關於「記憶之宮」的建造：
席時斌的「在我們的馬車上製作一座星盤」
文／簡子傑
Regarding the Construction of “Memory Palace”:
Hsi Shih-Pin’s “A Horoscope Built Out of Our Chariots”
By: Jian Tzu-chieh
我們看到馬，不是尋常的馬，而是呈現出戲劇性動勢的馬，牠們拖曳著歪斜得近乎翻覆的大車輪，顛簸地正要往某個終點前進。但我們絕不會誤以為，這輛馬車將會抵達任何真實地方，因為在原先應當披散鬃毛的頸背上，現在豎起了成排的金屬飾物，這些飾物的頂端尖銳彷彿刀刃，卻又鏤刻著近似宗教儀仗的紋飾，儘管在展場並不特別劇場化的照明中，仍兀自閃爍著一種極為刺眼的人工光芒，但這種人工性並不單單源自材質特性，而是這輛馬車上又伴隨著眾多脈絡不可考的裝飾紋樣，於是這個充滿力量的動物形象作品，同時又處在由各種象徵性細節堆疊而成的奇詭聲勢中。
這是在席時斌個展「在我們的馬車上製作一座星盤」中所展出的新作《模型：阿濕波》。它們有著難以詮釋的魅力，或許正因為是與真馬等比例的造型物，那凌駕於人的巨型尺度，已然足以撼動觀者的感官，此外，我們也很容易就為這些繁複造型所折服，而不禁想要湊近，查看它們的細節。
《模型：阿濕波》，如同在這次個展中許多其他作品，至少將帶給觀者某種雙重的觀看層次：一者，來自官能，這些主題各異的造型物，先是拉開了一個與日常生活經驗相異的距離，那些不常得見的生物尺度將產生某種觸情（affect）效果；再者，當我們細細端詳這些物件，它們又有著極為繁複的細節——不僅是這些紋樣細節，它們同時又擁有令人好奇的構造，如同一架構造複雜的機器，它們促使我們想認識，一部認識機器，召喚我們的知性。
When we see
horses, we do not see ordinary ones, but the presentation of horses in the
midst of dramatic momentum. As they move bumpily towards a particular
destination, they drag big wheels that are so crooked that they seem at the
point of overturning. But, we would never mistakenly believe that this
carriage would arrive at any actual place because the manes on their napes,
which should be loose, are erected into a row of metal accessories. The
top of these accessories is as sharp as blades, yet engraved with decorations
that almost seem to be from a religious ceremony. Even though the
lighting at the exhibition site is not particularly theatrical, it shines and
flashes an artificial light that is extremely glaring. But, this
type of artificiality is not solely derived from material properties.
This carriage is accompanied by a number of decorative patterns with
contexts that are untraceable. Filled with power, this work, in the form
of animals, exists within a strange momentum that is formed by a stacking of
various symbolic details.
This is the new work exhibited in Hsi
Shih-Pin’s solo exhibition, A Horoscope Built Out of Our Chariots.
In Scale Model: Ashvins, this horse hold a charm that is difficult
to interpret, perhaps because they are sculptures that have the proportions of
real horses. Yet, they tower over people with a sheer size of scale that
shakes viewers’ senses. Additionally, we find ourselves easily
overwhelmed by these complicated shapes, yet cannot help but want to draw
nearer to get a closer look.
Like many
other works in this solo exhibition, Scale Model: Ashvins gives the
viewer a type of “dual level of viewing.” One is for the senses.
These variously themed sculptures first open up a distance to mark a
difference from daily life experiences. Those rare dimensions not
commonly seen in living organisms generate a type of affect effect.
Furthermore, when we carefully scrutinize these objects, even more
complicated details appear -- in addition to the details of these patterns,
they also have compositions that invoke much curiosity, much like a
machine with a complex process of construction. They prompt us to want to
understand - to understand a machine and sate our intellectual
curiosity.
