They remember that gust, a distant, misty breath,
Recall the warmth as their feet touched the moist earth,
Familiar with the scenes through the dream's wide realm.
In ceaseless wandering,
In the ebb and flow of memory;
To glimpse and follow the lines of emotions,
For the fragments we possess;
For the reunion, our paradise.
"Affective Spaces and Melancholic Objects" is an artist talk accompanying Tan Jing's solo exhibition Inlet of Arid Dreams at the Rockbund Art Museum. In this conversation, Tan Jing and the anthropologist Fred Lai will delve into the interplay between humans and objects within the affective environments. They will explore the reciprocal inspiration derived from artistic creation and anthropological research, shedding light on Tan Jing's affective and subjective evolution throughout her creative and research process. As objects bear the imprints of memory, "Affective Spaces and Melancholic Objects" manifests as an open wound that resists healing. In field research, how does one confront the diverse memories characterized by repetition? As bodies interact, how will they grapple with the evolving affective landscape and the fluidity of self-subjectivity?
Event Information:
Artist Tan Jing and guest speaker Fred Lai introduce how they met, their shared interest and concern for the relationship between objects and the self, memory and affect, and the origin of this dialogue.
Drawing on their personal and family experiences, Tan Jing and Fred Lai will delve into the shifts in their subjectivities during fieldwork and research, navigating the handling of emotions, and reflections on memories. Additionally, they explore the interplay between memory and space, objects and affect. These discussions revolve around three main themes: "Affective Spaces and Melancholic Objects - From Intangible Scents to Tangible Items"; "Aftermath and Reverberations"; "The Vulnerable Observer".
Speakers Introduction:
Tan Jing (b. 1992, Shenzhen, China) lives and works between Jingdezhen and Shenzhen. She experiments with textures, materials, and forms within sculpture and installation, through which she often combines the unpredictable composition of materials and techniques, with the whimsical intertwist of biological matters and folklore. Tan Jing uses objects to create scenarios of the surreal within the space, striking the viewer aesthetically and psychologically, making visible and sensible the trauma and solitude of individuals in societies. Her works have been shown internationally in institutions such as HB Station, Guangzhou; X Museum, Beijing; Para Site, Hong Kong; Guangdong Times Museum, Guangzhou; Spielzeug Welten Museum, Basel; Camden Art Center project, London, and among others.
Fred Lai (PhD candidate in Anthropology at the London School of Economics, with a research interest in aging, dementia, kinship, memory, and care politics/ethics)
他们记得那阵风，氤氲渺远的气息，
记得双脚触碰那块土地的湿热，熟悉梦里的窗景。
在不停歇的穿越之间，在流动的回忆虚实之间；
为窥视和追随情动的连续流变线，
为你我拥有的碎片；
为重逢，我们的乐园。
“伤心地与有情物”是艺术家谭婧目前正在外滩美术馆二楼展出的“旱梦滩”个展的对谈。她将与人类学学者弗赖德一起审视在情动环境中的人与物；谈论艺术创作和人类学研究对彼此的启发；分享自己在创作调研过程中的情绪和自我主体性的变化。当物被烙上记忆的印记，伤心地与有情物成为一种拒绝愈合的敞开的伤口，深入田野，艺术家该如何面对具有重复性和多样性的记忆？当身体发生互动，他们又将如何面对自己深入他者时随之更迭的情感和流变的自我主体性？
活动信息：
艺术家谭婧与嘉宾弗赖德相识的缘由、二人共同对物我、记忆、情感等关系的兴趣和关注，以及这次对谈的缘起。
两人结合自己的个人及家庭经验，讨论在田野和调研过程中自己主体性的变化、如何处理自己的情感以及对于记忆本身及记忆和空间、物件、情感之间作用的思考。这些讨论将围绕四个主题：情动空间与忧郁物件-从无形气味到有形物件（Affective spaces and melancholic objects）；时间与记忆的回响 (aftermath and reverberations)；脆弱的观察者与伤心人类学（the vulnerable observer）。
讲者介绍：弗赖德是伦敦政治经济学院人类学博士生。基于在珠三角地区的长期田野调查，他的研究主要关注衰老的生命经验和老年认知症的社会文化解读，特别是疾病与记忆、亲属关系、照护政治/伦理、生命的不可解读性的关系。
艺术家谭婧（1992年生于中国深圳）现生活工作于景德镇与深圳。她的艺术实践以雕塑和多媒体装置为主，擅长将气味物质、纤维、玻璃、生物粘液等材料混合凝练出特定的情感体验。她的创作时常源于个体历史与生物学、民俗学以及魔幻素材的交织。谭婧着迷于研究特定场域中感官如何被实验性的材料调动，以及在物体和空间的作用下实现个体感受与半虚构故事的重叠。她通过艺术实践探索想象的空间如何被流动和出走的经验共情所牵引，使观者对她构建的叙事产生推测性的联想。谭婧的作品曾在广州黄边站当代艺术研究中心，北京X美术馆，香港Parasite ，广东时代美术馆，巴塞尔玩具世界博物馆（Spielzeug Welten Museum），伦敦卡姆登艺术中心（Camden Art Center）等机构展出。
弗赖德是伦敦政治经济学院人类学博士生。基于在珠三角地区的长期田野调查，他的研究主要关注衰老的生命经验和老年认知症的社会文化解读，特别是疾病与记忆、亲属关系、照护政治/伦理、生命的不可解读性的关系。