An excerpt from “Abyss-Sphere: Double
Consciousness of Life in the Practice of Women Artists with Chinese
Backgrounds," on The Artnewpaper China Issue 107.
by Asea Zhanglun Dai
Liao Wen, who studied puppetry in Prague,
has a rhythmic grasp of the body based on a surge of force. Her experience in
wood carving gives her a unique sense of touch for wooden bodies. Her wooden
sculptures skillfully combine the physiological rhythms and contours of the
female body with the trunk, antennae, and other parts. The postures and curves,
whether stepping or stretching, express the tension created by the interplay
between the body and mind as if they are wrestling and tearing each other
apart. Fragile gemstones are often embedded in the open parts of the body. Liao
Wen's sculptures are both constrained by forces and exhibit a rhythmic beauty
of articulation, achieved through the movement and connection of joints in the
body.
曾在布拉格学习木偶制作的廖雯对身体有着一种基于力的涌动的节奏性把握，木刻劳作形成她对木质身体 的独到手感。她的木质雕塑将女性身体特有的生理节期
与形体轮廓置入躯干、触角等的巧妙接合，形体或迈步、或屈伸的姿势与弧度表现身心相互角力、撕扯造成 的紧张，身体绽开的部位常嵌坠有晶莹易碎的宝石。廖雯的雕塑既受力的制约，又因这力在躯体的关节运动与衔接中达到一种临界平衡而展现出韵律生动的分节之美 (beauty of articulation)。
节选自《渊界-华人女性艺术家创作中的双重生命意识》
《艺术新闻》（中文版）107期
撰文-戴章伦