這次本是一趟不太情願的出國。年頭，就已經把月薪那份工作在2019年的有薪價期都用盡了。我也許已到了沒法不重視金錢的人生階段。
This trip was not entirely voluntary on my part. Start of the year: I was claiming from my full-time job employer all the eligible days of my annual leave 2019 in order to make it for this residency. I have probably reached that stage of my life when I have no choice but care for money.
This trip was not entirely voluntary on my part. Start of the year: I was claiming from my full-time job employer all the eligible days of my annual leave 2019 in order to make it for this residency. I have probably reached that stage of my life when I have no choice but care for money.
第一次以藝術家的身份參與藝術家駐留計劃。
This was the first time I had participated officially in an artist residency program.
This was the first time I had participated officially in an artist residency program.
我從來都不知道原來進入大部份的國家是需要護照有3個月的有效日期的。
It never occurred to me until this trip that most countries require a minimum 3-month valid passport for a foreigner's entry.
It never occurred to me until this trip that most countries require a minimum 3-month valid passport for a foreigner's entry.
曾在讀書時問老師：「為什麼藝術家會有這種特別的待遇？其他人、其他職業不也值得為他們辦駐留計劃嗎？」
I once asked my teacher while still a student, "Why are artists getting such a special treatment? Don't professionals of other types also deserve to be in residency programs?"
I once asked my teacher while still a student, "Why are artists getting such a special treatment? Don't professionals of other types also deserve to be in residency programs?"
到了西班牙的哥多華。天氣真的很好，陽光普照，不太冷又不太熱，呼吸真的很暢順，也很久沒有試過晚上十一時入睡早上七時起床。
I arrived in Cordoba, Spain. Great weather indeed. Broad sunlight, not too cold and not too warm. Breathing is so smooth and pleasant. And going to bed at 11:00pm and waking up at 7:00pm was something I had been done for a long while.
I arrived in Cordoba, Spain. Great weather indeed. Broad sunlight, not too cold and not too warm. Breathing is so smooth and pleasant. And going to bed at 11:00pm and waking up at 7:00pm was something I had been done for a long while.
哥多華市的範圍大概只有兩至三個土瓜灣左右吧，由下示地圖的左上角步行到右下角只用了40分鐘。
Cordoba according to the city boundary matches about two to three times the size of To Kwa Wan in Hong Kong. To complete a walk from the marked point in the upper left (of the map below) to that in the lower right, it took only 40 minutes.
Cordoba according to the city boundary matches about two to three times the size of To Kwa Wan in Hong Kong. To complete a walk from the marked point in the upper left (of the map below) to that in the lower right, it took only 40 minutes.
在C3A無所事事地幹活的兩三個星期。有一個展覽的開幕，展覽名為 《All the Sacred Tombs》 （(Todas las tumbas sagradas )，裡頭的作品直指21世紀藝術家看待歷史脈絡的現代觀點。開幕那天，我跟來自印尼的藝術家Jompet Kuswidananto 談了一下，我問道：「為什麼會常常用歷史作為做創作的主體？到底你們在看歷史之時有什麼藝術上的新發現？」他只說他們真的很關心歷史。
In my three weeks of making do at C3A, I was kind of doing nothing. There was the opening of an exhibition titled All the Sacred Tombs, full of works pointing to how 21st century artists look at history from a contemporary point of view. On the day of the opening, I had a chat with artist Jompet Kuswidananto from Indonesia. I asked, "Why do artists so often use history to be the subject of their creation? When you look at history, what about art do your discover?" His answer was simply that they really cared about history.
In my three weeks of making do at C3A, I was kind of doing nothing. There was the opening of an exhibition titled All the Sacred Tombs, full of works pointing to how 21st century artists look at history from a contemporary point of view. On the day of the opening, I had a chat with artist Jompet Kuswidananto from Indonesia. I asked, "Why do artists so often use history to be the subject of their creation? When you look at history, what about art do your discover?" His answer was simply that they really cared about history.
《All the Sacred Tombs》 有其中一件作品是一架火車頭，旁邊放滿香蕉蘋果橙，全是膠的。
One of the works in All the Sacred Tombs was the head of a train, surrounded by bananas, apples and oranges, all plastic-made.
One of the works in All the Sacred Tombs was the head of a train, surrounded by bananas, apples and oranges, all plastic-made.
另外在展場中間有一堆由看似燒焦的樹幹、夾萬、鞋、車胎等物件組成的作品，作品介紹上提及了 六X四。
In the middle of the exhibition venue stood a pile of objects that looked like burnt tree trunks, a safe, shoes and tires and so on. In the written description of the work, the June Fourth incident was mentioned.
