人文制陶、机械美学、反思性纪念物---岛子
----钞子艺、钞子伟雕塑艺术评析
文\岛 子
THE LIBERAL ART OF CERAMIC PRODUCTION, THE MECHANICAL ARTS, AND INTROSPECTIVE MEMORABILIA.
A review of sculptures of Chao Ziyi, Chao Ziwei.
-- by Daozi
钞氏兄弟近十年来的雕塑创作经历了两个实验阶段，显现出两种形态迥异而有相互关联的文化意向。
The sculptural works of the Chao Brothers have gone through two experimental phases over the recent ten years. Their works exhibited two different but inter-related cultural trends.
第一实验期为人文制陶，即1999年开启的“造房计划”，以写实性和表现性相互融合的语言，再现中国传统建筑的人文意涵与现实命运，作品的选题几乎包容了南北方主要的建筑形式。他们选择了门楼作为民居建筑的独立典型，着意表现其历经沧桑的表情，在其象征性意蕴中，历史的肌体凝固，而其灵魂在诉说。这一系列作品一扫当代流行陶瓷的光鲜艳丽、浮泛虚饰，显现着黯淡、沉郁的悲剧色彩。泥板成型传统技法与现代工艺结合，材料选择上用陶土烧制，并加入化妆土、色剂、化工原料以及食盐草木灰等。不同瓷区不同温度的油料与陶土，力争保持泥土固有的特性，使作品以一种朴素、自然的状态呈现出来。这一系列作品将“怀旧”意识提上了现实日程。“怀旧”（nostalgia）无疑是理解钞氏兄弟雕塑的一个关键词，这个源自欧洲十七世纪士兵因思乡而患的一种臆想症，使我们想起米兰·昆德拉式的抒情，那是一种在别处的生活，无可归家的普遍命运。另一个相对的关键词则是“拆”，这个强权性的单词自上个世纪90年代笼罩了神州广大的城乡，构成了中国跛足改革的生动索隐。民间维权运动此起彼落，多半是由于民众失去自己的家园。
The first phase began in 1999. It is called the liberal art phase of ceramic production. As a language that blends both realism and performance, it brings alive the humanistic meaning and realistic fate of traditional Chinese architecture. The brothers have chosen facades and gates which represent the styles and themes of the northern and southern regions. These ceramic production series opens a new chapter, one that is more pessimistic in the choice of colors, to modern china and ceramic arts. These works combines traditional and modern ceramic making techniques with materials from various regions of China. They brought a nostalgic sense into our daily schedule. “Nostalgia” is undoubtedly the keyword to understand the Chao Brothers’ arts, which remind us of Milan Kundera. Another keyword is “demolish”, which reminds us of China’s reform and people’s march for individual rights during a period beginning from the 1990s.
延续至今的第二个实验期为机械美学的表征。如果说钞氏兄弟在人文制陶阶段解决了陶艺的当代性转换，技法层面的实验大于精神的表现，无疑地，在2003年之后，则逐步实现了观念和技法的统一、主题和题材的切合，尤其是红色历史的矛盾性和复杂性的自觉探索，使得《东方红系列》又名“红色机器”，成为机械美学在中国当代雕塑中的一种独特表征。在钞氏看来:“东方红”是“红色中国”的代名词。自中国红色政权建立及巩固之后，“东方红”便以一个特定的符号登上中国历史的舞台。而东方红拖拉机和火车头就是这一时期工业发展的典型代表。我认为这个系列的“东方红号”老火车最能够代表他们的艺术成就。这件长达六米、体量数吨重的雕塑作品，每个单体部件都经过反复设计、反复斟酌，它克服了原先泥塑形式的不确定性和易碎性，改用zz，使之具有机械的强力、重量和锈蚀效果。“东方红号”老火车具有中国工业历史的肖像意味，它是一个超级特写，钞氏兄弟从工业废墟(同时也是红色乌托邦记忆)中萃取了蒸汽机火车头的特定形象，非再现性地通过体态、重量、色泽的变形，给出了毛时代集体主义的感性情态，与其说作品的震撼力来自形象的逼真，毋宁说，来自一种表现性的揭示，来自历史命运的自我反讽。
The second phase is manifested by mechanical arts. If the Chao Brothers’ earlier works resolve the transition process of modern ceramic art, then 2003 begins the unification of concepts and techniques, and of the contrasts and complexity of the history of the color red. To the Chao Brothers, “Eastern Red” is the pronoun of “Red China”. As one of the representative pieces, the “Eastern Red” train is the product of repeated efforts in designs. The artists turn to iron casting to eliminate versatility and fragility and to enhance strength, weight, and the effect of corrosion. The sculpture “Eastern Red” is symbolic of China’s industrial history. It is also a close-up shot that presents a sentiment most unique of the Mao’s ideological community.
