Liang Ban
Stutter No.3
Stutter No.3
2020
Giclee on aluminum composite panel
78 x 160 cm (30 11/16 x 63 in.)
Giclee on aluminum composite panel
78 x 160 cm (30 11/16 x 63 in.)
Visually resembling a virus stricken computer, Stutter (2020) is a body of artwork that depicts an array of smartphones overlapping one another, with the word “fuck” written on the home screen using app icons. Referencing the frustrating yet familiar errors of antiquated computer systems, the work compares lagging windows to stuttering, and stuttering to the self-suppression of speech, a consequence of living in a collectivist society.
梁半
《口吃》No.3
《口吃》No.3
2020
收藏級藝術微噴，鋁塑板
78 x 160 cm (30 11/16 x 63 in.)
收藏級藝術微噴，鋁塑板
78 x 160 cm (30 11/16 x 63 in.)
類似網絡病毒的圖片作品《口吃》（2020）由多個智能手機屏幕圖案重重疊疊放置。手機屏幕上的應用APP圖標組成“ fuck”一詞，作品視覺上模仿著過時電腦系統被凍結的狀態，藝術家將停滯的視窗比喻成言語結巴，表達政治態度時口吃的狀態也寓意著言語上的自我壓抑。
Liang Ban
Stutter No.1
Stutter No.1
2020
Giclee on aluminum composite panel
113 x 131 cm (44 1/2 x 51 5/8 in.)
Giclee on aluminum composite panel
113 x 131 cm (44 1/2 x 51 5/8 in.)
梁半
《口吃》No.1
《口吃》No.1
2020
收藏級藝術微噴，鋁塑板
113 x 131 cm (44 1/2 x 51 5/8 in.)
收藏級藝術微噴，鋁塑板
113 x 131 cm (44 1/2 x 51 5/8 in.)
Liang Ban
Stutter No.2
Stutter No.2
2020
Giclee on aluminum composite panel
77 x 150 cm (30 5/16 x 59 1/16 in.)
Giclee on aluminum composite panel
77 x 150 cm (30 5/16 x 59 1/16 in.)
梁半
《口吃》No.4
《口吃》No.4
2020
收藏級藝術微噴，鋁塑板
77 x 150cm (30 5/16 x 59 1/16 in.)
收藏級藝術微噴，鋁塑板
77 x 150cm (30 5/16 x 59 1/16 in.)
Liang Ban
Stutter No.4
Stutter No.4
2020
Giclee on aluminum composite panel
17 x 23 cm (6 3/4 x 9 in.)
Giclee on aluminum composite panel
17 x 23 cm (6 3/4 x 9 in.)
梁半
《口吃》No.4
《口吃》No.4
2020
收藏級藝術微噴，鋁塑板
17 x 23 cm (6 3/4 x 9 in.)
收藏級藝術微噴，鋁塑板
17 x 23 cm (6 3/4 x 9 in.)
Liang Ban
Caged Bird
Caged Bird
2019
Single channel video, 6’00”
Dimensions variable
Edition of 3 + 1 AP
Single channel video, 6’00”
Dimensions variable
Edition of 3 + 1 AP
Titled after Maya Angelou’s novel I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings, Liang Ban’s Caged Bird (2020) depicts the social media platform Twitter’s famed icon of a bird attempting to escape its screen. The bird flutters across a field of red and white stripes, only to discover that its effort has been in vain.
梁半
《籠中鳥》
《籠中鳥》
2019
單頻錄像，6'00"
尺寸可變
版數 3+1 AP
單頻錄像，6'00"
尺寸可變
版數 3+1 AP
因馬雅·安傑洛的小說《我知道籠中鳥為何歌唱》而得名，梁半的《籠中鳥》(2019) 將社交媒體Twitter的經典小鳥logo演繹成試圖突破屏幕的一次壯舉，藝術家滑動“鳥兒”飛過一片紅白條紋組成的屏幕空間，然而卻永遠無法實現對於屏幕空間的逃離。
Liang Ban
On a Slow Boat to China
On a Slow Boat to China
2019
Single channel video, 6’00”
Dimensions variable
Edition of 3 + 1 AP
Single channel video, 6’00”
Dimensions variable
Edition of 3 + 1 AP
On a Slow Boat to China (2019) shows an icon of a man in a boat, slowly struggling across the screen but never reaching its destination – a depiction of its titular saying which is used as a metaphor for a long, unending journey.
