Heaven+-+Yao+Jui+Chung

Heaven by Yao Jui Chung
This image is obtained from Yao Jui Chung's [|official website]

Title: Heaven Artist: Yao Jui Chung (姚瑞中, Yao Ruizhong) Date: 2001 Period: Contemporary Country of Origin: The Republic of China Cultural/Ethnic Affiliation: Taiwanese Medium: Photography/Installation Art ( black & white photographs with gold leaf laid and gilded frames ; copper tubing ; LCD monitor ) Dimensions: 900×360×500 cm Museum/Collection: [|The Patricia and Phillip Frost Art Museum], "Taiwan Discovered: In Place and Time" Accession Number: Unknown Current Location and Manner of Display: The Patricia and Phillip Frost Art Museum, Florida International University, Miami, Florida Provenance: Owned by Shanghai Duolun Museum of Modern Art, 2005 ; Sold by [|Sotheby's Auction House], New York on September 17th, 2008
 * Artwork Identification**

With a specialization in photography and installation art, Yao Jui Chung has become a world famous Taiwanese artist. His installation pieces focus on Taiwan's historical past and the theme of a "cold reality." //Heaven// is part of a series of installation pieces that revolves around this theme. The other works are titled //[|Barbarians Celestine]// and //[|Savage Paradise],// where large gold dinosaurs replace the suspended helmet seen in //Heaven.// As seen in these works, Chung reinterprets Taiwan's struggle with cultural identity by adding a touch of absurdity. He is quoted as saying, "The historical destiny of humanity has a certain incurable absurdity" (Yeh, 2007). His work //Liberation of Taiwan//, created in 2007, is a political statement depicting him dressed as a Chinese soldier in front of well-known Taiwanese landmarks. Chung is in a mid-jump pose, making it appear he is floating and adding to the absurdity of the image. His works are bold, unique, and constantly push the boundaries between reality and fantasy. Chung works not only as an artist but also as a curator, critic, and teacher. He currently resides in Taiwan and teaches at the [|Taipei National University of the Arts] and [|National Taiwan Normal University]. He has participated in numerous group and solo exhibitions across the world, and his works continue to attract a large audience.
 * Introduction**

This expansive photography installation is comprised of fifteen black and white photographs. The photographs are positioned next to one another in three rows with five images in each row. Gold leaf is laid over top, and each photograph is encased in a gilded fiberglass wood frame. From the photographs, fifteen spiraling copper tubes stretch approximately five hundred centimeters to the brass helmet. Inside the helmet there is a small LCD monitor playing a fifty-two minute video of travel through a wormhole. The helmet is suspended at eye level so that viewers can easily place their head inside. The photographs were taken over two years in Taiwan. Imagery in the work includes broken sculptures, dinosaurs, dragons, and buildings in ruins. The copper tubing connects to either the eyes, mouth, or other sensory organs of the figures in each photograph.
 * Descriptive Analysis**

A reflection on the cold alienated past of Taiwan, //Heaven// shows an isolated world that is not unusual for the Taiwanese. Taiwan has struggled with alienation from the rest of the world, and in 1997 this isolation became apparent. In 1997, dockworkers in Liverpool, England went on strike and refused to unload the cargo of the //Neptune Jade// (Tan, 2009)//.// The ship sailed across the globe from California to Japan trying to find a dock that would unload its cargo. In an effort to show unity with the Liverpool dockworkers, the international docks refused to unload the cargo from the //Neptune Jade.// The ship then sailed to the Kaohsiung dock in Taiwan where dockworkers were unaware of this global issue and willingly unloaded the cargo (Tan, 2009). Taiwanese artist Chen Chieh-jen recreated this incident in the 2006 piece //[|The Route].// The piece is a twenty minute long black and white silent film. In //The Route// Chieh-jen combines actual film footage from the event with new, staged footage of a picket line at the Kaohsiung dock in Taiwan. Chieh-jen brings to light Taiwan's political isolation in this piece, while Chung takes a more figurative approach.
 * Formal/Contextual Analysis**