从艺术发展史来审视，许多早期二十世纪服膺机械美学的艺术家，都牵涉到一个理想目标，就是藉由机器来建立秩序与和谐。但是乌托邦的负面：反乌托邦，渐渐形成一股现代性的反思暗流。关于“美丽新世界”的预言遭致普遍的批判，是因为反思者认为，技术专制会使人类逐渐失去人性。而对于机械美学持理想论调的人将机器暗喻成和谐与力量，却受到疏离的反论。意大利马克思主义社会理论家葛兰西（Antonio Gramsci）相信机械化带来的标准化会威胁到个人的独特性，这样的信念引起大众恐慌，害怕机器会把人类逐出自然界，至使环绕于周遭的都是人工物品：机械零件、制式化环境、巨形（gigantism）、过度噪音与速度。例如在《摩登时代》（Modern Time 1936）这部电影中，卓别林（Charlie Chaplin）就在讽刺北美工厂的管理方法将人类机械化。影片中有一幕是演出主角的卓别林，因长期重复同一生产线工作而导致短暂地精神错乱。在生产线上他必须同时转动两只扳手来拴紧螺拴，卓别林被这种麻木的过程催眠，掉入工厂背后隐藏的运作机制，他变成自动化操作装置完全执行机器指令，引发喜剧式的效果。
From the perspective of art history development, many early twentieth century mechanical artists strived to reach an ideological goal, one that established order and harmony. However, the anti-utopian thought gradually develops into a modern undercurrent of introspection. The prophesy about the “Beautiful New World” has been widely criticized, primarily by those who believe that humanity will be replaced by machinery. The Italian Marxist theorist Antonio Gramsci believed that standardization from mechanization threatened the human uniqueness. Such belief had brought public fear concerning the machinery parts, gigantism, excessive noise and speed created by mechanical arts. For example, Charlie Chaplin’s “Modern Time” in 1936 sarcastically portrayed the robotic nature resulted from management methodology of north America.
反乌托邦思想认为，在这样“除魅”（disenchanted）的机械化世界里，一切先前抚慰人心特质—特别是精神意义已不复存在。科学技术将人类带离宗教情感和巫术魅力之外，也同时把人类带进机械化世界，一个没有救赎依归与目标的世界，使人产生疏离感。此番评论引起葛兰西的共鸣，他认为凡是把劳工职务内容化约成磨蚀灵魂、去人性化的机械式任务的工业规则，都该予以道德谴责。同时马克思主义的“技术决定论”（technological deter-minism）也表示说，虽然许多社会变动因素源于技术工具的改变，但实际上社会生产关系才最能真正地说明任一特定期间内的特殊面貌。沿着马克思主义者的论证思路可得出一点，即政府与资本主义的联合利益终将技术塑造成一种阴暗、狡诈的社会控制形式。其实科技从来不是中性的。科技并非一个能够自我持恒的机制，它的机制是由现存支配秩序所控制，而技术在服务支配秩序之利益的同时，也复制了那样的秩序。但是也只有在我们的时代里，机械终于超越其本身的实用功能，而获得美感与哲学上的不同意义。机械美学的运作涵盖几个层面:机器本身就经常被表现于画面上成为一项艺术品。机器人形化的正面形象当中亦存有其负面印象，就是被塑造成机器偏执怪物。机械美学透过前卫直觉式的功利语汇能够更进一步融入时代意识中，这点可从表现主义与观念艺术的语言差异清楚地突显。
The anti-utopian (or dystopian) school believes that within the disenchanted mechanical world, the spiritual foundation that comforts the human heart no longer exists. While science and technology have brought humans away from religious sentiment and wizardry, it also brought humans into a world of mechanization--a world with neither salvation nor objectives. According to Antonio Gramsci, the dehumanization aspect of mechanization should be morally condemned. At the same time, technological determinism within the Marxist theory also stated that although social changes originated from technological advancement, it was actually social relations that explained the unique aspect of a particular time period. However, it is within our time that machinery transcends its own functionality and embodies the meaning of aesthetics and philosophy.
