Still Life 02 - Orchid, Wu Chi-Tsung

In this video piece, the artist represents the passing of time with a slow-moving flower. The video subverts speed and slows time allowing viewers to pace their breathing and even meditate in front of the work. Stand in front of this work and feel your body relax as time slows while still allowing for movement and progress. Thus, you can and take time to relax while still feeling productive. Try imaging the smell of the orchid and the silent peace it brings.
Thanks to students in MUSE 301 Ashley Aranda, Brett Doze, and Mika Schrader

In traditional ink painting, orchids were a favored subject because the long leaves and slender flowers were ideal for showcasing the expressive skill of an ink master. In Wu’s evocation of these paintings through the medium of video, he carefully orchestrates the passage of time, creating images that confront and even subvert speed, giving rise to a different velocity of seeing than is typically associated with film. We are meant to not only view the orchid and the stillness of its life, but also to adjust our eyes to Wu’s subtlety, which slows us down from a rushed pace to the steady rhythms of nature.

In traditional ink painting, orchids were a favored subject because the long leaves and slender flowers were ideal for showcasing the expressive skill of an ink master. In Wu’s evocation of these paintings through the medium of video, he carefully orchestrates the passage of time, creating images that confront and even subvert speed, giving rise to a different velocity of seeing than is typically associated with film. We are meant to not only view the orchid and the stillness of its life, but also to adjust our eyes to Wu’s subtlety, which slows us down from a rushed pace to the steady rhythms of nature.

This video demands sustained looking. A seemingly static projection twitches and moves with subtle life as a milky white fluid, much like a morning fog, slowly envelops an elegantly poised Chinese orchid. In traditional ink painting, orchids were a favored subject because the long leaves and slender flowers were ideal for showcasing the expressive skill of an ink master. Wu Chi-Tsung’s work evokes the deliberate, studied observation that was fundamental to the painting’s creation.

In all of his work, Wu carefully orchestrates the passage of time, creating images that confront and even subvert speed, giving rise to a different velocity of seeing than is typically associated with film. We are meant to not only view the orchid and the stillness of its life, but also to realign our eyes, adjusting to Wu’s subtlety, which slows us down from a quickening pace to the steady rhythms of nature. The viewer’s experience which is far from the confines of what he describes as the “Crystal City”-the place where electronic equipment, programs, networks, media and information reside, and in which we live each and every day.

This video demands sustained looking. A seemingly static projection twitches and moves with subtle life as a milky white fluid, much like a morning fog, slowly envelops an elegantly poised Chinese orchid. In traditional ink painting, orchids were a favored subject because the long leaves and slender flowers were ideal for showcasing the expressive skill of an ink master. Wu Chi-Tsung’s work evokes the deliberate, studied observation that was fundamental to the painting’s creation.

In all of his work, Wu carefully orchestrates the passage of time, creating images that confront and even subvert speed, giving rise to a different velocity of seeing than is typically associated with film. We are meant to not only view the orchid and the stillness of its life, but also to realign our eyes, adjusting to Wu’s subtlety, which slows us down from a quickening pace to the steady rhythms of nature. The viewer’s experience which is far from the confines of what he describes as the “Crystal City”-the place where electronic equipment, programs, networks, media and information reside, and in which we live each and every day.