{"id":6275,"date":"2016-10-09T01:43:00","date_gmt":"2016-10-09T01:43:00","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.randian.art\/?p=6275"},"modified":"2022-12-14T11:45:56","modified_gmt":"2022-12-14T11:45:56","slug":"why-are-we-doing-what-we-are-doing","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"http:\/\/www.randian.art\/zh-hant\/why-are-we-doing-what-we-are-doing\/","title":{"rendered":"\u201cWhy are we doing what we are doing?\u201d"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

\u201cWhy are we doing what we are doing?\u201d<\/strong><\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Mizuma Gallery <\/strong><\/a>(22 Lock Road #01-34, Singapore), September 10<\/strong>\u2014October 30, 2016<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Video killed the radio star, so goes the famous Buggles song, only to be likewise slain by the internet, thirty years on. Similarly, Paul Delaroche proclaimed the death of painting at the advent of photography\u2014though it might be more accurate to say that it was freed of the constraints of function. Following this train of thought, the same is in store for photography\u2014if it hasn\u2019t already happened.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cWhy are we doing what we are doing?\u201d asks Mizuma gallery\u2019s current photographic exhibition, which could be read as a soup\u00e7on of existential doubt concerning the foundations of photography. Instead, as the exhibition\u2019s description puts it, it is a neat framing device for a group show of very diverse photographic practices, and in contrast with the convoluted and generic themes generally deployed in these cases.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"Iswanto<\/a>
Iswanto Soerjanto, \u201cEvanescence\u201d, chemigram on silver gelatin paper 40.6 x 122 cm, 2016 \u00a9 Iswanto Soerjanto, Courtesy of Mizuma Gallery<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Framing the show as a whole is Iswanto Soerjanto\u2019s \u201cCamera Obscura\u201d (2016). Title aside, this is actually an array of twenty cameras obscuras pointed at the jungled environs of Gillman Barracks. This call-back to the original camera, particularly when rendered in cardboard and stabilized by bits of string, suggests on one hand an innocent fascination with photography\u2019s underlying optical principles, and on the other, a sense of nostalgia for a time before the overweening technical sophistication of contemporary cameras. There\u2019s also an insect-like quality to looking through an array of cameras which evokes the rise of virtual reality, for example stereoscopic headsets.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Soerjanto\u2019s chemigrams, however, are for the most part charmless, resembling nothing so much as the experiments of a first-year student, disavowing the lens in favor of direct chemical interaction with silver gelatin paper. An exception can be found in \u201cEvanescence\u201d (2016), which, unlike the other chemigrams, displays a measure of rhythm and delicacy.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Photography\u2019s capacity to deceive, prevaricate and otherwise embroider the truth is very much in play in the exhibition through the works of Agan Harahap and Robert Zhao. Harahap\u2019s \u201cChildhood Memories\u201d series (2015 \u2013 2016), for instance, merges two unlikely subjects: old, commonplace snapshots set in Indonesia, and today\u2019s pop-cultural superstars. Depending on your familiarity with the celebrated faces of popular media, some of these figures might not jump out at you, but they include the likes of Britney Spears, Leonardo Di Caprio, Rihanna, and so on. The childhood faces of these celebrities inserted into Indonesian settings suggest a casual brush with a parallel timeline in which history did unfold thus.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The work of Robert Zhao presented here comes across as a steady accretion of his long running focus on seamlessly merging subtle bio-fictions with apparently conventionally hortatory artworks addressing the degradation of ecosystems and related matters of import. As if a counterpoint to his lush, starkly monochrome photographs, Zhao\u2019s deployment of pastel swatches, vitrines of grapes, eggs, and other objects, and mounted specimens of moldering, barely-there mosquitoes suggests an acerbic, sardonic wit that elevates the installation, sparing it from accusations of po-faced piety.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The aforementioned, more experimentally-oriented works aside, the exhibition has no lack of examples of decisively composed still images. Yamato Masao\u2019s photographs are particularly outstanding in this regard, with each of his images achieving great presence and depth through a startling economy of visual elements\u2014the photographic equivalent of a haiku, perhaps.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Set amongst comparatively unconventional, multi-media photographic artworks, these images possess an additional layer of quiescent wistfulness, particularly with \u201cA Box of Ku + Nakazora\u201d (1992 \u2013 2004) being somewhat yellowed and enclosed in a vitrine. As photography changes in the wake of the unending march of representational technology, perhaps there will come a time when few indeed will ask themselves why they choose to make such images.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"Agan<\/a>
