Blog Topic: “We the People” – Danh Vo (2011-2013)
Student Name: Chan Pak San
Student number: 57155254
Introduction
Danh Vo in such artwork “We the People” focused primarily on the large-scale conceptual installations using the fragmented cultural symbols with a collaborative production processes with the artwork. I am mostly interested in the systematic deconstruction of national icons and using the fragmentation methods dated back into the 19th century. And what also interesting is Danh Vo used the global artworks circulation as critique and giving meaning with the transformation through displacement while highly relevant with our digital century processing collective memories and the identifiy formation
(Img source: https://lesoeuvres.pinaultcollection.com/en/artwork/we-people-detail)
(Img source: https://smarthistory.org/danh-vo-we-the-people/)
Artwork & Analytics
The creation of this artwork is dealing with the subject of memory through the complete fragmentation and a global dispersal of a full scale Statue of Liberty replica. It has demonstrated the systematic processes to transform the iconic symbols to networks of meaning and that can operate across multiple cultural contexts simultaneously.
This work has contained over 250 individual hammered copper fragments, and each of the pieces precisely matching the original statue’s dimension but have never reassembled into a complete form. I think for me, the element evoked the connections to McLuhan’s concept that “the medium is the message” which align with the systematic framentation and global distrubtion as the primary content and critique the unified national identity very powerfully. It given how the fragment each functions simultaneously as an abstract sculpture and political critique which can be viewed depending on the exhibition context and also the viewer’s own cultrual background.
In the Smarthhistory analysis, it noted that by exposing the visible supporting structures and joints Vo reveals the hidden fragility beneath Lady Liberty’s table exterior (Sanyal, n.d.). With that said, I believe the opinion that this showxs a perpetual incompleteness that constantly defers and shifts through the gaps between the fragments rather than residing in any complete form which also aligned with Manovich’s concepts of modularity and variability as each fragments operates as an independent database entry that generates different meanings through the algorithmic recombination through a global exhibition contexts.
Conclusion
With the artwork “We the People” that demonstrates the idea of collecting (gathering cultural symbols), structuring (the systematic fragmentation) and also display (a global network distrubtion) in fact got me thinking for my own work in the future, I could probably explore how the digital fragmentation of cultural symbols operates across social media platform. Probably by creating systematic breakdowns of iconic images that might circulate the give new meanings with new medium and tools like sharing, remix and recontextualization in different communities and cultrual contexts.
References
Sanyal, S. K. (n.d.). SmartHistory – Danh vo, we the people. https://smarthistory.org/danh-vo-we-the-people/
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