F A C T O R Y, 2022 ~
Ongoing Project
FACTORY is a project that discuss the fictional storyworld, transmedia storytelling, immersive experience, and narratives in moving images. It is aiming to exploring a new approach of storytelling.
FACTORY was first inspired by Chinese Buddhist art and traditional European art. I’m investigating the mythology and symbolism in different cultures, trying to look for the similarity and possible intersections, and connections between them. By reorganising, intertwining, and combining the elements that appeared the most in the different cultures and arts, such as ‘hands’ and ‘eyes’, I reimagine a new story about a fictional historical institute, FACTORY, that focused on the research of HANDS, EYES, PLANTS and OBJECTS.
In FACTORY, I have redefined the conventional notions of space and time by situating them interchangeably. It also involves the re-appropriation of traditional Buddhism and European Art. By re-contextualising, and redefining the elements, such as Hands and Eyes, I am introducing new symbolisations and meanings within my storyword. Those familiar cultural content will be presented in an uncanny, unusual way, unveiling the novel logic and rules of the storyworld to the audience. As such, the storyworld of FACTORY may be challenging to comprehend due to their divergence from reality. In order to provide an immersive experience, I will train the audience step by step, to evoke their interests and lead them into the storyworld by using transmedia storytelling.
“Dealing with the strains and inevitabilities of life, Buddhism suggests lettin the pressure drop by way of acceptance and letting go. In her art project ‘Study of Hands’, Singapore-based Chinese multidisciplinary artist Dongyan Chen researches depictions of hands and gestures found in the ancient Buddhist murals of the Dunhuang grotto in China. This deep iconographic exploration leads to drawings, NFTs, video installations, and electronic music bridging Eastern spirituality and Western technology across the ages.
Chen created new fictional narratives by comparing, reinterpreting, and reconstructing the motifs, recognizing and playing with their meaning, memeability, and expressive potential. In this way, she re-imagines ancient art through her contemporary practice, while bringing different cultures and ways of making art into a conversation. ” —— SomoS Art House
First part of FACTORY, the introduction video FACTORY: The Information Portal, was exhibited at the exhibition ‘Pressure Drop’ at SomoS Art House Berlin, together with the video work ‘Study of Hands’ and the illustration series ‘100 Ideas of Hands’. ‘Pressure Drop’ was part of the 48 Stunden Neukölln Art Festival 2022.
Second part of FACTORY, the video installation First Contact, was exhibited at the exhibition ‘Nine in the Afternoon’ at PROJECT SPACE, LASALLE College of the Arts, Singapore in 2023.
Please refer to the FACTORY Website to find out more : factory.hotglue.me
FACTORY Information Portal (2024), Single-Channel Video, 6:12min
First Contact (2023), Mixed Media Video Installation, 10:52min