In the middle of the exhibition venue stood a pile of objects that looked like burnt tree trunks, a safe, shoes and tires and so on. In the written description of the work, the June Fourth incident was mentioned.
早更保安跟午更的保安原來是兩夫妻。在開放工作室那天，終於看到女保安員抱著兒子來參觀我的工作室，第一次看見她笑。
The security guard of the morning shift and the one in the afternoon are husband and wife. On my studio's open day, I finally met the female security guard as a visitor to my studio, with her son in her arms. It was also the first time she had smiled.
The security guard of the morning shift and the one in the afternoon are husband and wife. On my studio's open day, I finally met the female security guard as a visitor to my studio, with her son in her arms. It was also the first time she had smiled.
美術館大部份時間都是小貓三兩隻，電視台會來做訪問及拍攝。
Most of the time, there were less than a handful of visitors inside the art centre. Then you had the TV station coming to shoot and conduct interviews.
Most of the time, there were less than a handful of visitors inside the art centre. Then you had the TV station coming to shoot and conduct interviews.
黃昏時份回家路上沿河邊走會聽到一個很長的 fade up，在河道中間有個小島，上面總會聚集了幾百隻白色的鳥在叫。
My walk home in the evening was often accompanied by a long fade-up. On an islet in the middle of the river stood several hundred white birds chirping.
My walk home in the evening was often accompanied by a long fade-up. On an islet in the middle of the river stood several hundred white birds chirping.
在美術館內有一位男性職員。每次見他，都是拿著一本數字解迷連線圖的書在埋頭苦幹。
There's a male staff-member at the art centre who was forever indulged in solving point-to-point connecting puzzles from a book.
There's a male staff-member at the art centre who was forever indulged in solving point-to-point connecting puzzles from a book.
橙只是從美術館外空地上的樹上撿的。那時剛好是城內街上的橙樹結果的時侯。
The orange I picked up (in the following pictures) fell from a tree in the courtyard outside the art centre building. When I just arrived, the whole city was full of such trees with bitter oranges ripening.
The orange I picked up (in the following pictures) fell from a tree in the courtyard outside the art centre building. When I just arrived, the whole city was full of such trees with bitter oranges ripening.
到步十天後，街上開始出現穿橙色螢光衣的人員把樹上的橙一一摘下來，然後一車車掉到垃圾桶內。
Into the tenth day of my residency, the streets were filled with workers in fluorescent orange outfits busily picking oranges from the trees and scavenging them to the garbage bins.
Into the tenth day of my residency, the streets were filled with workers in fluorescent orange outfits busily picking oranges from the trees and scavenging them to the garbage bins.
某天晚上去了看 flamenco。一直以為flamingo必定會有跳舞，原來只是彈西班牙結他和唱歌，感覺像去了社區會堂聽粵曲。
One evening I went to a flamenco performance. I always thought flamenco was a kind of dance. Instead, I saw people gathering to play Spanish guitars and sing. It felt like listening to Cantonese opera singing in a community centre.
One evening I went to a flamenco performance. I always thought flamenco was a kind of dance. Instead, I saw people gathering to play Spanish guitars and sing. It felt like listening to Cantonese opera singing in a community centre.
我卻終於淺嘗放慢生活節奏及專心創作的三星期，實在得來不易。
After all, I got to have a quick taste of what it's like slowing down my beats and concentrating on creating something for three full weeks, and that is not something that comes by easily.
After all, I got to have a quick taste of what it's like slowing down my beats and concentrating on creating something for three full weeks, and that is not something that comes by easily.
現在回看，我覺得我的作品放在工作室有點浪費，應該放在美術館內正式的展場才對。
As I look back now, I feel I could have presented my work in the museum proper, and that showing it just in my open studio was a bit of a waste.
As I look back now, I feel I could have presented my work in the museum proper, and that showing it just in my open studio was a bit of a waste.
C3A的其中一位主理人Alvaro Fominaya 有鼓勵我在C3A外牆的 media wall 做點作品的。我在離開西班牙前做好了，發了個電郵給他和負責相關的技術人員，可是那技術人員的電郵地址是不對的，我三天前還在跟他通電郵，拜託他幫忙印幾張橙色的A3紙。
Alvaro Fominaya, one of the persons-in-charge at C3A, encouraged me to do a work for the media wall outside the centre, which I completed right before I left Spain. I sent an email to notify Alvaro and related technicians. Somehow, the email address of the technician was wrong. In fact, just three days ago, I was still connecting with him to ask him to get help with making several A3-size orange-colour print-outs.
Alvaro Fominaya, one of the persons-in-charge at C3A, encouraged me to do a work for the media wall outside the centre, which I completed right before I left Spain. I sent an email to notify Alvaro and related technicians. Somehow, the email address of the technician was wrong. In fact, just three days ago, I was still connecting with him to ask him to get help with making several A3-size orange-colour print-outs.
