Everyone has their own routine. We drink coffee, we buy a newspaper, we drive cars to get to an office or a supermarket ... This is life as we know it. We got used to our comfort and stopped asking ourselves questions if it makes an impact on the life around. Few of us would really think how our day-to-day activities affect the world around us. The Chinese artist Liu Bolin uses his unusual art to draw attention to problems humanity has created through past decades, but still, tend to ignore.
Making himself and other people disappear in the scenery of ordinary life backgrounds, he provokes us to think and possibly remember that every day we leave invisible marks on the world around, destroying the possibility of our own future.
Man develops while destroying his own environment and exploiting himself. The price he has to pay for the splendid civilization is the loss of awareness of his membership in the animal kingdom. Indulging in the development he has achieved, man is in fact digging is own grave with his greed. People require too much from the nature and environment. We will soon realize how tiny we are. Our desire dominates our behaviour. We’ll face a lot of problems in future”.
Liu Bolin
My article of today's is about people, their role in the world and the fact that the person like Liu Bolin can help us to see things from a different angle.
At the first sight, there are ordinary things become the centre of Chinese artist’s photographs. They have store counters, street graffiti, fields of wheat, buildings, a pile of coal… At the same time if you dare to pay more attention to them you will start to see something that is hidden. There is usually man/ women or sometimes several people are hidden. Ironically, it resembles life: you can see something that is hidden if and ONLY you pay attention to it.
“An invisible man” or “Human Chameleon” as people call the artist who often possesses on the photographs himself uses his art to draw people’s attention to society’s issues in his homeland - China as well as around the globe.
I am standing, but there is a silent protest, the protest against the environment for the survival, the protest against the state.
Liu Bolin
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Finding inspiration in China yet addressing the word’s issues
The artist finds inspiration in his homeland - China and a huge part of his photos shows the problems the country where he lives faces. At the same time, globalization made problems of one country the problems of the whole world. Pollution of the environment, social conflicts, products containing toxins, illegal immigration - these are topics of the global community rather than just a separate country issues.
I alone cannot change the world, but I can cast a stone across the waters to create many ripples.
Mother Teresa
It takes about 10 hours for an artist to create every single photograph. He or his models need to stay still most of the time while the preparation is going on. That’s quite an effort I guess. So, the questions are “Why he chooses to camouflage himself despite all struggles?” or “Is there the message behind it?” He answers quite simply:
I chose to camouflage my body into the environment because this way, people will pay more attention to the background's social property, and the meaning of my body disappeared in this environment as an individual.
Liu Bolin
Starting from 2005 the artist and his team along with collaborations with other artists and photographers around the world have created numerous photographs that gain worldwide attention and made him famous. The artist's message remains while the decorations of his photographs changes.
The locations I choose must be strongly referenced to some symbols like politics, environment, culture, etc., that I intend to bring up. In my works, the backgrounds express the most important information, conflicts are caused when my body vanishes in different backgrounds, a reflection of society from my point of view.”
Liu Bolin
There are people who dispute the authorship of his works. They say that camouflage and the photographs themselves are often performed by other people and it is hardly possible to consider the works as entirely author’s work. Liu Bolin only notes that he is the one who creates the idea as well as finding locations, and the fact that many people are involved in the process makes his work even more unique. In addition, he always glad to cooperate with other talented people. Probably, this is the reason for quite a number of collaborative artworks in his portfolio.
I think that in art, an artist’s attitude is the most important element. If an artwork is to touch someone, it must be the result of not only technique, but of the artist’s thinking and struggle in life …
Liu Bolin
A reflection of society: Environment
Environmental problems ranging from air pollution in his hometown Beijing in China to the problems of global warming and oceans pollution - one of the many topics Liu Bolin showing to the world though his art. According to the artist , “humanity has gone far from the Taoist principles at the core of the Chinese Tradition, teaching a sustainable and harmonious relationship between humans and nature.” Source and he hopes that by his works he will make mankind to re-think it again.
One of the problems of Beijing, where the artist live and work is air pollution. Liu Biolin has repeatedly attracted public attention to this issue. His work "The Winter Solstice", used as the main photo in this article above was shot against the background of smog in Beijing in 2015. The work below was also created during a heavy air-solution when smog was covering main part of Beijing reducing the visibility in 2016.
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Bolin’s art is famous outside of China. He travels a lot and creates his new photographs emerging with different backgrounds in different cities in the world. He states that the basis of this process for him is always the inner question: "what will make me invisible here cause people to think?".
A reflection of society: Danger of food we eat
Liu Bolin is one of the few photographers whose works were part of the European Union's "We are what we eat" program, aimed to draw attention to food safety issues. “The United Nations expresses its focus on issues of food safety alongside artists who are able to draw attention to this topic through their artworks.” the official message accompanying the idea of this project stated. And in my opinion, Bolin’s works are really able to show the idea and draw attention to the problems in the food industry extremely well.
First he represented the food safety issues in his home country in China in 2009. He pictured himself against the backdrop of a stand with instant noodles as a call to the fact that each of these products contains chemicals that are harmful to human health. This work made a great impact on consumer behaviour in China as well as in the other countries laying the foundation for his further experiments.
A reflection of society: Social Conflicts
Social issues are also the widespread theme of his creations. Wars, the problems of immigrants, new distribution though various channels, as well as the human rights violations became topics of different world he and his team created.
Being immigrants lying on the sand, for someone they may seem dead; instead my intent is to describe their arrival and the start of their future.
Liu Bolin
Liu believes that one of the most important topics among all is the topic of human rights and community awareness. According to him, "... In China, people have maintained the red-themed uniformity of a lifestyle for a long time, especially common people. They have even injected the uniformity of behavior or thought into their blood. " The artist believes that his work can help them to see and know the difference.
Warning to the future
“I actually am questioning the environment I live in through every single one of my works, so I do not just walk around and take photos in front of random backgrounds.”
Liu Bolin
Can our daily actions become a guarantee to a better future?Can we question the environment we live in? Looking at photos by Liu Bolin one can re-think their actions and the impact they make on the environment and the future.
“I hope my works will act like a warning for my generation and for generations to come”
Liu Bolin
And maybe if we stop hiding in the scenery, and take responsibility for our actions, then the hope of Lui Bolin will come true and perhaps the completely different future will await us.
I support @ecotrain project, which also use #ecotrain. I want to believe that more and more people will start to think about things that help to make the world a better place. (с)@ecotrain. I also hope that more and more writers on Steemit will support the movement started by @eco-alexand @icmultitudes . As I truly believe that we are one and helping others means you are helping yourself.
(c)“Fallen” by Paul Villinski
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(c)Bear by Bordalo II. Piece done in Turin, Italy, 2016
Arthur Bordalo, known as Bordalo II, created his project "Big Trash Animals" to remind us, people, that invisible to us debris significantly affects the life around. Furthermore, we, people should think about it as everyone’s business and prevent the further pollution on the Planet. Better we start it now BEFORE all life around us dies.
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