席時斌,《模型：阿濕波》, 2012, 不鏽鋼、木料、漆、銅, 250x500x200cm
席時斌的文藝復興
在席時斌為「在我們的馬車上製作一座星盤」所寫的計畫書中，有一段極為關鍵的第三人稱敘述：
他準備將他記憶之宮的第一個意象建築在「馬」這個動物來投射他的想像與慾望。為了讓自己更清晰地安置，他最先在想像中扮演了外科醫生把這隻駿馬給支解及研究起來，最先被記錄起來的是骨骼與骨骼之間的排列位置，其次是馬皮及鬃毛。部分肌肉跟內臟被他丟棄，用來取代的一些其他的動物或人類的構造。[1]
我們將在下面再回到「記憶之宮」，總之，「馬」作為被選定的表現主題，藝術家清楚地表明是為了投射其「想像與慾望」，具體的方法則是將自己扮演成外科醫生，進而在想像的層次去「支解」這頭獸，透過各種研究與紀錄，以認識馬的構造——這整個過程，看似雷同於文藝復興時代，藝術家為了表現人體，進而去解剖屍體的知性狂熱。
事實上，席時斌個展中所展出的幾件平面作品，諸如源自2003年他大學修習建築時的《馬＃2：人馬》，便已透露這種帶著知性狂熱，這或許可以視為某種個人式的文藝復興：一方面，在這個現代性仍未降臨的時代中，理性仍未徹底地將世界分化各個獨立部門，也因此，精神氛圍依舊瀰漫著中世紀的魔法遺緒，這個屬於神秘的世界仍允許不可見的迷魅力量；另一方面，對於新世界的發現，又夾雜著一個有待被重新詮釋的古典律則，這個律則以一張理性的面孔在那看似井然有序的透視法中獲得體現，它一邊抹平神秘，解消迷魅，一邊卻仍駐留在難以解釋的闇影。如同前面我們已經提到的觸情與認識的雙重觀看層次，如果說這是觀者的事，對席時斌的創作來說，則是魔法與古典的雙重實踐層次。
席時斌對於古典製圖學那不合時宜的著迷，[2]也可視為這種雙重實踐的例證。他的平面作品仰賴手工，並亟須精確的透視法計畫，幾乎在每一幅平面作品中，我們仍然可以察覺那絕大部份已被有色壓克力板所遮蓋的參考格線。
而之所以選用馬作為主題，依照藝術家自己的解釋，[3]同樣源自大學時代唸建築的影響，在這裡，馬的構造既是建築與城市的構造，也是生命體的構造，以作為製圖學對象的構造本身為支點，藝術家因而得以嫁接不同的物種或範疇，例如，以人體取代馬的肢體——而席時斌的真正魔法，除了這種不尋常的嫁接，以及製圖學形式所顯現的魅力，或許更為重要的，是作為方法的製圖學也暗示了實現的某種潛在性，無論是從平面躍向立體，或是其他對理性而言幾乎不可能的藝術—轉換。
Hsi Shih-Pin’s
Renaissance
In
the project plan that Hsi wrote for A Horoscope Built Out of Our Chariots,
there is a key segment consisting of third-person narrative:
He prepared the first image of Memory
Palace to be the construction of a “horse,” which would project his imagination
and desire. To find a clearer position, he first imagined himself as a
surgeon that dismembered this steed for study. The first thing that he
recorded was the alignment between bones, followed by the horse’s hide and the
bristles of its hairs. He discarded the muscles and internal organs, and
replaced them with the construct of humans and other animals. [1]
We
will go back to “Memory Palace” below. Overall, the “horse” is selected
as the theme of the performance, and the artist’s clear depiction of it is to
project his “imaginations and desires.” Figurative methods help portray
his role as a surgeon who “dismembers” this creature on an imaginary level, and
a variety of research and records are used to understand the construct
of the horse. This whole process seems to be similar to those used by
Renaissance artists who dissected corpses to gain knowledge on how to further
express the human body.
In fact, a
number of planar works showcased in Hsi’s solo exhibition, such as Horse #
2: Sagittarius which he constructed while attending university in 2003,
reveal this type of intellectual frenzy. Perhaps, this can be seen as a
type of solo Renaissance. On one hand, this modernity has not yet
come, and rationality has not yet completely divided the world into individual
departments. As a result, this spiritual atmosphere is still filled with
a medieval legacy of magic since this mysterious world allows for the
existence of an invisible and wondrous power. On the other hand, the
discovery of a new world is mixed with a pending re-interpretation of classical
law. With a rational facade, this law is materialized through a seemingly
orderly perspective. One side dissolves all mystery and charm, while
another still resides in a shadow that is hard to explain. As we
mentioned above, affect and understanding are two levels of
viewing. If we say that those are the business of the viewer, then magic
and classical are two levels of practice in Hsi’s works.
