对早已恒定的古典图像进行哪怕只是对局部的转换，也能在保持原有图像意义完整性的同时，给予它们新时代问题和视角。
The factor of surprise is a necessary condition for achieving aesthetic satisfaction. Greenberg, in his essay "The Factor of Surprise," writes: in eminently successful art, the element of surprise is timeless, repeatable, renewable. Even things you know by heart can retain their capacity to surprise. In "Body Reading," there is such a "surprise": the reconstruction of the body structure, which we assume we know well but often overlook, to create a space where something new can flourish. Furthermore, even minor transformations of classical images, which have long been constant, can provide them with fresh perspectives and contemporary relevance, all while preserving their original meanings intact.
“身体阅读”是艺术家伍伟借用古典雕像或古典绘画中人物的身体——更准确地说，是身体的各个部位——进行艺术再创造的语义表述和存在反省。他通过涂、绘、剪裁、切割、拼贴、塑造，以及外表中纸质皮毛的共同协作，实现了对古代经典图象当下意义的激活。这一系列作品探索了人类世界中潜在的暴力与隐性的伤痛，氛围中还充塞着一种隐忍的激情和对各式各样暴力的展示与批判。同时它们还通过后现代主义的方式、方法揭示出身体的美和脆弱性。然而，信仰及其历史作用有时是含混不清的，比如“身体阅读”这一系列作品的意义，就既是原作的经典和古典，又是伍伟的新媒介和再转译。所谓的文化碰撞，此刻已不再重要，它们早已成为今天全球化之下人类文明的一个整体而统一的背景，不再是目的。
"Body Reading" represents Wu Wei's artistic re-creation of semantic expression and existential reflection, achieved by borrowing the bodies of characters from classical statues or paintings—more precisely, various parts of the human body. Through a dynamic combination of techniques, including painting, drawing, cutting, slicing, collage, sculpting, and collaborative use of paper fur on the exterior, he breathes new life into ancient classical images, infusing them with contemporary significance. This series of artworks delves into the latent violence and concealed wounds of the human world. Within the atmosphere, there is restrained passion and display and critique of various forms of violence. Concurrently, they employ postmodern methods and approaches to unveil the beauty and fragility of the human body. However, the role of faith and its historical significance can sometimes be ambiguous. For instance, the meaning of the "Body Reading" series encompasses both the original sculptures’ classical qualities and Wu Wei's incorporation of new media and reinterpretation. The concept of cultural collision has now lost its prominence; it has evolved into a unified backdrop for human civilization under the umbrella of today's globalization, no longer a sole purpose in itself.
破坏性与美感是“身体阅读”和“神圣解剖学”中真实存在的两面性。艺术家将“身体”作为符号，将古典和现代、绘画和雕塑结合：颜色被均匀的涂抹在古典图像的背景中，模糊了边界；一层层纸质皮毛的不断叠压和重复代表了时间的长度；从图像身体中生长出的“洞”、“裂痕”或“伤疤”等不规则的形状覆盖了原有的肌肤，由此转换而成的局部可以引申为各种痛的症结。
Destructiveness and aesthetics embody the genuine duality within "Body Reading" and "Sacred Anatomy." The artist uses the "body" as a symbol, combining classical and modern elements, as well as painting and sculpture. Colors are evenly applied to the background of classical images, blurring their boundaries. Layers of paper fur are continuously stacked and repeated, symbolizing the passage of time. Irregular shapes such as "holes," "cracks," or "scars" emerging from the image's body overlay the original skin. These transformed elements can be interpreted as manifestations of various underlying pains and unresolved issues.
“艺术就是这样在一定的传统中不断地发展，不断地生存。它发展靠的是变化，是创新。如果艺术期待停止变化……那么，这种传统就会发病，开始死亡或者瘫痪。因为只有通过不断地翻新、不断地创新和惊奇才能维持审美特性，而艺术传统的生命就在于它的特性。”③ 当然，凡事都有例外，艺术也是如此。
"This is how art, in a given tradition, is made to keep moving and living. It moves and lives by changing, by innovating. If art were to expect to cease its evolution —which means in effect when surprise is no longer wanted from art or in art—then a tradition sickens and begins to die or become paralyzed. For its only through continued newness, continued originality and surprise that esthetic quality gets maintained—and the life of a tradition of art is its quality." ③ Certainly, exceptions exist in all matters, including art.
人们在欣赏图像艺术时，需要在瞬间就得到全部效果，或者一眼望见了里面的缺失。而立体雕塑或装置，如果只是纯粹的视觉体验的话，也需要一连看上几眼，才能获得全部的视觉效果。“身体阅读”和“神圣解剖学”基本上可以在观众瞥见的一瞬间就能得到图像与雕塑结合的全部表面内容。除非你有幸看见作品背后的制作框架，方才看得到皮毛的证据和艺术家对“残破”如何进行的修补。
When people engage with visual art, they often seek to grasp the entire impact instantly or discern its flaws at first glance. In the context of three-dimensional sculptures or installations, if the experience is primarily visual, it may take a few glances to capture the full visual effect. However, "Body Reading" and "Sacred Anatomy" essentially offer viewers the complete surface content of the image and sculpture in the split second they lay eyes on it. Unless one is fortunate enough to witness the framework behind the artwork, it's only then that one can discern the evidence of fur and how the artist has repaired the "damage."
“皮与纹样”：触发和解
"Skin and Texture": Trigger Reconciliation
“皮与纹样”是一个全新的作品类型，艺术家使用滴蜡的方式在动物皮质表面进行融化和组合：材料、行为、时间、冥想和体力劳作都凝结在滴蜡的动作过程中。他借用古代纹样元素与现代人思想行径相结合的方式，以触发人们不安的内心与外部世界和解的愿望和需求。由蜡点组成的纹样就像一种残断的寓言，不同蜡色的组合与皮质之间的衔接自然又外显，它们支撑了作品稳固而神秘的基调，引发了人们从局部到整体的构想，并传递出希望的象征。
"Skin and Texture"represents an entirely novel genre of artwork in which the artist employs a wax-dripping technique on the surface of animal skin. This process integrates materials, action, time, meditation, and physical exertion into the artwork. By blending ancient pattern elements with contemporary human thought and behavior, the artist aims to trigger people's inner disquiet and their longing for reconciliation with the external world. The textural patterns, created by wax droplets, resemble fragmented allegories. The natural yet pronounced connections between various wax colors and skin establish a stable and enigmatic ambiance within the artwork prompting viewers to conceptualize the piece from its details to the overall composition and conveying a symbolic message of hope.
“皮与纹样”是一个承载了古老信仰的现代空间，舒适、坦然而朴素，它减轻了一定的历史沉重感，并以一种流动的符号与观众交流。阿拉伯式的纹样是一种植物图案，由不断重复的几何图形构成，偶尔辅以阿拉伯书法，它们每一片叶子都长在另一片叶子的尖端，从而形成绵延不绝的图案。在美学上，它们美不胜收，巨量重复的图案代表了在可见的物质世界之外还存在着无限的灵魂世界。象征的力量是无限的，它们用无意义的几何图形来代表宇宙中未知的创造性。这种信仰和象征，正好与艺术创作中所需要的信念不谋而合：形式是无意义的图形，但它却代表了一种语言从世界内部向外部不断传递出必要的信息。
"Skin and Texture" serves as a modern space embodying ancient beliefs, offering comfort, openness, and simplicity. It alleviates a certain historical heaviness and communicates with the audience through fluid symbols. Arabic patterns, featuring botanical motifs crafted from repetitive geometric shapes, occasionally complemented by Arabic calligraphy, showcase an enchanting aesthetic. Each leaf sprouts from the tip of another, forming an unending pattern. Aesthetically, these patterns are breathtaking, and the abundant repetition of these motifs symbolizes an infinite spiritual realm beyond the observable material world. The power of symbolism is boundless; it employs seemingly meaningless geometric shapes to represent the uncharted creative forces within the universe. This faith and symbolism seamlessly align with the belief essential for artistic creation: forms, while inherently devoid of meaning, serve as a language continually conveying vital information from the inner world to the outer world.
艺术家都有一种意识，那是一种更高的所在，是与形而上的东西联系在一起的，也与人类世界存在的一种可能的转化（transformation）联系在一起。如何以一定方式来理解人类和人类生活，从而能够表明这种“更高的所在”④ 的意识是从何而来，这种意识又到底意味着什么？艺术和哲学就是关于阐述那些从未被充分说出的事情，哲学、诗歌、艺术和音乐都可以与这样的深刻和直觉进行缠斗。伍伟有关历史的作品，正是与这种深刻和直觉所进行的缠斗。
Artists have a sense of this higher place as linked with God and with a possible transformation of human beings. How to understand human-beings and human life, in a way, which can show where this sense of a "higher place" comes from, and what it means? ④Art and philosophy both serve the purpose of elucidating matters that have not been adequately expressed. Philosophy, poetry, art, and music are all avenues for interpreting such profound and intuitive concepts. Wu Wei's works related to history exemplify his engagement with these profound and intuitive aspects.
