by Louis K Wang
Sometime the simplicity may be the most powerful message which leaves a strong impression on the brain and evokes memories affectionately from time to time. Just like an attractive flower in the field.
I recall the time when I was studying computer graphics in the CGI Lab on Long Island, New York. It is my first time to play with a tablet pen to draw something. What should I draw with this new digital tool? I was pondering. Suddenly a image of a flower popping up in my mind. So I made that imagery in my mind come true. That’s a big mouth flower growing out of a ball-like root enclosed in a square crystal. It was a evidence of my surreal idea.
Decades later, I found this kind of similarity in the latest works of French artist NIKO DE LA FAYE. Once again, a similar impressive and exotic flower opened in a grass field. According to his description, this is the continuation of his early creative concept when he was 16 years old in 1994. In 2013, he came up an idea with friends to made 12 sets of “A Flower” costumes for a collective performance in one of the “driest” location of the capital, the financial district, La Défense. However, due to a new job opportunity in San Francisco, he had to leave, with A Flower costume, to continue his flower life on the street.
In 2020, for the pandemic and lockdown, many offline activities could not carry out. He got the chance to play A Flower again near his hometown, in a meadow near the pastoral land of his ancestors. In the early morning sunshine, he will let the exotic flowers breathe freely and feel the existence significance of interaction with nature. On the current world attention of eco-system resilience, it is a fantastic and funny cool performance art to people. Can you get this lucky strike, subconsciously?
Here is the brief from Niko about his work::
Who has never thought about changing skin, to become a cat or an eagle just for a moment, to release all constraints from our lives and to experiment a new feeling? ‘A flower’ can see, but it doesn’t talk. ‘A Flower’ is simply there to feel the space around it and to interact with its environment only through its presence.
It is said that the ancient shaman master can experience the pulse of the world through all creatures, such as flying to see from above through the eyes of eagles. Now, young people of Z generation can surf the world of virtual reality via Internet, playing various forms of beings by roles of online games. However, none of them are related to the natural ecology.
A Flower project can be practiced in many corners of cities, offering funny cool stuffs of interactive experience to visitors from different cultural backgrounds. It is an aspiring project to get social interaction. Here are some feedback so far.
« A FLOWER CAN SEE,
BUT IT DOES NOT SPEAK.
IT IS SIMPLY THERE
TO FEEL THE SPACE
THAT SURROUNDS IT
AND TO INTERACT WITH
ITS ENVIRONMENT ONLY
THROUGH ITS PRESENCE.
One of them was the reaction of two young girls who read a brief introduction at the location.The youngest questioned A Flower directly: « Why do you do this ? ».
The other girl turned right away to her and said: « A Flower does not speak ».
In the noosphere, there are many different forms of information that can overcome language barrier. Meanwhile, in this age of 5G and AI, the world may need some heuristic art experience. Do you like selfie or love to play online games? Maybe you can try to do creation of this kind with French artist Niko to express yourselves in the way of contemporary art and interactive nature. That will be a much more interesting and memorable outdoor exercise.
Here is the official website of his works and concept. Welcome to have a visit!
If you are interested in the creative process of this cool artist, you can visit his website to study the original concept, or participate in his project.
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