梁半
《慢船去中國》
《慢船去中國》
2019
單頻錄像，6'00"
尺寸可變
版數 3+1 AP
單頻錄像，6'00"
尺寸可變
版數 3+1 AP
《慢船去中國》(2019) 描繪一個船夫圖標在空蕩屏幕中永無止盡原地劃動狀態。在英文中有個比喻「On a slow boat to China」—慢船去中國，西方人用這個固定俗成的說法來形容一個漫長的，永遠都達不到終點的旅程。
Liang Ban
Pearl Rolling Across the Floor No.3
Pearl Rolling Across the Floor No.3
2020
Video installation, crystal blocks, TV screen, single channel video, audio
7’06”
Dimensions variable
Ed. of 1 + 1 AP
Video installation, crystal blocks, TV screen, single channel video, audio
7’06”
Dimensions variable
Ed. of 1 + 1 AP
The multimedia installation Pearl Rolling Across the Floor (2020) consists Chinese guardian lions either sitting atop a digital screen, or resting one of its legs on top of it. Constructed using crystal clear blocks, the lions appear as clear and pure as glass. Yet, its material is ironically the same as that of counterfeit treasures produced by corrupted manufacturers in Southern China. The invention of glass is historically important. It was imported into China from the west early on, but was overlooked and rarely utilized as a construction material. China’s historical tendency to steer away from glass seemingly speaks to the transparency of the Chinese political framework. By recreating stone lions using a transparent material, the artist undermines the traditional conception that “the lion is a symbol of power and status”. The digital screens, on which the lions sit, display video fragments of a person periodically flipping through printed images of interior floors. As the reader turns the page, the distant sound of a pearl rolling across the floor plays in the background.
The weight of the floor is lifted by the lightness of the pages, the solidity of the lion is deconstructed by the transparency of its building blocks, and the two are connected by the lack of visual presence of the pearl. From the artist’s perspective, pearls represent fragile individual entities and simultaneously are symbolic of Hong Kong, a city reputed as the, “Pearl of the Orient.”
梁半
《滾過地板的珍珠》No.3
《滾過地板的珍珠》No.3
2020
錄像裝置，水晶磚，屏幕，單視頻錄像，音頻，7’06”
尺寸可變
Ed. 1+1 AP
錄像裝置，水晶磚，屏幕，單視頻錄像，音頻，7’06”
尺寸可變
Ed. 1+1 AP
錄像裝置作品《滾過地板的珍珠》(2020)，由中國坐獅像分別腳踩在五個電子屏幕上構成。這些獅像均由水晶磚堆砌而成。這種水晶磚材料像玻璃一樣純淨透明，但同時它又是中國南方黑心廠家製作假珍寶的原材料。歷史上，玻璃是很重要的發明，它來自西方，很早傳入中國，但是歷史上中國一直不重視玻璃，避免使用玻璃。這跟中國的政治有著些許暗合，在藝術家看來透明是很重要的，所以藝術家利用這種透明性來打破「獅子是權威的象徵」這種傳統的看法。而獅像腳下的屏幕，由一系列不同時期室內地板的圖片不定時翻頁構成，翻頁的同時，背景則傳出珍珠滾過地板時發出的的聲音。沉重的地板被輕盈的紙頁自然替代，封固的獅像被一塊塊透明的水晶磚塊瓦解，兩者也因珍珠虛無的存在被聯繫在一起。在藝術家看來，「珍珠」代表著一個個獨立脆弱的個體，同時也隱喻被譽為「東方之珠」的香港。
Liang Ban
Arrested Lightning
Arrested Lightning
2018
Single channel video
2'17"
Ed. 3 + 1 AP
Single channel video
2'17"
Ed. 3 + 1 AP
Many philosophers discuss the issue of logic using lightning as a metaphor. For instance, Walter Benjamin in his essay commenting on Marxist historiography famously states: “In the fields with which we are concerned knowledge exists only in lightning flashes.”