Installation View from //The Route// by Chen Chieh-jen (2006) <[]>

The isolation and destruction seen in //Heaven// is used to show the false, "cold reality" that Taiwan has become known for. Yao Jui Chung has evolved the tradition of Asian landscape paintings into a world with fake golden skies. Chung creates a world that possesses both fake and real qualities by using actual photographs and creating a foreign sense of space with little perspective. This gives the viewer a sense of uneasiness or fear of the unknown. Adding to the unknown is video of a wormhole playing inside the brass helmet. A wormhole is a hypothetical entity that allows travel from one place in time to another. In //Heaven// it is used as symbolism, connecting the person's mind to the images through the copper pipes. In a video from February 2010 at the Patricia and Phillip Frost Art Museum, Chung is seen explaining the helmet and imagery. Click [|here] to view the video clip from the exhibition, and an excerpt of the wormhole video. He explains that the helmet and tubing connect us to the photographs which are only illusions of the mind, further emphasizing the contrast between reality and fantasy.

All of the photographs are duplicates of the original, and the originals have all been destroyed. Chung states, "These mass-produced duplicates all come from one original, but the original has been destroyed, so we can only use the imitations to understand reality" (The Viewing of Contemporary Art in Taiwan, 2006). Chung later states that the dinosaurs and dragons are symbols for the beasts that reside within ourselves. He concludes this with saying, "As the spirit briefly escapes from reality into the ephemeral realms that these creations inhabit, humanity yields to our underlying yearnings and an image is no longer simply an image. It permeates all creative domains, all new artistic languages and world outlooks. And it is just a starting point, where a new heaven awaits us, even if it is not the real one" (The Viewing of Contemporary Art in Taiwan, 2006). Chung explores the realm of a false reality, and through this he creates a world that is both uncomfortable and profound.

I found the vast amount of symbolism throughout the artwork very interesting. When first viewing this piece, I was attracted to the overall golden glow and the perplexing helmet attached to the tentacle-like tubes. Upon further investigation I realized that the piece had important meaning to Taiwan's history. It can also be applied to anywhere in the world today, with the confusion of what is real and what is fake in society. In today's world there is little distinction between originals and copies, making it hard to perceive the world around us. Yao Jui Chung brings this characteristic to actual form in //Heaven//. The images are bizarre and dreamlike, even though they are sparingly enhanced. At first when I looked at the individual images on his [|official website] I thought they were rough and unappealing, but now I find a certain beauty in their imagery and meaning. Chung created a piece that is both visually and intellectually appealing, while staying true to the difficult past of Taiwan.
 * Personal Interpretations**


 * References**
 * **Online Sources**
 * "Artworks of Yao Jui Chung." 2007.[] : Site dedicated to art information, events and auctions.
 * "Contemporary Asian Art."[| http://www.sothebys.com/app/live/lot/LotDetail.jsp?lot_id=159481471] : Sotheby's is a reputable art auction house in New York. This is a link to the page that shows the details of the auction for Yao Jui Chung's //Heaven//.
 * "Taipei National University of the Arts." [] : Official website for the Taipei National University of the Arts.
 * Tan, Eugene. "Resistance at the Margins: Chen Chieh-jen." 2009.[|http://www.cacsa.org.au/cvapsa/2009/10_bs_38_4/Tan38_4.pdf] : Web page exploring some of Chen Chieh-jen's major artworks and the themes behind them.
 * "Tate Liverpool Biennial." 2006.[] : Site dedicated to the Liverpool Biennial of 2006, a contemporary visual arts festival.
 * "The Viewing of Contemporary Art in Taiwan." 2006.[] : Museum dedicated to the promotion of Taiwanese artists. This is a link to Yao Jui Chung's profile.
 * "Yao Jui Chung." []: The artist's official website which includes pictures and descriptions of the artist and his works.
 * Yeh, Diana. "Comic Crusades." 2007.[] : Site dedicated to the promotion of modern European artists. Yao Jui Chung also resides in London and displays his work in Western Europe. This is a link to his profile.
 * **Printed Sources**
 * Adams, Laurie S. //Art Across Time, The Fourteenth Century to the Present.// Third ed. II, Emily Barrosse. New York: McGraw-Hill, 2007 (pg. 868 and 959). Looks at western and non-western art from the past and present. Segment on modern Chinese art and the influence from Europe.
 * Arnason and Mansfield,//The History of Modern Art.// Sixth ed. Nicola Hodgson. London: Laurence King Publishing Ltd, 2010 (pg. 729-732). Discusses the beginning of installation and western art in the postmodern world.
 * Kikuchi, Yuko. //Refracted modernity: visual culture and identity in colonial Taiwan.// University of Hawaii Press, 2007. Discusses Taiwan's visual arts and the modernization of Taiwan.


