| Wang Dongma | |
|---|---|
Wang Dongma |
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| Birth name | Wang Dongma |
| Born | July 9, 1980 Beijing |
| Nationality | People's Republic of China |
| Field | Electronic Art, Digital Art, New Media Art, Photography, Video Art, Carpentry |
| Training | Zhejiang University (zh-tw: 浙江大學) |
| Influenced by | Nam June Paik, Thomas Charvériat |
| Influenced | Liu Dao, Zhang Deli, Rose Tang, Cai Duobao |
Wang Dongma (Chinese: 王东马; pinyin: Wáng dōng mǎ) Mandarin: [wǎŋ dʊ̃ mà] ( listen) is a Shanghai-based multimedia artist originally from Beijing, known for exploring a wide range of new media art forms since 2005. These include interactive mirrors, LED screens, electronic sculptures and large scale as well as miniature video installations that have been exhibited around China.[1] He is a main pillar of the island6 Arts Center and its in-house art collective Liu Dao, an artist run, not-for-profit group of artists, photographers, graphic designers, filmmakers, dancers, choreographers and electronic engineers.[2][3]
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Wang graduated from Zhejiang University with a BA degree in Physical Engineering in 1991. He gained his extensive knowledge and training in the engineering fields of optics and nanotechnology to create works that meld natural materials with an electronic, high-tech twist.[4] These pieces have been a central component of island6 works and exhibitions since December 2007, when he brought his skills to the island6 Arts Center as a resident artist, beginning collaboration with Liu Dao.[5]
Wang’s life as academic and artist has enabled him to foster communication and dialogue with technicians and artists from different backgrounds in Liu Dao, such as Cai Duobao, Zhang Deli, Rose Tang, Bing Bing, Kong Mosha and Matt Carols.[6] Together, Liu Dao and Wang Dongma research technology as a visualization instrument, where Wang utilizes time-lapsed video and aerial photography as an apparatus for research in his study of visual landscapes.[7]
Wang’s artistic direction and Liu Dao’s physical construction and input results in a unique series of interactive mirrors that combine photography, fine arts, video, graphic art, illustration and drama with old school low-resolution technology.[8][9] This creates a striking contrast between traditional media and the natural materials used, and digital technology and electronic equipment.[10] Made of infrared sensors, two-way mirrors and video screens, the retro aesthetic of the works juxtaposed with their high tech content create a complex and beautiful sensory environment.[11] Through his technique, Wang constantly pushes through the borders of electronic and interactive art.[12]
The antique mirrors used by Wang are of Old Shanghai furniture from the shikumen longtang and yangfang longtang periods, which together made up a century of Shanghai housing from the mid-19th Century to the mid-20th.[13] The shikumen, or “stone gate” style of housing is found only in Shanghai. It is a blend of Eastern and Western architectural styles built in the foreigner concessions, but the conceptual and aesthetic beauty of these structures has not withstood the test of time[14] Wang’s mirrors speak through their images of the stone archways and brick alleyways disappearing day by day to be replaced by large, charmless, modern apartment blocks as the architecture of Shanghai’s past is being swept away by urban momentum,[15] and this sense of passing permeates Wang’s productions.
Wang and Liu Dao’s project continually entices visitors into the increasingly prevalent contemplations of China and Shanghai’s cherished traditions in the face of its high tech infrastructural developments and the tides of technological upgrades rapidly sweeping across China and pushing its people into the globalized world.[16] These projects highlight the tension between traditional living conditions and the advanced technology which China is currently embracing.[17]
As viewers approach these antique wooden mirrors, the appearance of another image within the glass is suddenly triggered.[18] Viewers are at first simply impressed by the mirror’s seemingly magical technology, and then gradually mesmerized as the image combines with the mirror to create a pan-experientialist aura that imposes a hypnotic effect on its viewer.[19] Like the images in the mirrors, China’s unforeseeable changes materialize and disappear in the blink of an eye.
In February 2008, Wang was chosen by Manaart to be represented at the first ever Roma Contemporary Art Fair in Rome, Italy. The following year in June 2009, while working with Liu Dao, Wang became part of the White Rabbit Gallery collection in Sydney, Australia. In May 2010, Wang was chosen by Red Gate Gallery to be represented at the Hong Kong Art Fair.