While not a big fan of ‘labelling’ I cannot stop finding parallels between some forms of contemporary art we can call ‘postmodern’ and SLart.

Last week I finally managed to go and see the so much-mentioned Yan Pei Ming’s “Landscape of Childhood” exhibition at UCCA.

The piece consists of a series of painted flags representing portraits of 34 Chinese new born children surrounded by huge landscape scenes painted on the walls of the huge Big Hall space.

What makes this piece even more effective is the way in which it is thought to be installed and experienced by the spectator: an ongoing artificial air current keeps on flapping the flags, creating a quite noisy and upsetting atmosphere that keeps the audience tensed and alarmed.

The intensity of the work, already quite disturbing in its social theme (anonymity, misery and the difficult role of modern parents) is therefore further stressed by external ambient factors, such as the disturbing wind and noise.

This challenge to conventional forms and conventional exhibiting media is part of the big contemporary world of ‘postmodern and conceptual art’ (so huge and ‘un-categorizable’ that is covers so different forms of art such as Dadaism, Surrealism, performance arts, new medias, installations etc. etc.) and is quite typical of both many contemporary exhibitions, such as Yan Pei Ming’s one, and of virtual art and virtual museums as well.

The idea is to eliminate the so-called theatrical ‘fourth wall’ between artist and audience and let instead the piece of art to be enjoyed and experienced in a different and more direct way.

Both in UCCA Big Hall and in any other ‘sim’ in the vast universe of SL, Art is meant to involve the audience in an unconventional way, escaping ‘classical’ and traditional art-displaying and exploring the boundaries of new ways of perception and amusement.

RMB City landscape pays homage to its dadaist precursor and 'artistic father', Marcel Duchamp, and his famous readymade objects.

http://www.ucca.org.cn/portal/exhibition/view.798?id=20&menuId=20

http://arthistory.about.com/od/dada/ig/DadaatMoMANewYork/dada_newyork_01.htm