Fu Liu
Chatswood High School
REMNANTS
Documented Forms
Oil on Canvas, Digital Video/Audio
Memories construct the fundamental building blocks of our identities, yet they are delicately plastic, prone to alteration, ambiguity and their inevitable fade. My body of work, Remnants, explores blissful nostalgia and the melancholic horror of losing our authentic memories. Elina, the main character in the short film, is represented struggling as her disorientating Alzheimer's Disease takes hold. The oil paintings in my work are intended to be Elina's, as if done by her throughout her mental decay. By examining an extreme condition of memory loss, the film and paintings complement each other to communicate the transience and fragility of memory.
My artmaking practice has been influenced by the study and interpretation of the following artists: William Utermohlen, Claude Monet, Charlie Kaufman, Spike Jonze, Leyland James Kirby (The Caretaker), Erik Satie.
Marker's Commentary
This compelling documented form expertly fuses and carefully integrates highly refined painting practice with a dynamic short film to create a central focus based upon the issue of memory loss. The title makes references to the gradual decline in thinking, behaviour and social skills and the distressing and heart-breaking effects of mental degeneration on a woman.
There is an in-depth knowledge of the conventions of narrative film techniques which have been competently ascribed in this conceptually engaging work. The story that unfolds depicts the psychological effects of the disease with expeditious scene transitions that effectively employ dynamic camera angles, switching viewpoints and effective use of close ups. The complex visual references and well scripted plot highlight the prowess of the student in creating a documented form that clearly connects with their real world.
The highly accomplished paintings demonstrate the synergy between the application of oil paint, the rich symbolism in the painting techniques and subject matter representing concepts from the film. The paintings become excerpts from the film and challenge the audience to see behind outward appearances to examine inner thoughts and reflect on the narrative. The artist meshes aspects of the past and present, and brings the private terrain of the inner world to visualisation.