Culture

Step into a constantly changing world of light

By Qin Zhongwei (China Daily)
Updated: 2010-04-12 08:22

Architect Ma Yansong in his ongoing show Feelings Are Facts. [Zou Hong / China Daily]

Interactive project forces people to expand their sensory awareness

The exhibition, Feelings Are Facts, at the big hall of The Ullens Center for Contemporary Art (UCCA) is a dynamic cross-fertilization between art and architecture that creates an interactive experience for visitors that questions the way we perceive our surroundings.

The collaborative project by Danish-Icelandic Artist, Olafur Eliasson and China's most acclaimed young architect, Ma Yansong, alters the dimensions of the Big Hall at UCCA by lowering the ceilings and constructing an inclined wooden floor to challenge viewers' sense of orientation and perception.

"The viewer enters a world of extra-sensorial perception whereby color, light and architecture enable him to re-evaluate his relationship with his surroundings," said Jrome Sans, curator of the exhibition who is also the director of UCCA.

Visitors are invited to enter an environment filled with condensed banks of artificially produced fog illuminated by hundreds of fluorescent tubes as a grid of red, green, and blue zones, by moving through the zones participants create their own color blends.

"Rather than simply viewing an art object from the outside, spectators will witnesses themselves becoming an integral part of the artwork," said Sans.

"The space lets everyone who enters it forget their identity, social rank, therefore everyone can feel free to explore and re-examine themselves and surroundings. The answer is open," Ma Yansong said.

An artist renowned for using light, shadow, color, wind, and water in his artworks, Eliasson expects those who enter the installation to not only see it with their eyes, but also to smell it, and feel it on their skin.

The exhibition is open from April 4 to June 20.