Hsi became
enraptured with the outdated practice of classical cartography. [2] This can also be considered as an example of
this dual-leveled practice. His planar works rely on manual labor, and
are in serious need of an accurate perspective plan. In almost every one
of his planar works, we can still observe a reference grid whose vast majority
has already been covered by colored acrylic sheets.
The reason that horses are chosen as the
theme is reliant on the artist’s own explanation. [3] At the same time,
influenced by his time studying architecture in university, the constructs of
the horses here are that of a building and city. They are also the
construct of a living organism. With the construct of a cartographic
object as a fulcrum, the artist is able to graft different species or areas.
For example, the human body is used to replace the limbs of the horses --
Yet, in addition to this unusual grafting, Hsi’s real magic lies in the charm
materialized by using cartographic forms. Or, perhaps, even more
importantly, his method of cartography suggests a potential for
realization, whether it is a leap from planar to three-dimensional or other
types of art that are almost impossible in terms of rationality - conversion.
關於「記憶之宮」
「記憶之宮」可以被視為席時斌的藝術—轉換的關鍵詞。這個詞，曾經被藝術家串接至史學家史景遷的《利瑪竇的記憶之宮》，在這本歷史專題書中，「記憶術」先是被界定成一種源自古希臘時代，透過場所經驗來加深記憶的方法：「對於每一件我們希望銘記的東西，都應該賦予其一個形象，並給它分派一個場所，使它能安靜地存放在那裡，直至我們準備借助記憶的方法來使它們重新顯現」。[4]
換言之，無論是具體事物或抽象概念，在這座記憶之宮中，皆會先轉變為某種形象，而它們之所以能深深烙印在人的腦海中，更重要的是，還是形象與形象間的次序，場所經驗，也就是賦予它們相對位置的次序——無疑地，我們之所以會在「在我們的馬車上製作一座星盤」中，感知到這些力量與奇詭的聲勢，固然在於藝術家恪守的藝術—轉換準則，在這裡，它更像一套整序了所有作品的主觀命令：它們被擺在這裡而不是那裡，其間之所以形成了一種在其他當代藝術展場中少見的劇場式氛圍，正是來自「記憶之宮」這獨特又主觀的空間部署原則，至少，對席時斌而言，是為了抵達那個將恢復對它的記憶的終點。
這是些什麼記憶？訪談中，藝術家述及諸多童年回憶，諸如對於碎片形狀的偏好係源自母親從事裁縫工作時的幼年生活場景；而在《模型：外婆家的奧林帕斯》中，以哥德式教堂為原型的不銹鋼造型物下方，那蜿蜒伸展的軌道，則召喚著席時斌小時暑假回外婆家時，在平溪的火車明隧道—鐵軌上的漫遊經驗。
實則，儘管這些有著銳利外型的作品看似疏離，卻都曾經歷一個通向藝術家個人記憶的抒情轉折點，雖然觀者無從知曉那些童年回憶的本然樣貌，但似也因為如此的記憶構造方法，我們總是能感受到這些繁複紋飾所具有的象徵性力道——對於那些曾經飽足、如今已逝去的種種，藝術家不僅透過象徵鋪述的方式予以重組，甚而形成了一個其意義性已超越原初痛失對象的超符號，最終並「賦予緘默及無聲事物（古代或自然的魔）某種指義」。[5]
About “Memory
Palace”
“Memory
Palace” can be said to be a keyword for the conversions found in Hsi Shih-Pin’s
artwork. This term was once used by the artist as a reference to the
book, The Memory Palace of Matteo Ricci, by
the historian, Spence. In this book about
history, “mnemonics” was first defined as a kind of learning technique that
had originated from ancient Greece, and which used locations and experiences to aid the retention of information:
"To everything that we wish to remember, we should give an image; and, to
every one of these images, we should assign a position where it can repose
peacefully until we are ready to claim it by an act of memory." [4]
In other
words, whether it is a concrete object or an abstract concept, everything is
transformed into an image that is stored in our memory palaces so that they are
deeply engraved in our minds. More importantly, it is the order by which
these images are stored in our memories. Every experience is assigned a
relative location - it is without a doubt that we sense a momentum of
strangeness and power within A Horoscope Built Out of Our Chariots.
This is, of course, due to the artist’s adherence to an artistic style:
his conversion guidelines. Here, it seems even more like a completely
sequenced set of subjective commands. They are placed here, but not
there, which forms a theatrical atmosphere that is rarely found in other forms
of contemporary art. This is a unique and subjective spatial deployment
that stems from the “memory palace.” At least, for Hsi, he wants to
arrive at the endpoint where the memory originates.
