體驗式藝術：秩序的迷霧 (Experiential Art: The Fog of Order)
體驗式藝術是一種讓觀賞者在創作者的安排中遨遊、感受精心設計的流動的藝術形式。這種藝術使觀賞者彷彿被環境纏繞著，身心交融，時間和空間休戚與共，使觀賞和創作的界線模糊的閃爍。
近期我觀看了一場當代的體驗式藝術表演，這引發了我對藝術觀賞認知主體轉換的思考，想與大家分享。該表演由兩位女性藝術家呈現，花了半個鐘頭的時間在肚子上塗滿紅色的印泥，然後將這些印泥拓印在很大的紙上，再撕得又長又大，最後將長長的紙掛在身上，接著趴在地上吹著形狀怪異的陶笛。整個表演過程長達一小時。
坦白說，這場表演讓我感到困惑且無聊，但同時也引發了許多思考。這種觀賞體驗類似軍事體驗結合宗教儀式，讓人感受到一種權力關係。在這種場合，觀賞者很難表達對表演內容不理解的感受，也不方便提前離開，因此被限制在當下。表演的晦澀難懂和冗長讓我感到尷尬，不過這種無聊卻讓我不確定是否是藝術家刻意營造的氛圍。
這場表演讓我思考著是否只要把事情加上藝術的標籤，就能抹去尷尬。或者，這些尷尬都是表演的一部分，我們在回顧時就不會感到尷尬。也可能是我們對表演空間的尷尬感受應該有一些責任，這也讓我思考著尷尬感從何而來。
數位科技的發展使得我們對於打破界線的概念越來越清楚。作品空間與觀賞者的邊界模糊成為當代藝術的一部分，作品也不再僅是呈現一個已經完成的世界。藝術家更注重觀眾的體驗，讓他們知道還有許多未知的空間可以參與。
在這樣的藝術體驗中，我們需要思考主體是誰。我們能觀察的對象只有我們自己，或者是不同層面的主題，像是社會或群體的關係。這些認知不斷交互，影響著我們的觀賞體驗。
因此，體驗式藝術的精髓在於這種思考和主體性的交互。在那段無聊的時間裡，它給予我更多的思考。這樣的思考，就是藝術所撐開的一個空間，讓我有機會去探索和認知藝術的本質。藝術表演不僅僅是創作者給予觀賞者的，它是一種共同創造的空間。這種交互性和思考性讓體驗式藝術更加有趣且具有豐富的討論價值。
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Experiential art is a form of art that allows viewers to wander in the arrangement of the creators, feeling the intricately designed flow, as if their minds and bodies are intertwined with the environment. Time and space become intertwined, blurring the boundaries between viewing and creating, creating a flickering experience.
In the 14th episode of my podcast, “Social Travel Diary,” I talked about this art form, known as experiential art. Experiential art often takes the form of performance art or multimedia art, such as AR, VR, and XR, creating a space where people can immerse themselves for a brief period. The experience may change due to the arrangement of the creators or interactions from the viewers.
I wanted to share this experience because recently, I attended a contemporary art performance presented by two female artists. They spent half an hour covering their bellies with red ink and then stamped these imprints on a large piece of paper. Afterwards, they tore the paper into long strips and hung them on their bodies, proceeding to lie on the ground and play oddly shaped flutes for almost an hour.
To be honest, I didn’t quite understand the performance, and I found it rather boring. However, in my boredom, I had numerous thoughts. Experiencing this form of art felt like a combination of military training and religious ritual, creating a sense of power dynamics. In such a setting, it was inconvenient to express my lack of understanding or leave when everyone else was focused on the performance, making me feel trapped in that space.
Moreover, the entire performance felt awkward — not because of their actions per se, but because of its obscure and convoluted nature. It was like watching Latin, French, or German, languages I don’t understand at all. The lack of comprehension, coupled with minimal visual changes due to the prolonged actions, made it even more tedious.
This boredom permeated the space, leaving me unsure if it was an intentional atmosphere created by the artists or not. I wondered if the art would no longer feel awkward if everything was labeled as art. Or perhaps, it simply couldn’t escape awkwardness, and the artists might claim that this awkwardness was part of the art experience itself.
Contemplating these questions led me to search for information about experiential art. Traditional art performances often assume a completed and orderly world, directly presenting a worldview through actions, gestures, and information, such as in movies or animations. However, in this digital age, the importance of information has risen, making it a dominant concept.
As a result, the idea of a completed worldview is no longer a prerequisite. It may gradually form during the event, and viewers might assume certain worldviews based on actions or guidance from directors and writers, only to have them shattered later on. In this meta-game, artists and viewers engage in a cat-and-mouse chase, where the artists create something viewers might think they already understand, but later reveal an unexpected twist.
Many installation and spatial arts, as well as audio and light arts, emphasize the blurring of boundaries between the work, space, creators, and viewers. For instance, the heartbeat literature society’s Meta game breaks the fourth wall, reading the user’s file manager and addressing them by their name during the game. The player feels immersed and engaged in the interaction, blurring the line between observer and creator.
Experiential art serves as the foundational structure of culture for contemporary audiences, fostering basic competencies in discussions, explorations, and interpretations of various levels and dimensions. Understanding different social organizations and hierarchies, such as empires, nations, communities, organizations, intimate relationships, families, and schools, shapes our worldview, revealing the workings of different spaces.
During this exploration, I pondered the concept of the subject, where our observations are limited to ourselves or different levels of themes, such as social or group relationships. These constant interactions influence our viewing experience.
Thus, the essence of experiential art lies in this type of thinking and interactive subjectivity. In that seemingly boring time, it provided me with more profound reflections. This kind of thinking, enabled by art, creates a space where I can explore and understand the nature of art. Art performance is not merely what the creators give the viewers; it is a co-created space. This interactivity and thoughtfulness make experiential art even more intriguing and intellectually stimulating.
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