在这里，艺术就是艺术家对所讨论对象的缠绕、缠斗或缠绵本身。
In this context, art represents the artist's engagement, interpretation, or connection with the subject under discussion.
注释：
Endnotes:
①，“What Drove Me to Philosophy”（我的哲学动力），查尔斯·泰勒2008年接受京都奖（Kyoto Prize）时的纪念演说；
①Taylor, C. (2008). What Drove Me to Philosophy: Commemorative Lecture Delivered Upon Receiving the Kyoto Prize.
②，《流动不居》，鲍里斯·格罗伊斯（Boris Groys）[德]著，赫塔译，重庆大学出版社；
② Groys, B. (2023). In the Flow (He Ta, Trans.). Chongqing University Press.
③，《自制美学：关于艺术与趣味的观察》，克莱门特·格林伯格（Clement Greenberg）[美]著，陈毅平译，重庆大学出版社。原作名：Homemade Esthetics: Observations on Art and Taste。
③ Greenberg, C. (2017). Homemade Esthetics: Observations on Art and Taste (Chen Yiping, Trans.). Chongqing University Press.
④，同①。
④ Same as ①.
⽑将焉附
⽑、⽪、外相：⽂化史的简要回顾
古语说，“⽑以⽰物，⾎以告杀。”（《国语》）在中国先民的祭祀系统中，牺牲 品的⽑和⾎都要进⾏专门的展⽰：⽑⽤来说明所杀为何物，⾎则表明刚刚完成屠杀。 历史学者胡司徳（Roel Sterckx）如是写道： 什么样的牛才算是理想的牺牲，这一问题有多种文本论及。总的说来， 选取牺牛时需要考虑的因素是毛色、毛皮纯驳（即杂色或单色）、体形 大小、角的状况。《周礼》说，饲养供祭动物的“牧人”根据毛皮状况 对牺牲加以区别（“毛之”），也就是说，选取毛色纯一的动物，并辨 别赤、黑、纯、杂各色。① 请容我花些笔墨来谈论⼀下⽑、⽪、⾎。⽪和⾎是任何动物都有的，⽽“⽑”则在⼀般 的认识中被视为⼈类和动物的区别，“⼆⾜⽽⽆⽑”即是这样的⼀种认识⽅式。⼈类是 少数有⽪⽆⽑的恒温动物：鲸或海豚等海洋哺乳动物也有⽪⽆⽑，这是为了减少游动 时的阻⼒；⼤象、犀⽜等陆⽣哺乳动物也没有⽑，但这些动物体型远⽐⼈类巨⼤；②今 天的科学⽂献中常⽤“evolution of hairlessness”这样的表述，这表明“⽆⽑”不仅是⼈类的 关键⽣理特质，⽽且是进化的结果。相⽐之下，⾎液则构成任何动物之间的某种共情 基础。古⼈认为⼈与动物皆有“⾎⽓”，这个词“表⽰⼴义动物⽣命的本质”。③ 如前所述，⽑和⾎在古⼈的祭祀中构成了⼀对意义组合。⽽“⽪⽑”又形成⼀组新 的意义。“⽪⽑”是⼈类最初的⾐着——⼈没有⽑，但是却把动物的⽪⽑与⾃⼰的⾁⾝ ① （英）胡司德：《古代中国的动物与灵异》，蓝旭译，南京：江苏人民出版社，2016年，第74页。 ② Jablonski, Nina G, “The Naked Truth.” Scientific American 302, no. 2 (2010): 42–49. ③ （英）胡司德：《古代中国的动物与灵异》，第92-100页。 进⾏装置，这⼀装置成为⽂化的⼀个起源。《圣经》中，亚当和夏娃起初“⾚⾝露体、 并不羞耻”，但是当他们被迫离开伊甸园的时候，上帝给他们⽪⼦（skin）当作⾐着 （《圣经·创世纪》）。有学者判断道，动物⽪⽑是⼈类第⼀件私有财产，听起来甚为 合理。①当然，⽪⽑也在古代的礼仪中（尤其是礼物系统）相当重要。《周礼》记载， 服不⽒负责驯养虎豹猛兽，并且负责保存朝贡者献上的兽⽪。前现代的外交事务中， 君主之间互赠殊⽅异兽的⽪⽑。北美的易洛魁⼈⽤兽⽪安放给祖先的殉葬品：“兽⽪之 上要放殉葬品，如战斧、⽔壶、珠⼦、项链等，要铺满厚厚的⼀层。在这之后，由⾸ 领们站在⽊架上把祖先的⾻头倒在殉葬品上，⼫⾻上⾯再铺⼀层兽⽪……在这些事做 完之后，他们会继续跳舞，⽽且脸上带着满意的笑容，相信⾃⼰祖先的灵魂已得到妥 善的安置，也相信这样做会保佑他们平安和富有。” ② ⽪⽑与我们的原始思维息息相关，创世神话和诸多延续⾄今的仪式都体现了⽪⽑ 的⽂化价值和经济价值。然⽽，在中国⼈的⽇常语⾔中，⽪⽑本有的厚重与神秘却被 抽⾛了。相反，“略知⽪⽑”这样的语句是贬义的，“⽪⽑”被喻作琐碎、浅显、不重要的 知识。这似乎表明，⽪⽑之所以能够成为贵重的服饰和礼物，恰是因为它不具有灵魂 ——⼈类把动物的⾻⾎⾁献祭给了神，⽪⽑则留给了⾃⼰。 触觉对视觉的政变 在最初的中⽂⾥，“⽪”是指动物的⽪，⽽“肤”是⼈类的⽪。“⽪肤”⼀词最早出现于 《黄帝内经·素问》。③⽣物学者认为，⼈类⽪肤⾚裸，是因为调节体温的需要。⼈脑 ① Nathaniel C. Hale, Pelts and Palisades, The Story of Fur and the Rivalry for Pelts in Early America (Richmond, VA: Dietz Press, 1959), p.1. ② 王昺、姜芃主编：《加拿⼤⽂明》（修订插图本），福州：福建教育出版社，2008年，第27页。 ③ 马振友、张建中、郑怀林主编：《中国⽪肤科学史》，北京：北京科学技术出版社，2015年，第1页。 对热度极其敏感，光滑的⽪肤有助于及时散热。此外，⽪肤是触觉的器官，⽪肤组织 中包含四种触觉感受器：默克尔触盘、迈斯纳⼩体、帕齐尼⼩体、鲁菲尼末梢。⼈类 的触觉⽐任何其他动物都更为发达——没有哪种动物的四肢能像⼈类的⼿那样灵巧⽽ 敏锐。尽管触觉如此重要，但是在艺术中它的地位似乎总是低于视觉。我们常常在纪 录⽚中看到这样的镜头：美术馆的学者⽤放⼤镜观看古画细节，同时戴着⽩⼿套—— 视觉被增强，⽽触觉被压抑。更不⽤说美术馆在⿎励观众观看作品的同时，总是要警 ⽰：“NO TOUCH！” 失去了视觉的⼈还可以⽤触觉阅读：19 世纪的法国⼈布莱叶（ Pelts and Palisades）开发了完整的盲⽂系统。在今天，即便是视觉正常的⼈也依靠触觉进⾏书 写：⽤键盘熟练地录⼊⽂字被称为“盲打”，我们只需要借助“F”和“J”两个按键上的⼩凸 起，就可以⽤古⼈⽆法想象的速度写字。 2009 年，伍伟以棉布为材质，创作了《⾷指》《⼿指》《我的眼》等⼤型装置。 这些早期作品以写实的肌理，呈现出⾮常实在的触觉体验。《⾷指》垂直触地，⽽ 《⼿指》则瘫在地上，且不论形式和主题，这⼏件起步期的作品已经预⽰了伍伟是触 觉先⾏的艺术家——说实话，和伍伟最初接触时，我就认为图像并⾮他作品中的关 键。《我的眼》更是直截了当做出了拒绝观看的表态。如前所述，图像主宰了艺术和 艺术理论，因此任何“动⼿”的做法似乎都是⼀种野蛮⾏径。 在伍伟的后续创作中，材质愈发展⽰出⾃⾝的强度。2012 年前后，伍伟开始关注 书籍，完成了《藏书》《163 本书》等装置。其时的作品质地与其说是⽪⽑，不如说更 像是织物。不过，书籍与织物（外相与质料）之间已经形成了相互捆缚的关系，这⼀ 捆缚关系被延续了下来。⽤剪⼑完成的“纸⽪⽑”是伍伟迄今为⽌最具签名性的艺术语 ⾔，这些作品中充满了⼿的劳作。 ⼀些作品体现出伍伟对上古神话的特别兴趣，譬如《⿅蜀》（2012）、《虎变》 （2015）、《⽩泽图》（2016）等等。另值得注意的是，这批作品显⽰出与 20 世纪现 代主义艺术理论的关联。格林伯格（Clement Greenberg）曾寄望于抽象作品能够弥补 经典绘画在“物质存在（physical presence）和具体性（corporeality）⽅⾯的⽋缺”。①伍 伟完成了这个任务：⼀摞纸张本⾝便是整洁的⽴⽅体，它同时又是真实的纸张。 形式的抽象同样能够完成格林伯格所说的“再现”功能。直⾄今⽇，那种 20 世纪最 为常见的、⽅⽅正正的、具有表现主义意味的架上作品，仍在伍伟的作品中占有重要 位置。但即便是在这些作品中，⽪⽑的缠绕状态也真实且具象。不仅如此，伍伟的⼏ 乎每⼀件作品都传达了创世神话的戏剧冲突，⽤中国话说，便是“驱虎豹犀象⽽远之， 天下⼤悦”（《孟⼦》）的⽂明起源。在《祟祟》（2016）、《罝》（2017）、《忤 合》（2017）等装置中，先民⽤技术暴⼒征服猛兽的情景被⽣动地复现。⾦属的使⽤ 揭⽰了⼈之为⼈的残酷⼀⾯：⽪⽑遇到⾦属，就意味着⾎流成河。庖丁，这个中国历 史上最杰出的屠夫，他的“道”是关乎如何在肢解⽜的同时⽆损⼑的完整：“良庖岁更 ⼑，割也；族庖⽉更⼑，折也。今⾂之⼑⼗九年矣，所解数千⽜矣，⽽⼑刃若新发于 硎。”（《庄⼦·养⽣主》）在这个故事中，艺术家的技艺与⾦属⼯具已臻完善之境，但 是⽜呢？ ① （美）克莱门特·格林伯格：《抽象艺术、再现艺术及其他》，《艺术与⽂化》，沈语冰译，桂林：⼴ 西师范⼤学出版社，2009年，第174页。 在这个著名故事中，⽜的结局是：“謋然已解，如⼟委地。”（《庄⼦·养⽣主》） 被肢解的⽜像⼟⼀样⽆⼒地洒落在地——这正是伍伟装置中的戏剧情节。只是，庖丁 那样⾼明的屠杀者并不存在于现实中，因此兽们也不会像故事中的⽜那样温顺地成为 被处理的对象——牠们必然反抗，反抗必然失败。在⽂明昭⽰胜利之际，伍伟讲出了 ⾃然界的悲剧。 ⾃然界的反抗不是从视觉发起的，⽽是从触觉。那些看不见的⽣物在⼈的⽪肤之 上传播蔓延。正如许多科普作家所说，⽪肤是⼀种“社交器官”——我们常夸赞别⼈⽪ 肤好，⽽⽪肤病意味着丑和羞耻。“⿇风主要由直接接触⽽传染。”⼀部权威的诊疗指 南这样说。①⿇风病同时伤害⽪肤和神经系统，它造成⽪肤的长期溃疡，有些亚型可以 让患者的⼿变成“猿⼿”形态。此外，⿇风患者会在相当程度上失去触觉。⿇风剥夺⼈ 的尊严，如福柯发现的那样，在⿇风病⼈⾝上，⽂明社会对“不正常”的⼈发展出了“排 斥”技术： 在勃鲁盖尔（Brughel）的画上，在卡尔瓦里，人群围在基督身边，而麻 风病人与他仍保持着一定距离，但永远是在爬向卡尔瓦里。他们是罪恶 的神圣证明。② 在西⽅⽂明史中，⿇风病⼈与牧⽺⼈存在某些不明显的关联。艾柯（Umberto Eco）⼩说中有这样⼀段对⽩： “羊群”是一串同心圆，从离圆心最远的“羊群”到离圆心最近的“羊群”，都 围绕着同一个圆心。麻风病患者只是象征普遍意义上的被排斥在外的 人。……麻风病人只是上帝安排的病态形象，旨在让我们明白这种比 喻，在谈论“麻风病人”时，我们明白指的是“被排斥的人、穷人、贱民、 穷困潦倒的人、乡村中失去土地的人、城市里被凌辱的人”。我们没有明 ① ⽅洪元主编：《朱德⽣⽪肤病学》（第5版），北京：⼈民卫⽣出版社，2020年，第238页。 ②（法）⽶歇尔·福柯著；刘北成，杨远婴译：《疯癫与⽂明 修订译本 第4版》，北京：⽣活·读书·新知三 联书店，2012年，第10页。卡尔⽡⾥，即耶稣被钉死的地⽅。 白，麻风病的神秘一直在困扰着我们，我们没有分辨出其实质的象征含 义。① 福柯指出，通过排斥⿇风、性病和疯癫，近代⽂明社会建构起了⾃⾝的“理性”。 可以发现，“理性”的构建来⾃于对不可见⽣物的恐惧：今天我们知道，这些不可见物 是细菌或病毒。它们⽆影⽆踪，可能在空⽓或淡⽔中，当我们试图对这些不可见物进 ⾏反抗时，就必然⾛向群体的不理性。我们⽤消毒液喷洒住所的各个⾓落，这个⾏为 恰恰体现出理性的⽆能为⼒。 纸⽪⽑作品中的缠⽃景象，已经预⽰了某种东西会向我们的理性发起反攻。2019 年的两件作品在伍伟的创作中似乎有转折意味：《隐藏的牧⽺⼈》和《凝神》。牧⽺ ⼈的意象让⼈联想到福柯讨论的“牧领权⼒”，⽽《凝神》则是今⽇“切⾯与替⾝”这个新 系列的前奏。这件作品以达·芬奇的《美丽的费隆妮叶夫⼈》为底本，只是画中⼥主⾓ 的脸上已经布满了⽪⽑。 ⾯孔上的⽪⽑本⾝并不可怕：16 世纪，西班⽛的冈萨雷斯家族（Gonzales）因浑 ⾝长满⽑发⽽被法国宫廷作为宠物豢养和展⽰。