Wu Chi-Tsung's works are based on the tradition of shan shui, the expressive brush and ink landscape painting technique which dates back to the 10th and 11th centuries.
The experimental project is site-specific and includes a large-scale projection titled Wire V, a Still Life video and his signature Cyano-Collage works. The wire series originated in 2003, and is based on the structure of the Magic Lantern slide projection work, through a mechanical control to repeatedly adjust the focal length to transform a regular piece of wire mesh into a moving image of a dynamic Chinese landscape (shan shui); to explore how images change the way we see and imagine the outside world. Every single piece of this series of work provides different angles into this proposition.
In Wire V, an episcope (Opaque Projector) is used as the imaging principle. The strong light illuminates the mesh wire, and is directed through a large camera lens focusing the image, which is then projected as an exquisite image. With the rapid development of digital technology, the requirement for image resolution continues to increase, from photography, video equipment to display devices. Format from full HD, 2K, 4K or even 8K in the future, exponentially increases every few years. In addition to the promotion of the commercial market, I am curious about the deeper desires that drive the endless pursuit of reproduction far beyond what the body can sense. Or we just change a way in which to pursue a space that is feasible, hopeful, visitable and livable.
The Cyano-Collage Series is inspired by the texturing technique (cun-fa) which is often used in Chinese landscape (shan shui) painting. The method involves covering the rice paper in a photosensitive solution before continually crumbling it whilst it is exposed to direct sunlight, to create the effect of light and shadow on the paper. Cyanotype and plain Xuan paper are added in multiple irregular layers to create the collage. The resulting experimental photography montages are re-interpretations of the concept of Chinese landscape painting; the artworks resembling mountain ranges and tumultuous blue seas.
The video work – Still Life 006 – Chrysanthemum shows the artist extending his examination of traditional Chinese landscape painting and moving images to describe the fluidity of state, intersections, and ambiguities.
