十二封信 Twelve Letters
作品源于2010年-2021年间作者母亲写下的12封信,从信中母亲提到的四个希望家庭关系的变化出发,整个作品通过图像,视频,图形转印技术开启与这四个希望的“对话”.这些“对话”反应出中国家庭掌权者在教育过程中面临的问题,以及他们对孩子情绪的忽略、生活的过度掌控造成的身份不平等现象.
The work originates from twelve letters written by the author's mother between 2010 and 2021. Starting from four hopes for family change mentioned in these letters, the entire piece initiates a “dialogue” with these hopes through images, video, and graphic transfer techniques. These “dialogues” reflect the struggles faced by heads of Chinese households in the educational process., as well as the identity inequalities stemming from their neglect of children's emotions and excessive control over their lives.
Section 1 <I hope you can smile at home>
我经常会被母亲问为什么我可以和她的挚友有说有笑,但是从来不对她有笑容.于是我将小时候由母亲拍摄我面带笑容的照片装裱起来,挂置在母亲的一些挚友与至亲的家中,并留下照片.
Mom often questioned me about why I could smile at her friends but not at her. I took childhood photos of myself smiling, taken by my mother, to her friends' homes and took photos in different households.
Section 2 <I hope we can get along well>
此部分记录下多次我与母亲在家唯一相处的场所———饭桌, 数次沉默下, 最终无法忍受, 爆发争执.背景音为因争执产生的啜泣,责骂,怒吼的气口.
This section documents multiple instances at the dining table—the only place my mother and I spent time together at home, after repeated silences, we finally couldn't bear it anymore and erupted into arguments. The video sounds are the sobs, scoldings, and angry shouts born from these disputes.
Section 3 <I hope you don't keep everything to yourself>
在没有与母亲沟通的前提下, 往家中的墙上用英文(非母语,不想直接沟通的意向)刻下了对每一封信件的回应, 最后拓印在纸上.
Without communicating with my mother, I carved responses to each letter in English (a non-native language, indicating an unwillingness to communicate directly) on the walls of the house, then inked them onto paper.
Section 4 <I hope you can think of me as mother>
我已经近十年没有称呼母亲为“妈妈”了,直到如今这依旧是她所期望的.直面当事人的时候,无论如何我都说不出口.在上一部分拓印的过程中,甚至完成之后,母亲一直都没有“解读”墙面的状况.我感到些许欣慰,又对作品的“回应”有些许焦虑.在离开家后,我将信的原件挂在了每一段刻下回应的位置上.并设定了以下两个录制任务.
一: 我在异地通过短信的形式要求并指引母亲进行录制:将挂起的信件一一拿下, 并念出信件上内容.
二: 我回到家中, 给母亲设置好拍摄机位, 与她说明我要录制信件的内容, 并让她自行讲述.
It has been nearly a decade since I last called my mother “Mom,” and to this day, that remains her wish. Yet when faced with her directly, I simply cannot bring myself to say it. Throughout the process of creating the rubbing in the previous section, and even after its completion, my mother never “interpreted” the condition of the wall. I felt a slight sense of relief, yet also some anxiety about the work's “response.” After leaving home, I hung the original letter at each spot where a response had been carved. I then set the following two recording tasks.
Task 1: I instructed my mother remotely via text message to record herself: take down each letter hanging on the wall and read aloud the contents of each letter.
Task 2: I returned home, set up the camera for my mother, explained that I would be recording the contents of the letter, and asked her to narrate it herself.