这个家族成员留下了不少肖像，佩德 罗·冈萨雷斯（Pedro Gonzales）的画像被收⼊动物学书籍中，⼥画家拉维尼亚·丰塔纳 （Lavinia Fontana）的《安东尼塔·冈萨雷斯像》（Portrait of Antonietta Gonzalez， 1595）则更加为⼈所知。②但在冈萨雷斯家族的这些肖像画中，我们看不出什么恐惧 感，因为被⽪⽑变异的⾯相只是观察和赏玩的对象，它并不会传染给观者。如果⾝体 ① 翁贝托·埃科：《玫瑰的名字》，王东亮译，上海：上海译⽂出版社，2010年，第228页。 ② Merry Wiesner-Hanks, “Les Gonzales, famille sauvage et velue,” The Wild and Hairy Gonzales Family, Apparence(s) Online, 5 | 2014, Uploaded 20 February 2014. URL: http://apparences.revues.org/1268。访问⽇ 期：2023年4⽉21⽇。 与⾯孔不会受到传染，那么灵魂和精神也就得以保全。伍伟的作品显然与冈萨雷斯家 族的画像⽆关，但⼆者之间有⽐较的必要。 伍伟作品中的另⼀个戏剧故事，便是理性如何遭到反攻。⽪⽑是⾃然界的前⾏部 队。在近年的许多作品中，⽪⽑冲进了⼈造物的世界，它们在电器家具上如藤蔓般坚 定地⽣长出来，展⽰出继续繁衍的意志。《提丰》是其中最有⼒度的作品之⼀。我们 曾见过许多⽤汽车进⾏装置的艺术家，这些装置往往带有超现实主义的浪漫，当然， 它们也常传递出失控感，①但《提丰》却是⼀件充满了极端焦虑和惊恐的作品。汽车， 这个⼯业理性的最⾼合成物在⽪⽑的追赶之下⽆从逃窜，它的⽡解意味着速度的失 败，⽪⽑爬上车的⾻架，汽车像庖丁⼑下的⽜⼀样“如⼟委地”！ 教科书告诉我们，⽂艺复兴重新发现了⼈的尊严。即便有诸多个案可以提出反 证，但不能否认，⽂艺复兴以降的西⽅绘画史也是⼀段⼈的理性和尊严被构建的历 史。同样重要的是，这些图像进⼊殿堂，神圣不可侵犯。在《凝神》之后，伍伟发展 出“切⾯与替⾝”的新系列。在这个系列中，凡有⼈像的，伍伟都指挥着⽪⽑，对画⾯ 中圣⼈和普通⼈的⾯孔发起进攻。⽪⽑在不该出现的地⽅出现了，那在更多的不可见 处，又存在着什么可怕的东西呢？ 因此，如果你在伍伟的这批新作⾯前感到不适，请不必惊讶。但我们应当理解这 种不适的真正原因。这些作品固然不在视觉上取悦观众，但更重要的是，它们直接挑 战了由图像构筑起的“理性”的⽂化史，明⽩地呈现了“理性”⼀败涂地后的样貌。这种不 适感恰恰表明伍伟是公正的，实际上，他⽤⼀碗⽔端平的态度展⽰了“野蛮”和“⽂明”各 ① 此时此刻我暂且能想到的名字包括王郁洋、照屋勇贤和张⿍。 ⾃被击败后的样态，只是我们总会不假思索地站在“⽂明”那⼀边，所以对后者的承受 能⼒更弱。 “⽑⾻悚然”“不寒⽽栗”，汉语中描述恐惧的词语多与触觉有关。触摸只在亲密的关 系中让⼈舒适，除此之外，合法的触摸只在控制和被控制的关系中成⽴，最常见的是 牧师或医⽣的触摸。如果说伍伟前期的创作呈现了⼈类如何触摸⾃然，那么从《提 丰》到“切⾯与替⾝”系列，⼈类已⽆法逃离被⾃然触摸的历史命运。⽂明的戏剧进⼊ 了下半场。
The Shepherd's Touch（How will the hair be
attached?）
Fur, Skin, and Appearance
As the ancient saying goes, "Hair is used to show the object, and blood is used to tell of the killing." (Guoyu 國語) In the sacrificial system of the Chinese ancestors, both the hair and the blood of the sacrificial victim were specifically displayed: the hair was used to indicate what had been killed, and the blood indicated that the slaughter had just been completed. As Roel Sterckx has said:
Several texts provide information on the ox as an ideal sacrificial victim. In general, factors taken into account for selecting a sacrificial bull were color, purity of the hide (i.e., whether it has spots or is monochrome), the bull’s size, and the condition of its horns. The breeder of sacrificial animals (muren ) in the Zhouli is said to “distinguish the victims by hide” (mao zhi); that is, to select those with a uniform hide and distinguish among red, black, spotless, and variegated animals. （Sterckx， 2002）
Let me spend some time talking about hair, skin, and blood. While skin and blood are common to all animals, "hair" is generally perceived as the difference between humans and animals, and "bipedal but hairless" is one way of perceiving it. Humans are one of the few animals with hairless skin: marine mammals such as whales or dolphins also have hairless skin to reduce resistance when swimming; land mammals such as elephants and rhinoceroses are also hairless, but these animals are much larger than humans; The expression "evolution of hairlessness" is commonly used in today's scientific literature, suggesting that "hairlessness" is a key physiological trait in humans and the result of evolution. Blood, by contrast, forms the basis of a certain empathy between any animal. The ancients believed that both humans and animals have "blood and qi"（xueqi 血氣）, a term that "denotes the essence of animal life in the broadest sense".（Sterckx，2002）
As mentioned earlier, hair and blood formed a combination of meanings in ancient rituals. And "fur" (skin and hair) forms a new set of meanings. "Fur" was the first human clothing— man don't have hair, but he uses animal fur as an apparatus with his own flesh, and this apparatus became one origin of culture. In the Bible, Adam and Eve “were without clothing, and they had no sense of shame", but when they were forced to leave the Garden of Eden, God gave them skin as clothing (Genesis). Some scholars stated that animal skins were the first private property of mankind, which sounds very reasonable. Of course, skins were also quite important in ancient rituals (especially the gift system). According to Zhouli（周礼）, Fubushi（服不氏）， an ancient Chinese saint, were responsible for taming tigers and leopards, and for preserving the skins of animals offered by tributes. In pre-modern diplomatic affairs, monarchs gave each other the skins of exotic animals from different lands. The Iroquois of North America used animal skins to place burial goods for their ancestors: "The skins were to be covered with a thick layer of burial goods, such as battle axes, water pots, beads, necklaces, etc. After this, the bones of the ancestors are poured on the martyrs by the chiefs standing on a wooden frame, and the bones are covered with another layer of animal skins ...... After these things are done, they will continue to dance and with a satisfied smile on their faces, believing that the souls of their ancestors have been properly placed and that this will bless them with peace and wealth. "(Wang, Jiang, 2008)
Fur is closely related to our primitive thinking, and the cultural and economic value of fur is reflected in the creation myths and many rituals that continue to this day. However, in the everyday language of the Chinese, the weight and mystery of fur are taken away. Instead, statements such as "knowing a little about fur"（略知皮毛） are pejorative, and "fur" is used as a metaphor for superficial and unimportant knowledge. This seems to suggest that fur is a valuable garment and gift precisely because it does not have a soul: man sacrifices the flesh and bones of animals to God while keeping the fur for himself.