In the video the artist plays a vagabond, he crosses the forest carrying rope in the dimming night of the wilderness. Ultimately, he arrives at the top of the mountain and throws a lasso into the sky, attempting to capture a bolt of lightning. Obviously, lightning is impossible to capture, and it disappears in the blink of an eye. However, it can nonetheless always be seen again—if not only in flashes.
梁半
《逮捕》
《逮捕》
2018
單頻視頻
2'17"
版數 3 ＋1 AP
單頻視頻
2'17"
版數 3 ＋1 AP
很多哲學家都通過「閃電」表述去追逐問題邏輯和邏輯問題。比如，班雅明在一篇論馬克思主義史學的文章中富有喜劇色彩的名句：「要歷史性地清楚表達過去，意味著要在記憶於危險的瞬間閃現之時抓住它」。
藝術家演奏身背繩索的流浪漢，在忽明忽暗的荒野夜晚穿越叢林。最後來到山頂把繩索拋向天空，試圖逮捕一道閃電。閃電飛快地消失，也許可以重新看到，但確實不能夠被逮捕。在此刻，如果把閃電比喻為自由的精靈，那我們可以在一種閃電般的頓悟中看清現實的荒謬性。
藝術家演奏身背繩索的流浪漢，在忽明忽暗的荒野夜晚穿越叢林。最後來到山頂把繩索拋向天空，試圖逮捕一道閃電。閃電飛快地消失，也許可以重新看到，但確實不能夠被逮捕。在此刻，如果把閃電比喻為自由的精靈，那我們可以在一種閃電般的頓悟中看清現實的荒謬性。
Liang Ban
good times bad times
good times bad times
2017
Dual channel video
9'00"
Ed. 3 + 1 AP
Dual channel video
9'00"
Ed. 3 + 1 AP
In 1987, Japanese economist Yuji Shimanaka proposed a theory on the relation between sunspot activity and economic movement. In 2012, American psychologist Terry F. Pettijohn studied the relation between economic movements and popular culture, arguing that during times of economic hardship the general public prefers celebrities and musicians who have hardened, mature, and masculine facial features; while in a period of economic growth celebrities often appear to be baby-faced and possess what can be described as an innocent appearance. Based on these two experts’ hypothesis, the artist created this two channel video work displayed on twin LED screens that loop hand-drawn portraits of winners of well-known awards from The Oscars, Cannes Film Festival, Venice Film Festival and Grammy Awards in the last century. The screens are categorized as “good times” and “bad times.”
梁半
《good times bad times》
《good times bad times》
2017
雙頻錄像
9'00"
版數 3＋1 AP
雙頻錄像
9'00"
版數 3＋1 AP
1987年日本經濟學專家島中雄二提出金融危機與太陽黑子活動有密切關係。經濟景氣達到谷底時期，太陽黑子極小。2012年，美國心理學教授Terry F. Pettijohn研究經濟氣候和流行文化之間的相關性多年後發現，在經濟困難時期受歡迎的鄉村音樂家的面部特徵與成熟度較高，例如小眼睛和大下巴。當經濟情況轉好時，受歡迎的歌手往往擁有娃娃臉。基於兩位專家研究的假設，藝術家用代表股票漲跌的紅色和綠色線條在手機上繪製了一系列近一百年以來大眾所熟知的奧斯卡金像獎，戛納電影節，威尼斯電影節，格萊美音樂獎等具有代表性的獎項中的最佳男性藝人的簡筆肖像畫。兩台屏幕周而復始的播放著這些被歸類的形象。
Liang Ban
Neon Wilderness: Nazca Lines
Neon Wilderness: Nazca Lines
2018
Paint, fluorescent powder
Dimensions variable
Paint, fluorescent powder
Dimensions variable
The artist believes that language originates from lines. ‘Literate’, ‘literature’, ‘liberate’ – these words that relate to culture and freedom all begin with an ‘L’, a letter that visually resembles a line. The Nazca lines in Peru are a series of massive geoglyphs that were carved in the earth and re-discovered by the American archaeologist Paul Corso In 1939. These exquisite lines, with no clear origins have yet to be deciphered. Although anthropologists believe that they were created by the ancient Nazca people, the large pictographic symbols are often popularly believed to be made by aliens. The artist reproduces these famous lines in phosphorescent paint on the walls of a large custom built curved black room. Resembling neon lights, these recreated lines evoke imaginations of a futuristic world—thereby questioning our ability to understand ourselves and our own history.