 * Lesson Title **: Creating False Realities
 * Target: **4th grade
 * Time: ** 9 50 minute class periods

This lesson meets National Arts Education Standards (Visual Arts): NA-VA.K-4.1: Understanding and applying media, techniques, and processes (2, 3). NA-VA.K-4.2: Using knowledge of structures and functions (2). NA-VA.K-4.3: Choosing and evaluating a range of subject matter, symbols, and ideas (1,3). NA-VA.K-4.4: Understanding the visual arts in relation to history and cultures (1). NA-VA.K-4.5: Reflecting upon and assessing the characteristics and merits of their work and the work of others (4).
 * Standards: **

 This lesson meets Technology Standards: 1. Creativity and Innovation a,b ( 2, 3) <span style="font-family: 'Verdana','sans-serif';">2. Communication and Collaboration b,d (3) <span style="font-family: 'Verdana','sans-serif';">3. Research and Information Fluency b,c (3) <span style="font-family: 'Verdana','sans-serif';">5. Digital Citizenship a,b (4)

<span style="font-family: 'Verdana','sans-serif';">**<span style="font-family: 'Verdana','sans-serif';">Central Concept: ** <span style="font-family: 'Verdana','sans-serif';">Reality versus Fantasy: the state of how things actually exist versus the creation of the imagination. Yao Jui Chung’s art often addresses the idea of false reality that the Taiwanese people often face because their isolated political state from the world. The work “Heaven” addresses this concept in it’s imagery with its skewed perspective and the video of a wormhole playing in the helmet.

<span style="font-family: 'Verdana','sans-serif';">Activity 1: Art History Review: False Reality, 1 class period. <span style="font-family: 'Verdana','sans-serif';">This activity will serve as an introduction to the lesson. The teacher will start out by asking the students what fiction means and have a short discussion about different types of fiction such as fantasy and surrealism. The teacher will use PowerPoint or a virtual museum (a museum which has collections that are able to be viewed online) to compile images that have to do with false reality or reality versus fantasy, such as artworks by Dali and other surrealists, and Hieronymus Bosch’s //<span style="font-family: 'Verdana','sans-serif';">Garden of Earthly Delights //. The teacher will use these artworks to introduce the idea of false reality to the students, focusing on the subject matter of the surrealist works, as they can be quite complicated. The last slide will be of //<span style="font-family: 'Verdana','sans-serif';">Heaven // by Yao Jui Chung where the teacher will go more in depth with the artwork and culture of the artist. Students will be able to discuss the artworks using Visual Thinking Strategies and the Iconological/ Iconographic approach using sticky notes to point out any questions they have about the subject matter and ask any questions they have. They can then stick these sticky notes to the screen where the image is being projected and the teacher can answer the questions. Students can also use iSketch on the iPad for interactive discussion for these artworks.
 * <span style="font-family: 'Verdana','sans-serif';">Lesson Activities: **