Tactile's coup
In the original Chinese, "pi"（皮） refers to the skin of animals, while “fu”（肤） refers to the skin of humans. The term "pifu"（皮肤）first appeared in Huangdineijing 黄帝内经. Biologists believe that human skin is naked for the need to regulate body temperature. The human brain is extremely sensitive to heat, and smooth skin helps to dissipate heat in a timely manner. In addition, the skin is an organ of touch, and the skin tissue contains four tactile receptors: Merkel's haptic disc, Meissner's vesicle, Pazini's vesicle, and Ruffini's terminal. The sense of touch is more developed in humans than in any other animal - no animal has limbs as dexterous and acute as the human hand. Despite the importance of the sense of touch, it always seems to have a lower status in art than vision. A typical image of a museum scholar is that she or he looking at details of ancient paintings with magnifying glasses while wearing white gloves - the sense of sight is enhanced, while the sense of touch is suppressed. Not to mention the fact that art museums always warn "NO TOUCH!" while encouraging viewers to look at the work.
Blind people can read with the sense of touch: Braille system was developed in the 19th century. Today, we write with the sense of touch. We type on the keyboard. With the help of small bumps on the "F" and "J" keys, we can write at a speed unimaginable to the ancients.
In 2009, Wu Wei created large-scale installations such as "Forefinger", "Finger" and "My Eye" using cotton as the material. These early works present a very tangible tactile experience with realistic texture. “Forefinger" touches the ground vertically, while "Finger" is lying on the ground. Regardless of the form and subject matter, these early works already foreshadow Wu Wei as a tactile artist - I never thought that images were not the key to Wu Wei's work. “My Eyes" is a blunt refusal to see. As mentioned earlier, images dominate art and art theory, so any "handson" approach seems like a barbaric act.
In Wu Wei's subsequent works, the material increasingly demonstrates its own intensity, and around 2012, Wu Wei began to focus on books, completing installations such as "Tibetan Books" and "163 Books". The texture of his works at that time was more like fabric than fur. However, the relationship between books and fabric (appearance and material) had already formed a mutual bond, and this bonding relationship continued. The "paper fur" made with scissors is by far Wu Wei's most representative, which is filled with hand labor.
Some of the works reflect Wu Wei's particular interest in ancient mythology, such as "Lu Shu" (鹿蜀，2012), "Tigers Change" (虎变，2015), and "Bai Ze Tu" (白泽图，2016), among others. It is also worth noting that these works show a connection to 20th-century modernist art theory. Clement Greenberg had hoped that abstract works would make up for the lack of physical presence and corporeality in classical painting (Greenberg, 1954). Wu Wei accomplishes this task: a pile of paper is a neat cube, but it is also real paper.
Formal abstraction also fulfills what Greenberg calls the "reproductive" function. To this day, the kind of square, expressionistic easel work that was most common in the 20th century continues to figure prominently in Wu Wei's work. But even in these works, the tangled state of the fur is real and tangible. In addition, almost every one of Wu Wei's works conveys the dramatic conflict of the creation myth, which, in Chinese terms, is the origin of the civilization that "drove the tiger, leopard, rhinoceros, and elephant away, and the world was pleased" (Mencius). In installations such as "Stealthy" (祟祟 2016), "Cage" (罝，2017), and " Disobedient and Unite " (忤合，2017), scenes of ancestors using technological violence to conquer fierce animals are vividly recreated. The use of metal reveals the brutal side of what it means to be human: when fur meets metal, it means blood flows. Paoding（庖丁）, the most distinguished butcher in Chinese history, his "Tao" is about how to dismember cattle while not losing the integrity of the knife: " A good cook changes his knife every year because he uses his knife to cut. An ordinary cook changes his knife every month because he uses his knife to hack. My knife has been in use for nineteen years and has cup up several thousand oxen, and yet its edge is still sharp as if it were newly whetted" (Zhuangzi 庄子 ) In this story, the artist's skills and metal tools have reached a state of perfection, but the ox?
In this famous story, the ox's flesh has been dismembered, "like earth to the ground." - the very dramatic plot of Wu Wei's installation. However, in the world of reality, a slaughterer as skillful as Paoding does not exist, so the beasts will not be as meek as the ox in the story - they are bound to resist, and resistance is bound to fail. On the triumph of civilization, Wu Wei tells the tragedy of the natural world.