梁半
《荒野霓虹：納斯卡線條》
《荒野霓虹：納斯卡線條》
2018
日本瑩光粉
尺寸可變
日本瑩光粉
尺寸可變
藝術家認為線條是文字的起源，英文中literate，literature，liberate等關於文化關於自由的單詞都是以L開頭，L看起來就是一根線條。古老的中文（紋）都是因線條而起。秘魯納斯卡線條是位於納斯卡沙漠上的巨大地面圖形。在1939年由美國考古學家保羅·柯索發現。這些鬼斧神工的線條，來歷不明的地畫，就好像荒漠中的大地天書，至今無人能解。儘管人類學家認為它們出自古代納斯卡人民之手，但這些圖像符號廣泛地被認為是外星人的傑作。藝術家採取了一種具有未來感的夢幻材料，在黑色牆面上重現了納斯卡線。因為是未解之謎，所以任何形式的解讀都應該成立，用霓虹感覺的線來解讀，是藝術家想通過歷史，來看到未來的一種方式。甚至，線條已經不再是線條了，而是一種穿越時空的話語。
Liang Ban
Pirate Utopias
Pirate Utopias
2018
Single channel video
0'47"
Fake coconut tree, white sand, monitor, acrylic
Dimensions variable
Ed. 3 + 1 AP
Single channel video
0'47"
Fake coconut tree, white sand, monitor, acrylic
Dimensions variable
Ed. 3 + 1 AP
Pirates Utopias is an extension of the artist’s The Hands of God series, in which he presents highly developed ideas with casual nonchalance, using mobile phones as his medium. Here, a pirate runs up on a beach and takes pictures of coconuts hanging off a palm tree using his cell phone. He then shakes his phone vigorously. Subsequently, a coconut falls from the tree and hits the pirate on his head, knocking him out. Undoubtedly, reliance on technological development has meant that traditional lifestyles are being abandoned. This process of becoming more technologically advanced seemingly pushes any sense of innocence, simplicity and elegance to the brink of destruction. The title of this artwork, Pirate Utopias comes from a book written by Peter Lamborn Wilson, the content of which elucidates the weakness of the free will.
梁半
《海盜烏托邦》
《海盜烏托邦》
2018
單頻視頻
0'47"
假椰子樹、白沙、顯示器、壓克力
尺寸可變
版數 3＋1 AP
單頻視頻
0'47"
假椰子樹、白沙、顯示器、壓克力
尺寸可變
版數 3＋1 AP
這件作品延續了藝術家在《上帝之手》系列作品中將手機作為媒介，然後將具體概念用一種古老的，輕描淡寫的方式講述出來。海盜奔跑至沙灘上，掏出手機對著樹上椰果拍照，然後使勁搖動手機。此時，椰果從樹上落下，砸中海盜頭部，當場眩暈。毫無疑問，現今對科技進步的依賴使得老式的生活模式被置之一旁，一種智能化的生活方式似乎正在使純真，簡樸和文雅的情調瀕於毀滅。題目《海盜烏托邦》來自於威爾遜的一本著作，這本著作的內容與脆弱的自由意誌有著直接的聯繫。
Liang Ban
Evening Rambles
Evening Rambles
2016
Aluminium structure, UV flatbed print on wood board and specimen parrot
394 x 685 x 11 cm (155 x 269 5/8 x 4 1/4 inch)
Aluminium structure, UV flatbed print on wood board and specimen parrot
394 x 685 x 11 cm (155 x 269 5/8 x 4 1/4 inch)
In this work, Mount Rushmore National Memorial is recreated using a high definition photograph and wood board cut into the shape of the famous monument. The two-sided installation, standing thanks to an internal metallic structure, divides the main space of the gallery in two equal areas accessible only from two separate entrances. This impressive installation is also used as a stand for a real parrot wandering around the gallery. The possibility of the parrot damaging the installation is a part of the process (for Animal Protection, the parrot was replaced by a fake specimen after the opening of the exhibition).