Agan Harahap, \u201cChildhood Memories\u201d, C-print on photo paper dimensions variable, total of 8 pieces, 2015-2016 \u00a9 Agan Harahap, Courtesy of Mizuma Gallery<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n
\"\"
Usami Masahiro, \u201cSasaki Michinori and Sasaki Ruri, Fukushima\u201d, C-print on photo paper, 120 x 150 cm, 2013<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n
\"\"
Agan Harahap, \u201cVankantie in Indonesie\u201d, C-print on photo paper dimensions variable, total of 10 pieces, 2015-2016 \u00a9 Agan Harahap, Courtesy of Mizuma Gallery<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n
\"\"
Robert Zhao Renhui, \u201cA Guide to the Flora and Fauna of the World\u201d, mixed media installation, dimensions variable, 2013 \u00a9 Robert Zhao Renhui, Courtesy of Mizuma Gallery<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n
\"\"
Robert Zhao Renhui, \u201cOrchids in Ultraviolet\u201d from the series\u201d How to eat bees?\u201d, archival piezographic print 84 x 121 cm, 2013 \u00a9 Robert Zhao Renhui, Courtesy of Mizuma Gallery<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n
\"\"
RongRong & Inri, \u201cTsumari Story No. 1-33\u2033, gelatin silver print, 50.8 x 60.96 cm, 2012<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n
\"\"
\u201cWhy are we doing what we are doing?\u201d, exhibition view at Mizuma Gallery<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

\u201cWhy are we doing what we are doing?\u201d Mi … Continue reading →<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":7,"featured_media":6515,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":[],"categories":[20],"tags":[2703,149,415,67,2704,102,1519,2705,416,1522,2706,2707,29,239,417,374,393,2708,968,2709,2710,2711,2712,1523,2713,2714,419,210,460,230,421,2715,2716],"yoast_head":"\n\u201cWhy are we doing what we are doing?\u201d - \u71c3\u70b9 Ran Dian<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"http:\/\/www.randian.art\/why-are-we-doing-what-we-are-doing\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"zh_TW\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"\u201cWhy are we doing what we are doing?\u201d - \u71c3\u70b9 Ran Dian\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"\u201cWhy are we doing what we are doing?\u201d Mi … Continue reading →\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"http:\/\/www.randian.art\/why-are-we-doing-what-we-are-doing\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"\u71c3\u70b9 Ran Dian\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2016-10-09T01:43:00+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:modified_time\" content=\"2022-12-14T11:45:56+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:image\" content=\"https:\/\/randian-art.s3.ap-east-1.amazonaws.com\/2022\/12\/0-1024x683.jpg\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:width\" content=\"1024\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:height\" content=\"683\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:type\" content=\"image\/jpeg\" \/>\n<meta name=\"author\" content=\"Lien\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Written by\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"Lien\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:label2\" content=\"\u9810\u4f30\u95b1\u8b80\u6642\u9593\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data2\" content=\"6 \u5206\u9418\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\/\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"Article\",\"@id\":\"http:\/\/www.randian.art\/why-are-we-doing-what-we-are-doing\/#article\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"http:\/\/www.randian.art\/why-are-we-doing-what-we-are-doing\/\"},\"author\":{\"name\":\"Lien\",\"@id\":\"http:\/\/www.randian.art\/#\/schema\/person\/52a3fdee246825a3356b50e0c44bbeeb\"},\"headline\":\"\u201cWhy are we doing what we are doing?\u201d\",\"datePublished\":\"2016-10-09T01:43:00+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2022-12-14T11:45:56+00:00\",\"mainEntityOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"http:\/\/www.randian.art\/why-are-we-doing-what-we-are-doing\/\"},\"wordCount\":776,\"commentCount\":0,\"publisher\":{\"@id\":\"http:\/\/www.randian.art\/#organization\"},\"keywords\":[\"Agan Harahap\",\"art\",\"art gallery\",\"artist\",\"Bruce Quek\",\"exhibition\",\"Gillman Barracks\",\"Iswanto Soerjanto\",\"magazine\",\"Mizuma gallery\",\"photography review\",\"photography show\",\"Ran Dian\",\"Ran Dian magazine\",\"Ran Dian \u71c3\u70b9 magazine\",\"randian\",\"randian online\",\"Robert Zhao\",\"Robert Zhao Renhui\",\"RongRong & inri\",\"Singapore photography\",\"Usami Masahiro\",\"Yamato Masao\",\"\u4e09\u6f74\u753b\u5eca\",\"\u5c71\u672c\u660c\u7537\",\"\u6211\u4eec\u4e3a\u4ec0\u4e48\u5728\u505a\u6211\u4eec\u6b63\u5728\u505a\u7684\u4e8b\uff1f\",\"\u6b63\u5728\u5e03\u5c55\",\"\u71c3\u70b9\",\"\u827a\u672f+\",\"\u827a\u672f\u5bb6\",\"\u827a\u672f\u753b\u5eca\",\"\u8d75\u4ec1\u8f89\",\"\u963f\u7518\u00b7\u54c8\u62c9\u54c8\u666e\"],\"articleSection\":[\"Reviews\"],\"inLanguage\":\"zh-TW\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"CommentAction\",\"name\":\"Comment\",\"target\":[\"http:\/\/www.randian.art\/why-are-we-doing-what-we-are-doing\/#respond\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"http:\/\/www.randian.art\/why-are-we-doing-what-we-are-doing\/\",\"url\":\"http:\/\/www.randian.art\/why-are-we-doing-what-we-are-doing\/\",\"name\":\"\u201cWhy are we doing what we are doing?\u201d - 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