Nature's revolt is not initiated from sight but from touch. Those invisible creatures spread over the human skin. As many popular science writers say, skin is a "social organ" - we often compliment others on their skin, while skin diseases imply ugliness and shame. Leprosy is mainly transmitted by direct TOUCHING. Leprosy damages both the skin and the nervous system, causing long-term skin ulcers and, in some subtypes, "ape-handed" hands. In addition, people with leprosy can lose their sense of touch to a significant degree. Leprosy strips people of their dignity and, as Foucault discovered, in lepers civilized society has developed techniques of "rejection" of "abnormal" people:
Brueghel's lepers attend at a distance, but forever, that climb to Calvary on which the entire people accompanies Christ. Hieratic witnesses of evil, they accomplish their salvation in and by their very exclusion. (Foucault,1965)
Foucault points out that by rejecting leprosy, venereal disease, and madness, modern civilized society has constructed its own "rationality". The construction of "rationality" can be found in the fear of invisible creatures: today we know that these invisible objects are bacteria or viruses. They are invisible, they may be in the air or in water, and when we try to fight against these invisible things, we come collectively irrational. We spray all corners of our dwellings with disinfectant, an act that precisely reflects the impotence of "rationality".
Two works from 2019 seem to take a turn for the worse in Wu Wei's oeuvre: "Hidden Shepherds" and "Attentively". The imagery of the shepherd is reminiscent of Foucault's discussion of "pastoral power", while " Attentively " is a prelude to today's new series, "Cuts and Doubles". This work is based on Leonardo da Vinci's "La Belle Madame Féronnier", except that the woman's face is already covered with fur.
The fact that fur is on the face is not terrible: in the 16th century, the Gonzales family of Spain was kept and displayed as pets by the French court because of their hairy bodies. Members of this family left several portraits, with Pedro Gonzales' portrait included in zoological books and the "Portrait of Antonietta Gonzalez" (1595) by the female painter Lavinia Fontana more well known. But in these portraits of the Gonzalez family, we do not see much fear, because the face, mutated by the fur, is only an object of observation and stare; it is not contagious to the viewer. If the body and face are not contagious, then the soul and spirit are preserved. Wu Wei's work is obviously not related to the portraits of the Gonzales family, but there is a need for a comparison between the two.
Another dramatic story in Wu Wei's work is how rationality is counter-attacked. Fur is the forward force of nature. In many works of recent years, fur rushes into the world of man-made objects, and they grow firmly like vines on electrical furniture, demonstrating the will to continue reproducing. "Typhon" is one of the most powerful among these works. We have seen many artists who have made installations with cars, often with a surrealist romance, and of course, they often convey a sense of loss of control, but "Typhon" is a work of extreme anxiety and panic. The car, the supreme synthesis of industrial rationality, has no way to escape under the pursuit of the fur, its disintegration means the failure of speed, the fur climbs on the skeleton of the car, and the car is like the ox under Paoding's knife of Butcher.
The history of Western painting since the Renaissance is also a history in which human reason and dignity were constructed. Equally important, these images entered the hall of fame, sacrosanct and inviolable. After " Attentively ", Wu Wei developed a new series of "Cut and Substitute". In this series, where there are human figures, Wu Wei directs the fur to attack the faces of saints and ordinary people in the images. The fur appears where it shouldn't. So, there's no surprise if you feel uncomfortable in the presence of this new series. But we should understand the real reason for this discomfort. While these works are certainly not visually pleasing, more importantly, they directly challenge the cultural history of "rationality" constructed by images, and clearly present the appearance of "rationality" after it has been defeated. This discomfort shows that Wu Wei is impartial, in fact, he shows the defeated state of "barbarism" and "civilization" fifty-fifty, only that we always put ourselves on the side of "civilization".
Touch is only comforting in intimate relationships; otherwise, legitimate touch only holds true in relationships of control and the controlled, most often by priests or doctors. If Wu Wei's earlier works show how human beings touch nature, then from "Typhon" to the "Cut and Substitute" series, human beings can no longer escape the fate of being touched by nature. The drama of civilization has entered the second half.
Bibliography
Hale, N. C. (2022). Pelts and palisades: The story of fur and the rivalry for pelts in early America. Good Press. Foucault, M. (1964). Madness and Civilization. Antipsychiatry Movement, 86. Glass, B. (1966). Evolution of Hairlessness in Man. Science, 152(3720), 294–294. Kushlan, J. A. (1980). The Evolution of Hairlessness in Man. The American Naturalist, 116(5), 727–729. JSTOR. Pines, A. L. (1981). The Naked Truth. Journal of College Science Teaching, 11(2), 119–119. Sterckx, R. (2012). Animal and the Daemon in Early China, The. State University of New York Press. Greenberg, C. (1971). Art and culture: Critical essays (Vol. 212). Beacon Press. 马振友、张建中、郑怀林主编(2015).中国皮肤科学史. 北京：北京科学技术出版社，2015 年 王昺，姜芃主编. (2008). 加拿大文明. 福州：福建教育出版社.
IMPERFECT TYPHON:
WU WEI’S “FREEDOM FROM RESISTANCE”
Author / Yang Zi
In 2012, Wu Wei made two works. The first was called 163 Books. He piled books as high as a person, like he used to in the bookstore he opened in his hometown of Zheng- zhou. The spines faced the wall, and the edges faced out. He cut the pages into a fur-like texture, forming the pat- tern of a tiger skin rug. The book pages were yellowed, similar to the color of a tiger’s fur. He painted black hor- izontal stripes onto the books, which looked as if the ink had seeped from the printed pages. The other 2012 work was Addition and Subtraction. A pile of square white pa- per formed a regular cube, with one corner flipped up and a tuft of paper fur bursting from the side. In these works, the book became an abstract form, and the tiger became an abstract power.
The latter is closer to Clement Greenberg’s idea of perfec- tion1 than the former, but it certainly does not achieve that perfection. For Greenberg, “art compressed the simplifi- cation that nature rejects into a unity.”2 This unity stands in opposition to the unimportant, mediocre trivialities of modern civilization. The forms of Modernist art are pure; they have an “all-over,” uniform visual density that re- moves the drama from the decorative.3 This is perfection. The imitation fur in Addition and Subtraction is the main break with this purity. In this sense, 163 Books is trivial and concrete compared to Addition and Subtraction, and Addi- tion and Subtraction is a higher-level version of 163 Books. The next step would be to remove the tuft of paper fur.
However, Wu Wei was not thinking about perfection from the beginning. Whenever he subtracts, he constantly thinks about adding. White Marsh (2016) is an enlarged version of Addition and Subtraction placed onto a black steel plate and embedded with dozens of black eyes. Wu Wei went to the Dahuting Han tombs in Henan to form a relation- ship with them; he placed a small version of Addition and Subtraction in a tomb covered with carvings and colored wall paintings, showing it to three or four people over the course of an afternoon. Later, in Berlin, he covered a wall with paper, then he embellished the red battlefield with wood, metal, and acrylic elements. The work was named for the Longbo, a somewhat discontented race of giants who could catch giant turtles in The Classic of Mountains and Seas.
In 2020, the works in Wu Wei’s solo exhibition “Freedom from Resistance” were certainly not restricted by the ex- isting Modernist framework. He found an abandoned San- tana sedan, hollowed out the body, took the parts, painted them, and polished them. Finally, he affixed his trademark paper fur in natural, appropriate places. Presented on a platform, the car looks like a butchered, dismembered an- imal. After being carefully decorated, it was ready for the altar. Some of the car parts were symmetrical, such as the engine cover or the front fender, but geometric holes and lines appeared after they were extruded, looking rather like the patterns on an ancient ding. This kind of bronze tripod vessel was originally used by the ancient Chinese to cook and store meat, but it eventually became a ritual implement in sacrifices. The work, Typhon, was named for a monster from ancient Greek mythology who fought a fierce battle against Zeus and lost. Hesiod described the aftermath of the battle in Theogony:
Then when he had subdued him by the strokes that he sent down, The crippled monster fell—gigantic Gaia gave a groan—And flame shot from the body of the thunder-stricken lord, Till rugged Aetna's mountain slopes and valleys were devoured And much of the prodigious earth was burned and wasted in The preternatural fire's breath—melted, as is tin When, in the well-aired crucible where craftsmen work their skill, Heat softens it; or as is iron, strongest thing of all, When subject to a fire burning in hilly vales, at length It's melted in the sacred earth through great Hephaistos' strength: So Gaia burned and melted in the blazing fire... 4Typhon connects stories and scenes that were originally unrelated—traffic accidents, butchery, sacrifices, and bat- tlefields—adding these real and fictional images to Wu’s work. Thanks to this formal ambiguity, the works can con- tain many stories, but no one of them tells a story from beginning to end; they leave a lot of room for interpreta- tion. If we look at the work in a different way, just as Ad- dition and Subtraction dropped the story from 163 Books, we realize that we do not know these stories; we are just vaguely aware of many things: brutality, reverence, ruth- lessness, purity, solemnity, scorching heat, and something compelling the viewer to look. Wu Wei learned from Carl Andre, who envisioned painting grids on the floor of the gallery. With these grids as a foundation, Wu planned a platform for Typhon. The texture of the platform contrasts sharply with the metal, fur, and paper, while also providing an extremely rational, nearly perfect measure.