The Mount Rushmore National Memorial is located in America and has spawned countless activities around it. The creation of this monument from a wild landscape, and the fact that it has became so iconic, has transformed the landscape itself into a commodity for consumption. Through its presence, the monument activates a new “natural.” The monument itself becomes more than just a tourist attraction but also an object of imagination, rendering it unlike any other landscape. It satisfies an essential human desire, which is to escape or supersede reality.
“Evening Rambles” is also the title of a poem by Scottish writer Thomas Pringle in which he visualizes his homeland. The poem presents the imagery in pairs, a device that reveals a sense of space-time between two places while creating a beautiful antithetical relationship between them. This kind of psychological transference coincides with the intention behind placing an iconic American landscape in China. The artist also divides the exhibition space into two identical rooms using the installation. While visitors have to choose between two entrances, they will ultimately end up seeing the same thing.
梁半
《黃昏漫步》
《黃昏漫步》
2016
鋁結構、木板上的UV平板印刷、標本鸚鵡
394 x 685 x 11 cm (155 x 269 5/8 x 4 1/4 inch)
鋁結構、木板上的UV平板印刷、標本鸚鵡
394 x 685 x 11 cm (155 x 269 5/8 x 4 1/4 inch)
在這項工作中，拉什莫爾山是用高清藝術微噴至木板後切割而成。藝術家將拉什莫爾山安裝於畫廊中間位置，以此分割出兩個相等的區域，兩個區域只能分別從兩個單獨的入口進入。這個令人印象深刻的裝置還被用作真正的鸚鵡在畫廊中徘徊的架子。鸚鵡損壞裝置的可能性是該作品的一部分（為保護動物，展覽開幕後，鸚鵡被假標本代替了）。
實際的拉什莫爾山國家紀念公園位於美國，並在其周圍產生了無數的活動和習俗。這個紀念碑是從野外景觀中創造出來的，而且變得如此具有標誌性，這一事實已將自然景觀本身轉變為一種消費商品。通過它的存在，紀念碑激活了一種新的「自然」。紀念碑本身不僅僅成為一個旅遊勝地，而且還是自由想像的對象：當觀眾掏出手機與這座山的照片合影留念時，這個展廳就暫時成為了“景點”，或者說是與現實世界間隔的場域。這也正是人類非常重要的慾求。因為每一個人都想離開自己的現實生活，每一個人都希望去渡個假。
此作品題目《黃昏漫步》是英國詩人普林格爾的一首漫遊詩的題目。詩歌描繪的是一個殖民個體在國外的土地上自由漫步，建造自己家園的景象，詩的結構和描繪的景物均以成雙成對的形式出現，這樣的手法使詩歌有著優美的對仗關係，同時也隱喻兩地分離的時空感。這種移情（Transference）式的心理機制正契合了梁半把象徵美國的風景置於中國展場中的動機。巧妙的是，藝術家利用此裝置將展覽空間分割出兩個一樣的場域，這樣的空間概念使觀眾只能選擇其中一個入口進入展廳，但看到的場景是一樣的。
Liang Ban
Hole
Hole
2016
Single channel video
0'58"
Ed. of 3+1 AP
Single channel video
0'58"
Ed. of 3+1 AP
Hole is a combination of peeping and inversion. The video shows Liang Ban tossing a Cola-Cola can into a cave, only in reverse. A hole is also gauged through the gallery wall, bridging the artwork and reality. The overall experience generates a new tension: those who believe that the aluminum can should fall inwards into the hole are comparable to the prisoners in Plato’s allegory of the cave, who understood projected shadows as “the truth.” When presented with illogical visual information, we are forced to reconsider “the truth” – If a Cola-Cola can, which symbolizes human creation, and a cave, which symbolizes nature, can move illogically, then perhaps human alterations of nature do not necessarily promote social development as previously thought. (Text/ Yu Yutong)