What are these
memories? During an interview, the artist discussed many childhood
memories. For example, his fondness for shard-like forms stems from his
recollections about dressmaking, a job his mother undertook when he was young.
Yet, in Scale Model: Olympus from the Hometown, Gothic churches
comprised of stainless steel form winding stretches of train tracks. This
was inspired by his memories of seeing train tracks near Pinghxi whenever he
visited his grandmother.
Even though
these sharp forms appear detached, they actually all lead to a turning point in
the artist’s memories. Although the exact details of the memory remain
unknown to the viewer, one is still able to grasp symbolic elements from the
work’s complicated ornamentation through such a way of reconstructing memories.
Regarding the various details that were once abundant, yet now lost, the
artist not only uses symbolism to reconstruct a sequential narrative, but also
forms super symbols whose meanings transcend the initial pains of loss.
In the end, “meaning is given to silence and silent objects (ancient or
natural magic).” [5]
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席時斌,《模型：外婆家的奧林帕斯》, 2012, 不鏽鋼、鋁合金、木料、漆, 250x720x240cm
作為神性酬答的記憶術
這些超出個人回憶的層面，也讓我們回到那充滿想像力的「記憶之宮」，席時斌曾轉述一則記憶術如何源起的故事，出自法蘭西絲．葉茲（Frances A. Yates）的《記憶之術》：
塞撒利（Thessaly）的一位名叫斯寇帕（Scopas）的貴族賓客，來賓中的詩人——凱奧斯的賽莫尼底斯（Simonides of Ceos）——吟了一首詩向主人致敬，這詩中有一段讚美了天神宙斯的雙胞胎私生子卡斯特（Castor）與波魯克斯（Pollux）。斯寇帕很小氣地告訴賽莫尼底斯，原先說好的吟詩酬勞只能付一半，另一半應該去找那對雙胞胎神祈去要。稍後，有人通報，宴客廳外面有兩個年輕男子要見賽莫尼底斯。賽莫尼底斯便離席走出廳外，卻沒看見人。就在他走出去的這個時候，宴客廳的屋頂塌下來，把斯寇帕和所有客人都壓死了；屍體個個血肉糢糊，來收屍的親友都認不出誰是誰。可是，賽莫尼底斯記得客人們在宴席上的座次，所以能根據座位告訴收屍者哪一個是他們的親人。[6]
故事中的賽莫尼底斯因為能依座次記得賓客名字，而被視為記憶術始祖，值得注意的，在這裡，記憶術的起源，不僅與某種神性力量的遭遇有關，更是一種以他人之死為代價的酬答，死亡如同獻祭，記憶術因而被賦予了通往神之國度的鑰匙。
另一方面，根據史景遷在《利瑪竇的記憶之宮》中所表明的觀點，歐洲在中世紀乃至文藝復興那即將轉入現代性的歷史中，傳衍自中世紀的記憶術，也涉及了一種介乎神性與魔性的曖昧地帶。至少在利瑪竇成長階段的歐洲，記憶術經常被與占星術、煉金術等傳統神秘力量聯想在一起，而根據史學家的詮釋，耶穌會傳教士利瑪竇的如意算盤很可能是這樣：藉著向中國朝臣展示其驚人的記憶之術，或許將使得蠻族產生改奉基督教的意願。
為了宣揚教義的實際目的，利瑪竇著述了傳授記憶術的中文教本，這個教本為史景遷之於東西方文化交會的歷史性時刻提供了註記，然而，也正是這位傳教士的「記憶之宮」，不僅成為跨文化歷史研究的重要參照，這些涉及神或魔性、想像力與記憶的敘述，也在藝術家的藝術作品中，扮演了相當關鍵的角色——始於個人記憶的縫合，這些個人記憶終究碰觸了生與死、神性與痛失悼亡的魔性，席時斌這座充滿個人印記的記憶之宮，其後竟也補綴出一幅凌駕回憶而飽脹著性與死亡的慾望場景。
Mnemonics of a
Divine Calling
Aspects
that transcend personal memories also transport us back to the imaginary realm
of the “memory palace.” Hsi told a story regarding the origins of
mnemonics, which he found in The Art of Memory by Frances A. Yates.