Wu Wei, a Chinese artist who started working more than half a century after Art and Culture was published, is not the first to question formal perfection.5 Greenberg’s ver- sion of Modernism has been challenged, and the under- lying aesthetic experience of Western religious fanaticism that is bound up in perfection has also been challenged. When critiquing Minimalism in 1967, Michael Fried pro- posed “objecthood” as a term for the actual physical properties that underpin art and that Modernist painting sought to overcome. He thought that, once objecthood appeared, art became concrete and sluggish, no longer a form of abstraction that had an instant impact. From Brecht to Aalto and other avant-garde theater practi- tioners, as well as the happenings and performance art of the 1960s, Fried realized that Minimalist art, which re- turned to the objects themselves and seemed devoid of content, was the pursuit of a new “theatrical art.”6 Later, in the work of Thierry de Duve and others, the dramatic became praiseworthy. Kitschy art was accepted, and art no longer had to achieve some Platonic ideal that perfect- ly, irrefutably, and invisibly resided within it. A work of art now incorporated its relationships with the environment and with the viewer, but it also involved unimportant, me- diocre trivialities. Perhaps, as Boris Groys saw in Green- berg 7 , elegant avant-garde art fostered this kitsch.
Wu Wei took the conclusions, but not the doctrine, from Fried’s discussions of Modernist and Minimalist art. This is not to say that he has not systematically studied the art history. 8 What I mean to say is that his art has its own charms, onto which he grafts his own life experience. One morning in August, Wu Wei and I were on the streets of Zhengzhou, watching the anxious din of the traffic as we waited to set out for Kaifeng. He grew up in the Central Plains, and he said that this land was more interesting and powerful than it is today. Now, there are so many people rushing around, struggling and exhausted. The magical transformations and surprise victories recorded in old books have continued, and they can re-enliven a dull and numbing modern life. For Wu Wei, the yardstick of perfec- tion is attractive, and his strength is that he is connected to the pain of the everyday world. The dramatic and the decorative do not need to conflict. Wu Wei is greedy; his saving grace is that he wants both.
不完美的提丰: 伍伟个展“无阻”中的艺术
文/杨紫
2012 年，伍伟做了两件作品。一件叫《163 本书》。他把一堆书 摞成一人高，让人想起他在老家郑州开的书店，书脊挨墙，边缘 朝外，书页剪成得细碎的地方，像皮毛，拼成一张摊开的虎皮。 书页泛黄，与虎的毛色相近;涂上的黑横纹，像印字的墨渗出来。 另一件是《增减》。一叠正方形的白纸，规规矩矩码成立方，一 个角翘起，还是龇出的毛。书化成了抽象的形，虎化成了抽象的力。
后者肯定比前者接近格林伯格的“完美”1，却肯定算不得他要 的“完美”。在格林伯格那儿，“艺术将自然中拒绝精简化的东西 压缩进统一性之中”2。这“统一性”，与现代文明中稀松平常的 破碎和繁扰相对。在现代主义艺术中，它表现出的形式是纯净， 是视觉可以感知的均匀密度，是“满幅”的、去掉了“戏剧性” 的“装饰性”3。这样才“完美”。《增减》中的虎毛是破坏这种 品质的祸首。按这个逻辑讲，《163 本书》比《增减》琐碎、具体， 《增减》是《163 本书》“进化”来的高阶版本。下一步，删除纸 上龇出的毛，就好了。可伍伟压根没想过“完美”。“减”的时候，他还在念叨着“增”。 《白泽图》(2016)是《增减》的放大版，压在黑铁板上，长出 几十只黑眼珠。伍伟还跑到河南打虎亭汉墓去，打通关系，把缩 小版的《增减》放到布满石刻图像和彩色壁画的墓穴间，给三四 个观众展了一个下午。后来，在柏林，纸上了墙，贴满一面，木 头、金属、亚克力的零件点缀着通红的战幕——作品以《山海经》 里会钓鳌的巨人族“龙伯”命名，他们也是些不安分的家伙。
2020 年伍伟的个展叫“无阻”——这次，他作品的形式的确没 有受到现代主义既有框架的限制。他找来一辆报废的桑塔纳轿车， 掏空车体，挖出零件，上漆、抛光，在安安合适之处黏贴他标志性的纸皮毛。陈列在展示台上，车像一头被屠宰、肢解的兽，精 心装点后，准备奉上祭台。车的一些部件是对称的，比如发动机 罩或者前挡泥板，经受冲压，现出几何状的孔洞和线条，与古代 的鼎纹神似——鼎本来是中国古人烹煮和盛贮肉类的青铜器具， 是祭祀礼器。作品叫“提丰”。那却是一位希腊神话里的巨人神， 他曾与宙斯挑战，壮烈地失败了。赫西俄德在《神谱》里这样描 绘那惨烈的场景:
宙斯征服提丰之后，把他打成残废扔下天空，大地因之叫 苦呻吟。这个被雷电重伤的统治者失败后，在阴暗多石的 山谷里发射出火焰。可怕的热气灼烧着一大片土地，使之 熔化，就像人工加热使锡在开口的钳锅里熔化一样，或如 铁——万物中最坚硬的东西在山谷中被白热的火焰熔化， 被赫淮斯特斯的火力熔化在地下一般。这时，甚至大地也 被灼热的火焰熔化了。《提丰》串联时空本无关的故事场景——车祸、屠宰、祭祀、战场， 把这些虚实意象增添到创作之中。得益于形式的暧昧特质，作品 能涵盖许多故事，却不将哪一个从头到尾讲完。它留下许多给人 解释的余地。甚至，我们也可以换一种眼光，如同《增减》抛掉《163 本书》中的故事那样，换一种眼光看作品，如同我们不曾知晓那 些故事，我们只隐约会意到些许情绪:残酷的、虔敬的、暴戾的、 纯真的、庄严的、炽热的、令观众屏气凝神的。伍伟学着卡尔·安 德烈那样，在想象的展厅地面上画正方形的格子，以这些格子为 基础，规划出盛放《提丰》的展台。展台在质感层面与金属、皮毛、 纸张互相激烈对冲，又提供了极为理性的，近于“完美”的尺度。
质疑形式的“完美”，伍伟，一位在《艺术与文化》发表半个世纪后才开始创作的中国艺术家，不可能是第一个。5 格林伯格所 秉持的现代主义遭受挑战，背后是“完美”所饱含的西方宗教迷 狂式的审美经验在遭受挑战。1967 年，在批判极简主义时，迈 克尔·弗雷德提出“物性”概念，指向现代主义绘画想要击溃的、 创作基底的实际物理特性。他觉得，一旦这特性现身，艺术变得 具体而滞缓，不再是瞬间能击中人心的抽象的了。从布莱希特到 阿尔托及相关的前卫戏剧，还有 1960 年代的偶发艺术、行为艺术， 弗雷德意识到，回归到物体本身、看似毫无内容的极简艺术，在 追求成为一种新的“剧场艺术”。6 后来，在德·迪弗德等人的叙 述中，“剧场性”变褒义了。世俗化的艺术被接受了，艺术的品 质不再非得像柏拉图提出的“理念”那样，“完美”地、不可辩 驳地、看不见摸不着地居于作品本身之中了。艺术的品质也融合 于艺术同环境、同观者的关系之中了，也融合于稀松平常的破碎 和繁扰之中了。或者如格罗伊斯对格林伯格的理解7，“高雅”的 前卫艺术本身就孕育了这种俗世状态。
从弗雷德着重论述的现代主义或极简主义艺术中，伍伟拿取的是 结果，并非其中的教条。这倒不是说他没有系统学习过相应的艺 术知识8，而是说，这类艺术凭借自身的魅力，嫁接于他原有的 生命经验中。八月的一个早上，我和伍伟来到郑州街头，等待出 发去开封的当儿，干看了会儿焦急又喧嚷的车流。这是他成长的 中原，他说，这片土地曾经比现在“带劲”9得多。现在，这里 人口众多，娑婆世界，满是挣扎和疲倦;历史旧书记载的神秘幻化、 出奇制胜，延续下来，能刺激现代生活的乏味和麻木。对伍伟来说， 完美的尺度是诱人的，其雄浑之处，与这尘世间的刺痛感相似相 通。“戏剧性”和“装饰性”没必要矛盾。伍伟贪心，可取之处， 他想兼得。
注释
1 在收录于《艺术与文化》的《“美国式”绘画》一文中论述马克·罗斯科 的绘画时，使用了“完美”一词。而格林伯格论述罗斯科时又提及了其他艺 术家对罗斯科的影响。原文为 :“罗斯科像受益于史蒂尔那样受益于纽曼这一 事实，丝毫也无损于他的卓然独立和独一无二，也无损于他的完美。”
2 《20 世纪艺术批评》，沈语冰，中国美术学院出版社出版，第 159 页。
3 格林伯格叙述中的“装饰性”与我们日常所提及的有所区别，这个概念的 提出是针对于西方传统绘画中对戏剧性效果——例如“在墙上挖一个幻觉的 盒子版的洞穴”——的强调。他所叙述的装饰性必须为自身的手段所超越， 才能达到统一性。
4 《工作与时日》，( 古希腊 ) 赫西俄德，商务印书馆出版，第 51 页。
5 《艺术与文化》是格林伯格在 20 世纪 40 年代、50 年代发表于《党派评论》 《评论》《艺术》等期刊的艺评文章的结集。
6 参考并摘录于张晓剑所著《从现代主义到后现代主义 —— 围绕极简艺术 的批评案例研究》。该文系国家社科基金青年项目“弗雷德与艺术本真性思 想研究”(13CZX087) 的阶 段性成果，部分内容曾发布于中央美术学院主办 的“观念之道 :2018 国际雕塑研讨会”。
7 在《评格林伯格 < 艺术与文化 >》一文中论述这样一个观点 : “格林伯格 把庸俗艺术重塑为现代性的唯一真正的审美表现，是过去时代辉煌艺术的真 正继承者。格林伯格通过使前卫艺术简化为这种艺术可分析的、可批评的解 释者角色，从而重新定义了前卫艺术。下一步只能是把这种分析方法从传统 艺 术转移到它合法的继承者——也就是庸俗艺术上。绝非偶然的是，他对待 大众庸俗文化的关键态度常常被指责为有精英意识，以及反映出处于统治地 位资产阶级那种反民主的、傲慢的态度。”
8 伍伟在中央美术学院实验艺术系攻读硕士学位时，系统研究了现代主义及 之后的西方艺术。在柏林驻留和游历时，这部分艺术史亦是他的重点考察对象。
9 在河南方言中，“带劲”既指“能引发人兴致的”，也指“有力量的”。
白泽图
朱朱
自2012年创作《藏书》以来，伍伟一直关注书本、动物和原始力量之间可转换的形态，书本在此后逐渐简化为立体纸堆，形似费利克斯·冈萨雷斯—托雷斯（Felix Gonzalez-Tores）使用过的素朴造型，动物则以纸页撕剪和着色后产生的皮毛效果隐现于其间，造成“不可触摸的神秘感”。在去故事化、去形象化的过程上，他力图将作品还原到“是视觉的也是心理的”直觉体验，《生灵》（2014年）以一种破碎的形态，证实了他语言形式的演进，同时，也将他对雕塑的自我定义，引向了 “建立一种从物质到精神的灵性空间”。