在 open studio 那天早上，隔鄰 studio傳出一下巨響，然後我的工作室和她的工作室都沒有電了，原來是她從美術館借來的投影機燒壞了燈膽。那刻真的感覺全部（尤其自己的）要依靠電力運作的藝術作品真是垃圾中的垃圾。
In the morning of the day for my open studio, I heard a loud sound exploding in the studio next door, after which there was a complete power outage in my studio and hers. It turned out that the bulb of the projector the art centre loaned to her busted. At that moment, I totally felt how all art works relying on electricity, including mine, could be the garbage of all garbage.
In the morning of the day for my open studio, I heard a loud sound exploding in the studio next door, after which there was a complete power outage in my studio and hers. It turned out that the bulb of the projector the art centre loaned to her busted. At that moment, I totally felt how all art works relying on electricity, including mine, could be the garbage of all garbage.
駐留藝術家有其中一位現居紐約的畫家，我到步後第二天去參加了她舉辦的畫畫工作坊，跟當地的家長和他們的孩子一起聽音樂和畫畫，她向小孩子和他們的父母解釋Pollock是會聽爵士樂的所以筆觸像爵士樂般自由奔放，我想我和小朋友理解音樂種類帶來的情感而衍生的筆觸變化應該不相伯仲。她提及的名畫家我只懂Jackson Pollock，她很震驚，我更震驚原來音樂種類的分維在這位畫家的眼中是如此簡陋，而我只能表示我不能很宏觀地把音樂分類，也刻意避開這看似理所當然但毫無說服力的因果關係，當時我真的只想試試畫畫，我是第一次用油性顏料，無論畫什麼在紙上，轉過頭就會給對面的小孩用紅色顏料潑到。
One of the artists-in-residence was a painter from New York. On the second day of my residency, I joined her painting workshop. Together with some local children and their parents, we listened to music while painting. She explained that Jackson Pollock was always listening to jazz while working, and that was how he acquired the kind of jazz-like free-running quality in his paintings. Whatever it was, I found my brush strokes and the children's were as freely expressive as we were carried along by music. She mentioned several famous painters but Pollock was the only one I knew, and she was rather shocked. But more shocked was I by such a famous painter's simplistic classification of music. I admitted that I found it difficult to categorise music on such a macro scale; I also resisted trying to make sense of such lame causal-relation imposed on freedom and a specific kind of music (jazz). At that moment, all I wanted was to keep painting. It was indeed the first time I had used oil pigments. But whatever I painted on paper, in no time, some kids would "invade" with splashes of red.
One of the artists-in-residence was a painter from New York. On the second day of my residency, I joined her painting workshop. Together with some local children and their parents, we listened to music while painting. She explained that Jackson Pollock was always listening to jazz while working, and that was how he acquired the kind of jazz-like free-running quality in his paintings. Whatever it was, I found my brush strokes and the children's were as freely expressive as we were carried along by music. She mentioned several famous painters but Pollock was the only one I knew, and she was rather shocked. But more shocked was I by such a famous painter's simplistic classification of music. I admitted that I found it difficult to categorise music on such a macro scale; I also resisted trying to make sense of such lame causal-relation imposed on freedom and a specific kind of music (jazz). At that moment, all I wanted was to keep painting. It was indeed the first time I had used oil pigments. But whatever I painted on paper, in no time, some kids would "invade" with splashes of red.
期後我跟在駐留期間認識的新加坡籍藝術家Wei Leng Tay在香港再會面，她來我家吃飯，並跟我父母做了一個關於他們偷渡來港經歷的訪問。
Back in Hong Kong, I reconnected with Singapore artist Wei-Leng Tay. I invited her to my parents' home for dinner, where she also interviewed them about how they came to Hong Kong illegally many years ago.
Back in Hong Kong, I reconnected with Singapore artist Wei-Leng Tay. I invited her to my parents' home for dinner, where she also interviewed them about how they came to Hong Kong illegally many years ago.
(English translation by Linda Lai)
Related Readings 相關閱讀:
Exhibition cloud and orange (nube y naranja) 雲與橙
「據點．句點 海外駐留支援計劃 2019」獲香港特別行政區政府民政事務局藝術發展基金資助。
"Floating Projects Artist Residency Program Outbound | edition 2019" is financially supported by the Arts Development Fund of the Home Affairs Bureau, the Government of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region
"Floating Projects Artist Residency Program Outbound | edition 2019" is financially supported by the Arts Development Fund of the Home Affairs Bureau, the Government of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region
活動內容並不反映香港特別行政區政府的意見。
The content of these activities does not reflect the views of the Government of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region.
The content of these activities does not reflect the views of the Government of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region.