<span style="font-family: 'Verdana','sans-serif';">Activity 2: Group Brainstorming, 1.5 class periods <span style="font-family: 'Verdana','sans-serif';">The teacher will start out with reviewing the artworks in the previous class. Students will be briefly introduced to activity three and will be explained to that they are being put into diverse groups by the teacher to brainstorm for that activity. Students will be asked what a false reality is and how a false reality is created. Groups will then brainstorm, plan an idea together, and produce a sketch of what they came up with to answer the questions. Groups can have the option of interacting traditionally or using Lore (a social networking site like facebook designed for academic use) or Celly (a text messaging application with networks that can be created virtually anywhere) to do their initial brainstorming. Groups will use the website FlockDraw or Voicethread to do collaborative drawings of their ideas.

<span style="font-family: 'Verdana','sans-serif';">Activity 3: False Reality Collage, 5 class periods <span style="font-family: 'Verdana','sans-serif';">Students will represent their own false reality by making a 2D artwork using magazine pages, pictures their parents let them have, images from the Internet or images they scan, and their own drawings. Students can scan images if they like if they can not cut them out, if the images came from a book for example. <span style="font-family: 'Verdana','sans-serif';">1. Students will first be asked what they know about reality and fiction. Students will brainstorm as a class the different aspects of false reality and the teacher will list them on the board. <span style="font-family: 'Verdana','sans-serif';">2. Students will be asked to create a dreamlike environment that represents a false reality from the materials provided. The project will require using real and imaginative imagery and students make use of technology by scanning images or using Google to find images. <span style="font-family: 'Verdana','sans-serif';">3. The teacher (beforehand) will make videos demonstrating various collage techniques that students can watch outside or inside the classroom based on what technique they choose to use.

<span style="font-family: 'Verdana','sans-serif';">Activity 4: Informal Critique, 1.5 class periods. <span style="font-family: 'Verdana','sans-serif';">Students will either have their work documented at the end of the last class or the beginning of this class, depending on when they finish. The teacher will then create a PowerPoint of student images and project them on the screen. After talking about and commenting respectfully on other peoples work, students will be allowed to talk about each others pieces, what they like and what could be improved. The finished artworks can then be put up on the class website where they can be viewed by the parents and community. Students can also use this documentation in their art podfolios. A podfolio is a mix of a podcast and a portfolio, in which students can upload their artworks and then talk about them and post them to the web. This can be helpful for anyone who would like to know more about the work, and can give more diverse opportunities for critique.