《白泽图》作为一个展览的构想，酝酿于2015年。受《云笈七签》一段文字吸引，伍伟试图以展场的空间整体来结构他的阅读、想象和思考过程，白泽为黄帝时代的一头神兽，白泽图则是对它所言世间精怪的转录之书，原文如下：“帝巡狩，东至海，登恒山。于海滨得白泽兽，能言，达于万物之精。因问天下鬼神之事，自古精气为物，游魂为变者，凡万一千五百二十种。白泽言之，帝令以图写之，以示天下。”两汉以降，白泽之事为多种典籍所载，《渊鉴类函》“兽部”中引古本山海经所载：“王者有德，明照幽远则至”（今本《山海经》不载），历代据此不断加强它作为祥瑞之兽的象征性，视之有驱魔、避邪之能，不过，罕有其形象的描述，“栖息在昆仑山，浑身雪白，有翼”之类，显然属于后世的勉强附会。
“白泽具有神兽和书籍的双重属性,作为雕塑形态的两种元素(动物形貌和书籍特征),成为展览中白泽图造型的组成部分。书籍已经佚失,白泽形象也不确定,给造型和表意提供了更多的空间。”伍伟向古代话语索要的，仅止于一条可供起兴的线头，借此编织的是我们的物质化身体与灵性的背离过程。现场的三件组合式作品呈现出一种可能的递进关系，白泽图作为核心的喻体被置于流变的命运或时间链之中，幻化成三种不同的形态，与之叠映的是艺术家的主观凝视，以图片、视频、雕塑等方式而在场，将整体联结成一个阅读／被阅读的寓言。
第一组作品以嵌满眼珠般玻璃球的纸堆，对应白泽图的古老存在之形，厚积的纸页里俨然记满了世间所有鬼怪的秘密，期待我们的解读，而艺术家自己的眼睛紧闭在一组图片上，拒绝做出观看，或者是缺乏观看之道。第二组作品被称之为“无法打开的《白泽图》”，整个纸堆被金属丝捆绑、勒紧，指示了现代社会对传统的隔绝和压制性，作为其代价，《白泽图》里记载的鬼怪则以碎片的形态在墙壁与空间到处游走，地面一只以堆绣法制作的手指呈瘫软之态，表征着个人在现实环境里的无能之感。在第三组作品中，强光照射下的白泽在地面现出单薄的兽形，灵性尽失，与它所指认的鬼怪无异，与之并置的一段视频，拍摄的是一只松鼠刚死之后被苍蝇围绕的场景，显然在暗示白泽的命运走向了终结。
“从个人情感引发出对某种力量和体验的探求，进而从现实回到东方传统中的原始经验和精神性”，这是伍伟在今天解构至上的后现代语境里，试图以回溯远古的方式作出的自我点化，也是他的自觉性所在：不沉浸于无意义的碎片，渴求寻找那种视万物为一体的宇宙观所在，他的《白泽图》至少触及了有关这种寻找的疼痛与忧伤。
2016年10月
Baize Tu
Zhuzhu
Since the making of the Tibetan Books in 2012, Wu Wei became interested in the formal translation between text, animals and primitive power, in which books are gradually simplified to stacks of paper. Similar to Felix Gonzalez-Torres’ humble composition, the animals are made of ripped pages, and once colored to mimic fur and skin, they appear indistinctly, rendering an “intangible enigma”. In the course of eliminating the storyline and figures, the artist aims to restore the work of art to an instinctive experience of “visualizing the psyche”. People (2014) furthermore bears witness to the progression in the evolution of his artistic language, while the direction he has chosen in making sculptures began to steer toward “building an intuitive space between materiality and spirituality.”
Baize Tu as an exhibition framework was conceived in 2015. Inspired by a short text in Yunji Qiqian, Wu Wei attempts to structure his reading, imagination and thought process around the exhibition space. The Baize was a sacred animal from the Huangdi era, and the Baize Tu is a compilation of its worldly sayings. The original text on the discovery of this animal reads, “The emperor went hunting, reaching as far as the sea in the East and climbing the Heng Mountain. By the seashore, he captures the Baize, an animal that peaks and conveys the spirit of all things. The emperor inquires about all the ghosts and spirits in the world to the Baize, and finds out that things having been touched by the spirit and what have transformed by traveling spirits amounts to one thousand five hundred and twenty types. The Baize described all these types to the emperor, which was ordered to be recorded to show the rest of the world.” Since the Han dynasty, the story of the Baize was also documented in various classical texts. For example, in the “Animals” volume of Yuanjian Leihan, an annotation to the Classics of Mountains and Sea, “The ruling emperor is righteous, his governance will reach far and beyond” (unfound documentation in the current version of Classics of Mountains and Seas). Based on which, the following dynasties reinforced its symbolism of auspiciousness, considering it to have the power to expel demons and evil spirits. However, there is very little description of its appearance. “Inhabiting the Kunlun Mountain, cover in white fur, and has wings” are apparently additional portrayals written by later generations.
“The Baize embodies properties of both sacred animals and books, they consist of the two central elements of sculpture (the forms of animal and features of a book) as the compositional components of Baize Tu. Since the books have been lost and the image of the Baize remains uncertain, the framework allows for a greater possibility in composition and allegorical meaning.” What Wu Wei retrieves from the ancient discourse is a thread that ignites certain interests, with which to weave together the course of separation between our physical body and our spirit. The three sets of works present a possible progressive relation. Moreover, Baize Tu as the central metaphor is placed in the middle of the ever changing fate and the progression of time, assuming three different kinds of forms, it is casted by the artist’s subjective gaze projected through photographs, videos and sculptures, tying the exhibition into an allegory of reading/being read.
The first set of works is a stack of papers studded with glass balls, like the eyes of an animal portrayed by its ancient form in Baize Tu, the secrets of all the ghosts and monsters in the world are tucked between the papers and kept, awaiting for our interpretation. On a photograph, the artist’s eyes are shut, he refused to look, or does not have the means to do so. The second set of works “UndisclosedBaize Tu”, where a stack of paper is wrapped tight by metal wire, suggesting the isolating and oppressive confines of contemporary society on tradition. As a compromise, the ghosts recorded in Baize Tu are dispersed throughout the space in fragments. A finger embroidered in layers saps on the floor, symbolizing the helplessness of an individual in his reality. In the third set of works, the Baize under the spotlight reveals its feeble animal form, having lost its spirit, it does share any difference with the ghosts and monsters it describes. A video next to it plays a scene of a dead squirrel hovered over by flies, suggesting the Baize’s own ultimate fate of encountering death.