At
a banquet hosted by a nobleman of Thessaly named Scopas, the poet, Simonides of
Ceos, chanted a lyrical poem in honor of his post, but included a passage in
praise of Castor and Pollux. Scopas mean-spiritedly told the poet that he
would only pay him half the sum agreed upon for the panegyric, and that he must
obtain the rest of the balance from the twin gods to whom he had devoted half
the poem. Later, a message was brought in to Simonides notifying him that
two young men were waiting outside for him. He rose from the banquet and went
outside, but could find no one. During his absence, the roof of the banquet
hall collapsed, crushing Scopas and all his guests beneath the ruins; the
corpses were so mangled that relatives who came to take them away for burial
were unable to identify them. But, Simonides remembered the positions, which
they had been sitting at the table, and was therefore able to identify the dead
to the relatives. [6]
In this
account, Simonides was able to remember the names of every guest by remembering
their seating positions. This eventually became recognized as the origin
of mnemonics. Worth mentioning is that this story is closely tied to a
kind of divine intervention, since the death of others was the price for such
an ability. Because life was sacrificed, mnemonics was seen as a key that
could access a divine land.
On another
end, according to the perspective of Spence’s The
Memory Palace of Matteo Ricci, mnemonics was been seen
as a divine yet magical ability from the Middle Ages to the
Renaissance, and eventually into modern history. In Ricci’s era,
at least, mnemonics was often associated with astrology, alchemy, and other
disciplines considered mysterious by the masses. According to the
interpretations of historians, the wishful thinking of Ricci, a Jesuit
missionary, may have been that by demonstrating the amazing powers of mnemonics
to a Chinese courtier, perhaps he could convince those “barbarians” to live a
life following Christ.
To achieve his goal of spreading
Christianity amongst the Chinese people, Ricci included sections on mnemonic
techniques in Chinese textbooks, which were later referenced by Spence in
discussions about exchanges between the East and West. This missionary’s
“memory palace” not only served as an important reference for research on historic
cultural exchanges, but also as narratives about divinity, magic, imagination,
and memories, which all play a significant role in the works of the artist.
Originating from the sutures of personal memories, they touch upon life
and death, and divinity and grievances associated with loss. This realm
that extends from Hsi’s memory palace can be patched together to form scenery
that overrides memories, as well as expresses sexual desires and death.
慾望場景與秘密孔徑
我們注意到，《馬＃2：人馬》有個相對人的尺度而言的巨大陽具，或是在《馬＃5：女王》一作中，那到處顯露生殖與死亡的象徵：戴著面具那露出乳房的女性形象，正摟著一名體型過大而眼神凝滯的嬰孩，側倚在女性裙擺上的則是一個人類頭骨——性器官、哺育嬰兒的乳房，與明顯的死亡象徵，彼此不尋常地彼此裂解，甚至形象自身亦經歷著類似的裂解作用：女性頭部延展出羊頭，而佔據畫面右側的則是彷彿在液態中漂浮的莫名脊椎生物骨骸，這些不斷出現並異變的有機體殘塊，很明顯地重複著性與死亡象徵，依照巴岱伊（George Bataille, 1897-1962）之於相關主題的描繪，性與死亡本為一體兩面：「性交高潮痙攣後的虛脫被稱為『小死』（la petite mort），對人類而言，死亡永遠象徵著波濤洶湧後的退潮，不過這不僅僅是遙遠的類比而已。我們永遠不應忘記生物的繁殖與死亡緊緊相扣」。[7]
Scenes of Desire and
the Secret Peeping Hole
One finds a giant
male organ in the work, Horse #2: Sagittarius, and many symbolic
elements regarding reproduction and death within Horse #5: Queen. A
female figure with a masked face exposes her breasts while embracing a soulless
baby with an over-sized body. A human skull rests on her skirt - the