梁半
《洞》
《洞》
2016
單頻視頻
0’58”
版數 3+1 AP
單頻視頻
0’58”
版數 3+1 AP
《洞》是一個窺視與倒錯的結合體。梁半把可樂罐丟進山洞的影像倒放，畫廊也配合作品打穿了牆壁，將影像與我們所處的時空維度相連。於是，整體的觀看邏輯就產生了全新的張力：每一個認為可樂罐就應該由外向內運動的人都像是柏拉圖洞穴理論中把幽暗的光亮理所應當認為是“真理”的被困者，當這種反視覺常規的影像出現時，人們不禁開始重思“真理”——象徵著人工製成的可樂罐與象徵著純粹自然的洞穴既然可以擁有反邏輯的運動方式，那麼人類改造自然的活動是否也並不一定如我們一直以來認為的那樣推動了社會的發展？ （文/餘雨桐）
Liang Ban
Stars
Stars
2012
Tri channel video
3'00" (seen here at 400x speed)
Ed. 3+1 AP
Tri channel video
3'00" (seen here at 400x speed)
Ed. 3+1 AP
The video begins with a vast array of national flags covering a wall. Over time the national flags slowly fade into black until they all but disappear entirely, leaving only the stars in each flag shinning bright. Once the national flags have faded away, the remaining image is a seemingly infinite starscape, thus removing the political connotations of the original imagery.
梁半
《繁星》
《繁星》
2012
三頻錄像
3'00" （這裡為400倍速度）
版數 3+1 AP
三頻錄像
3'00" （這裡為400倍速度）
版數 3+1 AP
視頻的開始是所有國家的國旗鋪滿了牆面，隨著時間的推移，國旗緩慢轉換成黑白直至消失，星星的圖案則保持不變。當國旗完全消失時，呈現出一個幽遠深邃的星空視像，也切斷了我們對政治的理解。
Liang Ban
A Poet Who Never Saw the Ocean Wrote a Novel about the Ocean
A Poet Who Never Saw the Ocean Wrote a Novel about the Ocean
2015-2017
Sound Installation
0'12"
Sound Installation
0'12"
Liang Ban’s fascination with sound is reflected in his sound installation A Poet Who Never Saw the Ocean Wrote a Novel about the Ocean, which was commissioned for the UCCA’s exhibition “The New Normal: China, Art, and 2017.” Liang Ban invited friends to record the sound of waves at various beaches across Greece, ItaIy, Spain, and the Balkan Peninsula. These beaches saw a massive influx of refugees landing on their shores starting in 2015. As the audience walks through the long corridor that houses the work, they are surrounded by the sounds of waves amplified and blended together, creating a quiet cacophony of inscrutable sounds and subtly allowing some vague, indelible feeling to permeate the nebulous space. Removed from the actual event of migrants landing on the beach, the sound of the waves collides with the reality of our own moment.
梁半
《A Poet Who Never Saw the Ocean Wrote a Novel about the Ocean》
《A Poet Who Never Saw the Ocean Wrote a Novel about the Ocean》
2015-2017
聲音裝置
0'12"
聲音裝置
0'12"
此作品受UCCA《例外狀態：中國景況與藝術考察2017》展覽委託創作。作者通過郵件和Facebook邀請居住在歐洲的朋友和陌生人於希臘、意大利、西班牙及巴爾幹半島等處的海灘錄製多段海浪的聲音，創作聲音裝置《一個沒有見過大海的詩人 寫了一篇關於大海的小說》。這些海灘均為2015年以來的歐洲難民危機中人們所登陸的海岸，諸如希臘科斯島海灘、意大利撒丁島海灘等。儘管海浪聲錄製之時彼時發生的難民事件早已成往事，似乎隨著時間的流逝，海浪已經抹除了戰爭和難民登岸的痕跡，但當觀眾在狹長的通道之中穿行，各段環繞在空中的聲音被放大、交織而混雜在一起，令人難以辨別，彷彿又在隱約之中透露出某種難以磨滅的情緒。抽離於歷史事件的海浪聲與此刻的現實相互碰撞，彷彿在撰寫著一部關於大海的“小說”。（文字來源：UCCA）