“Exploring power and experience provoked by the individual’s emotions, by which to return to the primitive experience and spirituality of the Eastern tradition” is the self-revelation that Wu Wei attempts to attain through revisiting ancient methods in today’s deconstructive discourse of the post-modern. It is also where his self-conscience lies, rather than being immersed by meaningless fragments, he yearns for the discovery of a universal view that considers the myriad things as one entity, to the very least, his Baize Tu touches on the pain and sorrow related to such discovery.
October, 2016
造 字
— 杨紫
如果将伍伟每件创作的意义系统比作一个汉字，那么，这个字是由一个个具有至少三种性质的偏旁部首构成的：它们是常见的工业或者手工材料，是构成图像的形式要素，也具备能指的功用。事实上，在展览“龙伯”的前言之处，艺术家将这种对应关系明确地揭示了出来。诸如“变通”“三个幻觉”“生命线”“血统”“气场”之类的中文词语旁，摆放着五金配件，或动物毛皮状的剪纸。在展厅中，这些零件反复出现，并以各异的方式排列组合。伍伟保留了它们原本衔接、固定、加工或装饰的用途，让物理性的联结方式成为未曾被明确指认出的动词。这些动词源自各个偏旁之间的关系，在前言的区域中未曾出现，是更隐蔽的一类构字要素。
举作品《堡垒》为例。用红纸剪成的“皮草”对应词是“血统”，其上，三块方形自下而上由大至小依次罗列：“堡垒”底端的银色金属方块对应“护盾”，中间黑色的亚克力对应“幻觉”，顶端镶嵌了一幅源自民国石印本《大千图说》中的太阳插图，预示着炎热环境下的残酷气氛。意为“攻击性”的尖角（木制戒指托）从堡垒的四周钻出，更是一场浩大声势的战争即将展开的征兆。“护盾”“幻觉”和“攻击性”等偏旁部首从概念上勾勒出了一幅前现代冷兵器与巫术交织的战争场面，而这些要素之间的缝隙，被画面呈现出的“烈日下的堡垒”这一直观的形式补足。
倘若在1960年代的美国艺术界，《堡垒》在图像上自然会被认为是“媚俗”的。作品对实在的场景有所再现——即便这种再现不是写实的——干扰了其形式的纯粹。或者说，艺术家保留了抽象艺术最易辨识的形式特征，却使用刻意曲解的方式，绕开困扰其发展的窘境——“纯粹”的艺术无法直面历史、现实、社会与自身的关系。《堡垒》呈现出的具象性，在“龙伯”中收录的其他作品诸如《镇宅》《计谋》《中原》中并未体现。观众在解读作品的过程中，只能顺藤摸瓜，结合“偏旁”在前言部分所透露的对应关系指引与自己所熟悉的事物、动作、概念，小心翼翼地揣测作品的意义。但是，即便是在最抽象的主题中，“象形”或“指事”的构字方法也通过构字部件的“形旁”，留了一个以外形特征表达意思的尾巴。同样，得益于现代主义的艺术传统，当我们看到《堡垒》，或秉承与其类似工作方法的《风怪》《防线》《方位》等作品时，我们也可以突破“象形”的阻碍，将它们认定为抽象的、有意味的形式。
如上，在观看展览“龙伯”时，“语言转向”和“图像转向”是纠缠的过程。两种“转向”的共同之处之一，在于任意性和开放性。伍伟作品中的“语言”和“图像”互相叠加、挤压、融合、内爆，自然消解了它们固有的天然合法性——它们不再能确凿地充当中介，完成准确交流的、传递信息的目的。展览“龙伯”为这些作品提供了一个框架，它笼统地指向伍伟虚构的世界，这世界是古老的——红色作为展场穿针引线的线索，在中国传统文化中，是许多宫殿和庙宇墙壁的颜色，有驱逐邪恶的寓意。
《定神》仿佛是通向这个虚构世界的大门。对应于“驱邪专用”的九个木块，像是中国古代官员固定家门的铜质门钉。艺术家伍伟在历史悠久的河南省的工厂家属院长大，神怪的传说，激烈的征战，庄严的仪式，这些道听途说来的故事，虽深深地吸引着他，却没有视觉的蓝本可以让他更亲密地触及这个世界。当时，他触手可及的，是为了适应大工业生产而建造的国有工厂，坚硬、庞然、棱角分明、色调沉闷、视觉节奏重复。时至今日，将难以磨灭的视觉记忆和无法忘怀的口头传播的语言传统嫁接，成了艺术家的工作方法。也正因如此，语言和图像的“转向”也没有沦落入一片拒绝解释、方向迷失的混沌之中。
If an allegorical Chinese character were tobe assigned to each one of Wu Wei’s work based on its semantic system, then the character must consist of radicals in three kinds: it must be a common industrial or handicraft material, a formal element for its visual construct,and serves an allegorical purpose. In fact, in the foreword of this exhibition,"The Gigantic", the artist has elucidated these relational features. For instance, next to the short phrases in Chinese, "Versatility”, “ThreeIllusions”, “Life Line”, “Blood Line”, “Aura" among others, one find spieces of hardware or paper cuts that mimic animal fur, which will appear repetitively in various forms and orders throughout the exhibition. By preserving their original forms, connections, processings or decorative purposes intact, Wu Wei allows the physical connections among them to becomethe non-allegorical transitive verbs. These verbs, drawn from the relationships among the various radicals, unannounced in the foreword section, are implicittypes of composite.
Take the work Fortress for example. The "animal skin" made of red papercut matches the term "Blood Line", above it, are the three squares aligned from bottom up in an order of diminishing dimensions: the silver metallic block at the tip of the Fortress matches the "shield", the black plexi-glass matches its"illusion", and the top is adorned with an illustration of the sun found in the lithographical edition of TheIllustration for Buddhist Cosmology (DaqianTushuo) from the Republican Era, prescient for an unrelenting atmosphere inany scorching environment. The "aggressive" conical pricks ( woodenring stand ) poking out of the fortress, foretell the imminence of behemothwarfare. These radicals, "shield", "illusion" and"aggression" dab the notional image of warfare equipped with modern weaponry and witch craft, while the gap between these elements is filled with the moreliteral image, "fortress under a scorching sun".
If we were to look at the pictorial elements of Fortress through the prism of the American art world of the 1960s, they would inevitably beconceived as "pop". Their representations of actual sites and scenesin spite of having adopted a non-realistic approach nevertheless interrupt their formal purity. In other words, the artist has preserved the most conspicuous formal qualities of abstract art, while appropriating misrepresentation to circumvent the obstacles that hinder their becoming – "pure" artis inept to confront the relationships between history, reality, society, and the self. Fortress presents thefigurative qualities absent in the other works such as Talisman, Strategy, Central Plain of “The Gigantic”. Indeciphering the works, the viewers would have to speculate the meaning of theartwork by following the clues, taking the "radicals" into consideration with regards to the corresponding relationships revealed in the foreword and the things, actions, notions one is familiar with. However, evenfor the most abstract subject, the "pictographic" or"allegorical" way of character construction would nevertheless leavecertain features to convey meaning through the "radicals". Likewise, favored by the modernist art tradition, when we look at Fortress, or other works such as Wind Monster, Resistance Line,Location that share a similar workmethod, we may also overcome the obstacles of the "pictorial", andconceive them as abstract and allegorical forms.
Hence, when looking at the exhibition “The Gigantic”, verbal and pictorial translations are entwining processes. Both share the common traits of arbitrariness and openness. The “linguistic” and “pictorial” parts in Wu Wei's works overlap, compress, integrate, implode with one another that ultimately undermine the intrinsic legitimacy of these domains, which would no longer firmly serve as the mediums that accurately communicate and convey information. The exhibition "The Gigantic" provides aframe work for these works. It points to the general direction of Wu Wei's fictional world characterized with antiquarian qualities. In the case of this exhibition, it's strung together by the color red throughout the exhibitionspace, a color commonly seen on the walls in palaces and temples in ancient China, was used to expel evil.
Composure seems to be the gate into this fictional world, matched with the nine wooden blocks for "exorcist tools" in the semblance of the doornails on the front gate Chinese officials from ancient times. Having grown up in a residential compound for factory workers in Henan Province, while the magical legends, fervent warfare, solemn ceremonies, and hearsay stories fascinated the artist, yet the visual blueprint that could allow him to accessthis world more intimately was absent. What was available to him at the time, were the state-owned factories for China's industrial revolution, and theirfirm, gigantic, chiseled, grim and repetitive visual rhythms. Hence, bringing together the indelible visual memories with the unforgettable oral dissemination of linguistic tradition became Wu Wei's work method. For this very same reason, the "translations" between language and imagery would not come into a cul-de-sac where interpretation is rejected and directionis lost.