genitals, the breast-feeding baby, and obvious symbols of death all pull at
each other in an unusual way, almost as if the image is ripping apart. A
goat’s head extends from the female body. On the right, there is a sea of
skeletons from some kind of unidentifiable beast. The flow of organic
debris is an obvious symbol for sex and death. According to George
Bataille (1897-1962), sex and death are two sides of the same coin: “‘La petite
mort’ is French for ‘the little death,’ and serves as an idiom and metaphor for
an orgasm. If love exists at all, it is like death, a swift movement of
loss within us as we quickly slip into tragedy, stopping only with death. For
the truth is that between death and the reeling, heady motion of the little
death, the distance is hardly noticeable.” [7]
席時斌,《馬＃5：女王》, 2012, 鉛筆、紙、粉彩, 110x237cm
如同最早的引文已然提及，藝術家透過馬投射了「想像與慾望」，我們已經回答了想像的問題，但這是什麼樣的慾望？訪談中席時斌曾如此表述：「馬很性感，帶著情慾，又很科學。牠像一部機器，肉體和骨骼透露著性感」。
這種透過拆解或自我裂變的肉體與骨骼所展示的性感，被描述成一部機器，無疑地指向了某種戀物——依照精神分析式的觀點，正因為慾望對象的匱缺，慾望轉向投射於那溢散著死亡陰影的物，此外，物還必須是一些不能被整合進象徵秩序的物，它們是不合時宜的剩餘，雖然使得主體重獲窺探真實層的秘密孔徑，卻也經常透過物自身的反向凝視，因而吞噬了主體——為了避免主體為這由物發動的凝視中崩毀，解套辦法就只能藉由不斷地移置，將物移置到一個與其性質相異的處所，諸如一部認識機器，諸如一個秘密孔徑，它將通往一個語言能夠再度捕獲它、卻又不會任其擺佈的象徵世界。[8]
或許正是為了製作這個得以使其全身而退的秘密孔徑，席時斌才將這次個展命名為「在我們的馬車上製作一座星盤」。這個展覽標題，同樣出自史景遷，但史學家敘述的對象卻是法國人文主義文學家蒙田（Michel Eyquem de Montaigne, 1533-1592），這是一則關於昔日哲人在大城市逛窯子的故事：
蒙田於1581年在旅居羅馬其間，印象最深的是妓女的無處不在。他敘述道，乘坐馬車出行或在羅馬城裡邊溜達邊看妓女是羅馬人度過休閒時光的主要方式。妓女們在窗口或陽台上展示著自己，「其方式如此具有欺騙性，致使我經常對她們如此吸引我的眼球而驚訝不已。我經常一時衝動，跳下馬背，讓她們為我打開門，充滿羨慕地欣賞她們打扮得比實際要漂亮許多的模樣」。其他羅馬人為了欣賞妓女經常在馬車車廂中挖一個洞眼，用一個羅馬教士的話叫「觀星洞」，「就像在我們的馬車上製造星盤那樣」。蒙田對這種令人捧腹的文字遊戲十分欣賞。[9]
為了「欣賞妓女」，羅馬人在車廂內挖了個洞，透過這個被教士稱為「觀星洞」的窺視孔進行意淫，以延遲那些欺騙性的幻見，蒙田則以一張訕笑的促狹臉孔，帶著「我能理解」因而寬宥有時的溫暖，對整件事輕鬆以待：「就像在我們的馬車上製造星盤那樣」——窺淫的慾望場景因而被移置到一座星象觀測的天文台。
也許，正是這般的自我解嘲態度，終於緩解了席時斌在如同骨骸殘肢的城市構造中，總是歷歷在目的死亡與慾望之無盡鬥爭。在這裡，觸情與認識、魔法與古典、機體與機械，在不斷重新補綴成網的回憶路途上，雖然忽然幽暗忽然光亮，經由秘密孔徑的移置，卻依然為一座記憶之宮的建造，提供了日後安頓它們的觀測座標。
As mentioned
earlier in this paper, the artist projects “imaginations and desires” through
the horses found within his works. We have touched upon issues regarding
imagination. So, what are the desires expressed in these works?
During an interview with Hsi, he commented that, “A horse is very sexy
and serves as a symbol for lust. Yet, it is also very scientific.
It is like a machine - its flesh and bones revealing a sexiness.”
This kind of sexiness
expressed through dismantled flesh and bones is compared to a machine.
This undoubtedly hints at a kind of fetishism - from a psychoanalytical
perspective, the absence of an object of desire is projected in the form of
darkness and death. Furthermore, the object has to be one that cannot be
arranged in a symbolic order. They are anachronistic remainders.
Although the main subject regains a peeping hole to spy on reality, it
often becomes a form of spying on oneself, engulfing the main subject - To
avoid the destruction of the main subject by being gazed upon, it has to be
continuously relocated to a different location, a place dissimilar to the
object. It is like an adapting machine or a secret peeping hole. It
leads to a symbolic world in which language can be recaptured, but not
manipulated. [8]
Maybe it is
because of this peeping hole that Hsi named this solo exhibition, A
Horoscope Built Out of Our Chariots. Although this title is based on
Spence’s work, it also focuses on the French humanist writer, Michel Eyquem de
Montaigne (1533-1592). This is a story about an ancient philosopher who
witnessed the decadent lifestyles in a big city.
