Loved the show, "Peasant Da Vincis" at RAM. Glad I didnt miss it! Its classic Cai, and felt like projects from his early Japan days when many of his works extensively involve the local community. This time, its farmers in China.
Cai apparently has been collecting creations from farmer inventors (hence the exhibition name) since 2004. These stories of farmer inventions were well publicized in China (the Chinese Govt perhaps seeing it as a way to "distract" people from talking about poverty instead?!) . They made planes, robots, and more, often from scrap metals; and these works are mostly rough, amateurish, but wildly imaginative. (hence the humorous use of the name Da Vinci's - a man who's well respected for his designs, but apparently many of which just stayed on paper and was never built - so the Chn farmers outdid him!)
I found these projects to be a powerful symbol of the farmers' dreams and passion - and its all the more touching when you think there's so little resource they work with. (BTW Cai's purchase of their works is his way of helping to fulfill the dreams - these rural inventors often are poverty-striken, and Cai has collected their works so that they can keep pursuing their passion!) The exhibition of these inventions is Cai's tribute to these unsung heroes in our modern society, where cities and fast development are celebrated, and farmers left behind in the economic progress of the nation. I also felt the farmers' works (spaceships, planes, etc) in exploring new frontiers echoed very well Cai's own fascination with the universe and nature in his many gunpowder works - perhaps thats why Cai has collected these works?
Its an "opportune" choice of time to do this show at same time as the EXPO, to contrast the rural life and its many difficulties against the EXPO theme of "better city, better life". Its classic Cai's style irony, putting farmers' rough-on-the-edge inventions in metropolitan Shanghai when its hosting the event thats supposed to be the pride of the nation, created for all to see China's economic strength. We have seen that sort of critique before, from his previous projects like "Rent Collection Courtyard", his post-911 explosion in NY, etc. Its of course also a node to his own Venice Biennale 2005 curation of the China Pavilion where he exhibited farmer's "spaceship".
Outside the main exhibition hall, there were a few large wall-size word paintings - "never learned to land" (referring to Cai's question to one of the farmer inventor: "if your spaceship takes off, how will you land it?") and "its not that important that it take off" (which engaged me - it talks to doing what you like, its about the process and not to get obsessed about "result").
Starting the show and what greets visitors on the ground floor is a hanging installation of debris from a crashed plane - built by a farmer inventor for his wife, but unfortunately crashed and killed the man in one of its voyages. Whats shown are the remains of the plane, and a tribute to the inventor.
On second floor is a simple but most brilliant installation - electric fans keeping a roomful of perhaps 30 kites flying in the air, and pico projectors pointing to the kites showing videos of Cai's encounter with these farmers on them. Its a simple yet powerful symbolism of the farmers' invention dreams (not to say also a great use of modern technology too - am impressed as a nerd that Cai is using pico projectors!)
On third floor, Cai has commissioned one of the most "famous" robot farmer inventors in China, Wu Yulu, to create robots that act out performances by Yves Klein (eg, a naked man pulling a naked woman around in a circle!), make drip paintings like those by Jackson Pollack (brilliant!), and Daimen Hirst-like dot paintings. These "artworks" by robot "artists" are signed by Cai's Studio and sold in the "art gallery" - again a classic critique by Cai on how artworks are made and the consumerist mechanisms in contemporary art. (I have bought a few of these - oops, just proving his point on consumerism - but hey, they look cool!!) This project also reminded me of the Taiwan shopping channel project, where, in collaboration with celebrity Cai Kangyong, Cai explored old Kuomintang money and sold them on a shopping channel on pay-TV, with informercial-style pitching live! Its Cai's way of questioning, what is art, how can art be made, and the blurring of consumerism and the art "business".
The fourth/fifth floor holds an exhibition of various "dreamlike" inventions (eg, helicopters, planes) in an installation called "Fair Tales". There are (real!) birds flying around in the room and atrium, above the green lawn planted in the middle of the room - a reflection of the creation mindset and environment of these farmer inventors.
I found this project to be a welcomed return of Cai to his roots of work around humanity.
BTW RAM has done a fabulous job curating this as their inaugurating show. I believe RAM is part of the scandalous project started by a Mr Rockfeller that's not quite that famous Rockfeller, but was really pushing his luck in pretending to be so. Its got a bit of history behind it though - the location was the former Royal Asiatic Society building, also known as the Shanghai Museum. It was set up in 1874 as one of the first modern museums in China. In any case, seems RAM did sth good for the art scene for Shanghai - interesting space, strong artist lineup, solid curation. The next show is apparently Zeng Fanzhi, another one of my all time favorites, on August 22.
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