其实机械美学本身是时代思潮（Zeitgeist）的一部分，代表时代精神，是部分艺术家在思想观念与性情上赫然的转变。由此而言，我更倾向于将《东方红系列》视为有美学价值的纪念物，它们可以用来衡量社会变迁与艺术之间的关系，也称得上是红色中国重要的社会指标及其象征。借此，不妨检讨现代性雕塑存在的主要问题，即可以发现这种反思性纪念物的价值所在。我们看到在纪念物的领域之外，现代雕塑的重要性显然不及绘画。现代主义的阐释多与绘画相关联，大部分还是在界定雕塑不是什么，换言之，就只是说明雕塑不是绘画（Greenberg quoted in O’Brian vol 2,1986:60），雕塑也有抽象手法，只是并不成功。除了现成物的利用外，很难将现代主义的绘画创作论应用于雕塑方面。现代主义发觉难以将个人隐喻性的表现方式融入雕塑作品中。主观性的感受较易用绘画来表现，而且现代主义绘画不费吹灰之力就能进入个体的沉思之途；雕塑则依旧残留有公共仪式意涵，神化的人物塑像还是最为广泛接受的形式。现代主义矛盾的地方就是它追求普遍的共性，却又造成不受一般大众观迎的艺术。雕塑直到1960年代地景艺术兴盛后，才返回公共领域，否则多以新画廊或现代美术馆为营：特别是展示于美术馆的雕塑花园或成为巡回性展览。然而，中国当代公共雕塑至今依然乏善可陈，原因有许多，其中关键问题是思想因素的贫乏、反思精神的薄弱、形式实验的畏缩。
In fact, mechanical art is a part of Zeitgeist, or modern thought. It represents the spirit of modern times and the transition of artists’ thought process and temperament. Hence, I would prefer to view the “Eastern Red” series as memorabilia with aesthetic values, which may be used to assess the relationship between social changes and arts. We can see that outside of the world of these memorabilia, modern sculpture has not been treated in the same way as painting, with the latter being associated more with modernism in terms of exposition. In other words, sculpture is not painting (Greenberg quoted in O’Brian vol 2, 1986:60). Although sculptors try to adopt abstract methods, it has not been as successful. Modernists realized that it is difficult to blend sculptural pieces with individual metaphorical performance. While subjective perception is easily manifested through paintings, sculptures tend to retain insights of public values. Sculptures of Mystified persona are still widely accepted. Because of numerous reasons, including poverty in thought and weakness in introspection, few modern public sculptures are seen.
当代纪念物可贵之处是其反思性和实验性，制作者所面临的一个基本两难实际上是一体两面的，不论使用任何媒材或手法，都必须经得起未来的考验，历史的“过去未来性”，也就是当代人对历史思考的意义维度。如何利用自身指涉性强的媒材来引述事件而不只是指涉媒材本身？如何能结合更有效的手法来表达主题？但无论在形式上如何实验，纪念性雕塑是以整体观之，首要目的是引发观者反思或沉思。缘此而言，《东方红系列》以严格而繁重的手工作业而非现成物利用或点子取巧，进入了逆反形式的实验，它的涵义令人沉思且具公共性，尽管形式上还需要更具历史语境关联的营造。甚至其尺度、重量以及展示和陈列的空间、地点，都有待更加倚重公共性和纪念性的意向。如此一来，它将进一步把尊严和谵妄、理想和异化、真实与虚拟结合起来，并在一个充满历史寓言的国度继续引发与历史悖谬的美学对话。
The value of modern memorabilia is reflected by its introspective and experimental nature. The makers of these works are faced with difficulties including materials used, methods, and styles, etc. It is difficult to express the artist’s stories and themes without being overwhelmed by the materials themselves. The “Eastern Red” Series is made possible by strictly manual work instead of reliance on any shortcuts. Through the use of measurement, weight, and even space and location, these works tend to promote profound thoughts. They are a combination of pride and arrogance, ideals and alienation, and reality and virtuality. In a nation rich in historical fables, the sculptural works continue to trigger an aesthetic dialogue that contrasts with history.
2008年暑期，清华园
Summer recess, 2008, Tsinghua Garden.
清华大学美术学院教授、博士生导师
DaoZi
The sculptural works of the Chao Brothers have gone through two experimental phases over the recent ten years. Their works exhibited two different but inter-related cultural trends.
The sculptural works of the Chao Brothers have gone through two experimental phases over the recent ten years. Their works exhibited two different but inter-related cultural trends.