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Room (2) Walk
2022-2023
Single-channel HD video, color, sound
16 minutes 25 seconds

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In this film, Yao Qingmei is captivated by the rhythmic leg movements of a professionalswing dancer (Jean-Charles). He deploys all the ways of walking that his large body allowsin this small, narrow hotel room. When his energy is exhausted and he needs a rest, thedancer reclines on a narrow sofa. He abandons the theatrical expressions of his body,usually so well mastered, to maintain a slumped posture. He must imagine his body as aroom, into which someone enters through his fingers. The movement begins with subtle,almost imperceptible actions at his fingertips, this pulsation spreading throughout hiselongated body, traversed from within. In a close-up of his face, the dancer gradually movesfrom involuntary jerks to increasingly exaggerated grimaces. Yao Qingmei maintains anambiguous identity; the costumes suggest a business traveler within the norms, and thena man driven by rhythm emerges.

 

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«Room» series

In « Room «, Yao Qingmei collaborateswith five contemporary dancers andperformers, gathered successively in thesame standardized hotel room to explorethe space. All have different physiques,genders, ages and skin tones, andpractice different types of dance. YaoQingmei maintains the diversity of thedancers’ profiles, subtly capturing theindividuality of each and guiding theirphysical expressions, urging them toexplore the various angles of an enclosedspace. These experiences are born of the artist’spersonal observations and perceptionsof the details of the hotel room during hisisolation in 2021 in Shanghai. Yao seeksan empathetic physical experiencedrawn from the improvisations of bodiesin the «room». This place refers notonly to a confined space, but also to apsychological one. This video seriesis the most reality-related part of the«mole» exhibition, a true testament tothe physical expression of dancers inan enclosed space, where the freedom,agility and diversity of the bodiesthemselves transcend the physical limitsof space and stereotypes.

Room "Flesh"

肉, Chair

Room "Rub"

拭, Frotter

Room "Observ"

观, Observer

Room "Walk"

行, Marcher

Room "Wrap"

裹, Draper

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