INTERVIEW WITH Mr. WEJ WEJ
The persona created for this interview, is Mr. Wej Wej and is a totally fictional character.
This interview is a number of questions unanswered which will make the reader or viewer wonder and maybe also think what he likes, so its really a kind of game . while wondering about serious otherwise issues that are happening around and in our lives at the moment.
So, let us begin
.. Mr. Wej Wej
1. How come you are so interested in the refugees in Greece How about the floods in your own country? Aren't they inspiring to you? And do you believe that dramatic events should be used by artists and how?
2. To your understanding, since you are Chinese, what drove those countries toward western Europe and not toward China? Since the maps show a distance..if not .. similar yet not totally irrelevant ?
Is western capitalism safer that eastern chinese communism?
3. You said you don't care about aesthetics, but the lotus flowers on the water at an old European palace have a fling toward beauty, it looks like aesthetics have won you after all, as for the construction it looks like the life jackets are well handled so you beautify a horrible event and make sure you make solid a fragile dramatic experience that these people the refugees had? You seem to have forgotten in the process the element of pain, its like you left it behind!, or used the shells of life jackets leaving the 'snails refugees to their fate.
The wrapped up ancient looking columns again in Europe are better, they are awful looking enough, hopefully it was your intention yet that is doubtful.
My personal struggle around the aesthetics of art on my website....
Commenting on 5a and 5b.
4. And now, if you allow me, I feel the need to ask you something more personal.
I read that you said in a real enough for me interview that it shouldn't matter to an artist whether he is successful or not, whether he makes money or not, that this fact has nothing to do with the art itself, and I feel relief and joy from that cause personally I never made a dime.
So what I understand, the issue of money and success is only about systems,
So the question is, what happened and you found yourself in a stream of a system?
And how did you allow yourself to do it, since you also carry a certain ideology, unless it is a system matching your activist's ideology but still bringing you money and fame.
Seems like you have found the perfect combination!
5. Mr. Wej Wej, I hear you keep saying that except of only an artist, you are also an activist.
can you define the term, what in your knowledge and experience is actually an activist?
is it someone who initiates actions in order to help people in suffering conditions, usually through the misdeed of others?
or do you believe that the word activist holds a different or further meaning than the one described in the Merriam Webster dictionary?
So. I will give briefly the definition of activism given by the Webster and then you may tell us what you need to add.
... ' a doctrine or practice that emphasizes direct vigorous action especially in support of or opposition to one side of a controversial issue'..
needless to say that you are applying your activism on the side of the claims of the refugees to be allowed to make their way to Europe, right?
6. And this brings me to the next question I would like to pose to you:
which of your actions so far, (to your understanding), show an activism from your part?
7. I have tackled the issue of activism in a way that also the viewers may give it some thought and even (why not), explore the subject and see where they stand for themselves.
For instance, me, I am an artist as I have declared through 'commenting on' or my website http://myartinaction.yolasite.com/, but what I have never said was how much of an activist I am
I feel I am an activist, but up to now I haven't done something to show to the world as my work of activism, other than once giving a work of mine to people, allowing them to express themselves by painting on its surfaces, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3i2PhdF8AKE then I was devastated cause the paint wasn't exactly washable by water as I was reassured. Also I give ten euros a month to Greenpeace without always following what they are doing, but yet I am always interested.
I am going now to my island of origin, Lesvos where the refugees that survive the sea journey from Turnkey show up and I thought it would be good to get encouraged by another activist -artist, inspired and even guided in a sense, and then once I am there, maybe I will figure out what to do or maybe I will do nothing. I hope your answers to my questions will help me.
Please let me now ask you a subquestion:
Is it considered activiism the giving away of clothes to people in need through a church for instance, and if yes what is the difference between your activism and that simple gesture?
So I think now it is time to move on and throw some light on the you as an artist.
7a .. here I have two questions for you the one is again concerning your activism but in relation to your art, does your activism go first, takes you where you see suffering and injustice, and then you happen to also make some art on the side, , since you cant stop youtself, (you are an artist after all), or is it the other way around,?
you just go where your intuition tells you to and if some activism is required you might find you self throwing in some paintstrokes of that too, ?
there could also be that your activism and art go hand in hand whatever the consequences of that would be
7b .and the second question is, does the criticism you received in Europe about what you did with your art inspired by and using what you found in the front line where you went, concerning the problem of refugees, does that criticism made you regret where your art led you, and making it more general,
does critisism of any kind affect your art?
and if not, how do you manage to overcome an issue like that? please I need you to answer that for the sake also of our viewers artists having similar problems.
I won't go into me criticizing the art you produced cause that is not what I do, except I may say it reminded me of Christo 's recent work in Italy, 'walking piers', only in a smaller scale and less useful. On the Christo project people walked on the floating corridor and an island was connected to the shore, while yours was just beautiful to watch and I have some doubts about the quality of beauty involved here.
maybe that's exactly your message, that beauty looked from afar (lotus flowers shapes on water, but if you go closer there is suffering misery life risking (element of life jàckets).
So, to complete this interview I will show two pictures of you,
one when I first mett you long ago
And the other is more recent
and also I would like to ask you to stand here so we .can have a picture together
only one more thing
what's going to be your next project?
wrapping the emperor s palace in Japan with radioactive materials from the accident in the nuclear energy producing factory years ago, or some project in space? or an activist action on the cinic wall?
thank you for your time and I hope our readers or viewers will have enough material to stir up their thoughts.
The interview will be live shortly as "commenting on 6" on my website
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