During a trip to Rome in
1581, Montaigne noted that prostitutes were everywhere. He commented that
the main form of leisure for Roman men was to roam the city and feast on
prostitutes with their eyes. These women would stand by the window or on
the balcony, revealing their bodies. “It is so deceiving that I was
astonished by the way they stared at me. I sometimes get so excited that
I jump off my horse and let them open the door to let me in. I cannot
help but admire their nicely-dressed bodies, which seem more beautiful than
they would under normal circumstances.” Roman men poked holes in their
carriages so they could peek at these prostitutes. A Roman clergyman once
called it a “stargazing hole.” “It is like the horoscope built out of our
chariots.” Montaigne was very fond of hilarious word games. [9]
To “feast on
prostitutes with their eyes,” Roman men made peeping holes in their carriages,
which was later called “stargazing holes” by a clergy man. “It is
like the horoscope built on our chariots.” To prolong that illusive
deceit, Montaigne mischievously held the attitude of “I can understand.”
His attitude in regards to all this was the same as towards “the
horoscope built out of our chariots” - these voyeuristic desires were later
transplanted to an observatory as a result.
Perhaps, it is
this kind of self-mocking attitude that will finally relieve Hsi as he is
locked in an endless struggle of death and desire in an urban setting similar
to the bones of a skeleton. Here, affect and understanding, magic and
classical, body and machine are all continuously re-patched to form a road
network of memories. Even though it is suddenly dark, then suddenly
bright, the memory palace is constructed through a displacement of the secret
peeping hole, providing observation coordinates that will settle them for the
future.
[2] 這裡我所謂的「不合時宜」，係相較於現今早已數位化的製圖技術，這種手操作的製圖技巧，在今天已接近某種昔日傳說。
[3] 以下關於藝術家的自述，皆出自筆者偕同張晴文在2012年6月26日所進行的訪談，將不再註解。
[4] 見史景遷（Jonathan D. Spence），陳恆、梅義征譯，《利瑪竇的記憶之宮：當東方遇到西方》（The Memory Palace of Matteo Ricci），上海：上海遠東，2005，頁4。
[5] 見克里斯德瓦（Julia Kristeva）著，林惠玲譯，《黑太陽：抑鬱症與憂鬱》（Soleil noir: Dépression et mélancolie），台北：遠流，2008，頁121-124。
[6] 見法蘭西絲．葉茲（Frances A. Yates），薛絢譯，《記憶之術》（The Arts of Memory），台北：大塊文化，2007，頁13。
[7] 見喬治．巴岱伊（George Bataille）著，賴守正譯，《情色論》（L'érotisme），台北：聯經，2012，頁155。
[8] 這些關於痛失悼亡的憂鬱症╱抑鬱症的觀點，我主要參考克里斯德瓦的《黑太陽》，尤其是「第二章 話語的存活與消亡」。
[9] 同註4引書，頁288-289。
[1] Quoted from an unpublished solo exhibition proposal that His sent
to me last year.
[2] I call this practice "outdated" because cartography
nowadays is a computerized process. The
technique of drawing maps by hand is something that only appears in legends.
[3] All references used in this section about the artist are from an
interview conducted by Chang Ching-Wen on June 26, 2012. Additional references used from this source
will not be footnoted.
[4] Jonathan D. Spenc, translated by Chen Heng, Mei Yi-Zheng, The Memory Palace of
Matteo Ricci, Shanghai: Shanghai Far East
Publishers, 2005, Page 4.
[5] Julia Kristeva, translated by Lin Hui-Ling, Soleil noir: Dépression et mélancolie, Taipei: Yuan-Liou Publishing
Co., Ltd, 2008, Page 121 – 124.
[6] Frances A. Yates, translated by Xue Xuan, The Arts of Memory, Taipei:
Locus Publishing, 2007, Page 13.
[7] George Bataille, translated by Lai Shou-Zheng, L'érotisme, Tapei: Linking Publishing, 2012, Page 155.
[8] These melancholic and depressing perspectives on loss are mainly
taken from chapter two, Life and Death of Speech, of Kristeva’s Soleil noir: Dépression et mélancolie.
[9] Pages 288 to 289 of source same as footnote 4.
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