<span style="font-family: 'Verdana','sans-serif';">**Activity 1:** Art Review: False Realities (Participation) <span style="font-family: 'Verdana','sans-serif';">**Activity 4:** Critique (Participation) <span style="font-family: 'Verdana','sans-serif';">All activities will be combined to form the final grade, which will be out of 30 points.
 * <span style="font-family: 'Verdana','sans-serif';">Assessment: **
 * **<span style="font-family: 'Verdana','sans-serif';">Grade ** || **<span style="font-family: 'Verdana','sans-serif';">Criteria ** ||
 * <span style="display: block; font-family: Verdana,sans-serif; text-align: center;">0 || <span style="font-family: 'Verdana','sans-serif';">Absent. ||
 * <span style="display: block; font-family: Verdana,sans-serif; text-align: center;">1 || * <span style="font-family: 'Verdana','sans-serif';">Infrequent participation in discussion. ||
 * <span style="display: block; font-family: Verdana,sans-serif; text-align: center;">2 || * <span style="font-family: 'Verdana','sans-serif';">Describes but does not attempt to analyze or interpret artworks.
 * <span style="font-family: 'Verdana','sans-serif';">Responses do not show thought behind them. ||
 * <span style="display: block; font-family: Verdana,sans-serif; text-align: center;">3 || * <span style="font-family: 'Verdana','sans-serif';">Offers interpretations and analysis of artworks to discussion.
 * <span style="font-family: 'Verdana','sans-serif';">Shows some thought in responses. ||
 * <span style="display: block; font-family: Verdana,sans-serif; text-align: center;">4 || * <span style="font-family: 'Verdana','sans-serif';">Offers analysis, synthesis, and evaluation of artworks.
 * <span style="font-family: 'Verdana','sans-serif';">Shows well thought out responses. ||
 * <span style="font-family: 'Verdana','sans-serif';">Activity 2: **<span style="font-family: 'Verdana','sans-serif';">Group Brainstorming (Participation)
 * **<span style="font-family: 'Verdana','sans-serif';">Grade ** || **<span style="font-family: 'Verdana','sans-serif';">Criteria ** ||
 * <span style="display: block; font-family: Verdana,sans-serif; text-align: center;">0 || <span style="font-family: 'Verdana','sans-serif';">Does not participate. ||
 * <span style="display: block; font-family: Verdana,sans-serif; text-align: center;">1-3 || * <span style="font-family: 'Verdana','sans-serif';"> Does not participate much in brainstorming
 * <span style="font-family: 'Verdana','sans-serif';"> does not acknowledge directions ||
 * <span style="display: block; font-family: Verdana,sans-serif; text-align: center;">3-5 || * <span style="font-family: 'Verdana','sans-serif';">Shows effort in brainstorming
 * <span style="font-family: 'Verdana','sans-serif';">follows all directions ||
 * <span style="display: block; font-family: Verdana,sans-serif; text-align: center;">6-8 || * <span style="font-family: 'Verdana','sans-serif';">Shows good effort in brainstorming
 * <span style="font-family: 'Verdana','sans-serif';">makes use of technology ||
 * <span style="display: block; font-family: Verdana,sans-serif; text-align: center;">9-10 || * <span style="font-family: 'Verdana','sans-serif';">Contributes to ideas of the group
 * <span style="font-family: 'Verdana','sans-serif';">demonstrates care in completing project
 * <span style="font-family: 'Verdana','sans-serif';">makes full use of technology ||
 * <span style="font-family: 'Verdana','sans-serif';">Activity 3: **<span style="font-family: 'Verdana','sans-serif';">False Reality Collage (Art-making)
 * **<span style="font-family: 'Verdana','sans-serif';">Grade ** || **<span style="font-family: 'Verdana','sans-serif';">Criteria ** ||
 * <span style="display: block; font-family: Verdana,sans-serif; text-align: center;">0 || <span style="font-family: 'Verdana','sans-serif';">Does not complete assignment. ||
 * <span style="display: block; font-family: Verdana,sans-serif; text-align: center;">1-3 || * <span style="font-family: 'Verdana','sans-serif';"> Does not follow directions
 * <span style="font-family: 'Verdana','sans-serif';"> does not use technology
 * <span style="font-family: 'Verdana','sans-serif';">piece not finished
 * <span style="font-family: 'Verdana','sans-serif';"> minimal effort ||
 * <span style="display: block; font-family: Verdana,sans-serif; text-align: center;">4-6 || * <span style="font-family: 'Verdana','sans-serif';"> Follows directions
 * <span style="font-family: 'Verdana','sans-serif';"> minimal use of technology ||
 * <span style="display: block; font-family: Verdana,sans-serif; text-align: center;">7-9 || * <span style="font-family: 'Verdana','sans-serif';"> Attempts technique(s) demonstrated
 * <span style="font-family: 'Verdana','sans-serif';">uses technology
 * <span style="font-family: 'Verdana','sans-serif';"> shows effort ||
 * <span style="display: block; font-family: Verdana,sans-serif; text-align: center;">10-12 || * <span style="font-family: 'Verdana','sans-serif';"> Shows application of technique(s) demonstrated
 * <span style="font-family: 'Verdana','sans-serif';"> uses both scanned images and images from google
 * <span style="font-family: 'Verdana','sans-serif';"> shows a high level of effort and continuous improvement ||
 * **<span style="font-family: 'Verdana','sans-serif';">Grade ** || **<span style="font-family: 'Verdana','sans-serif';">Criteria ** ||
 * <span style="display: block; font-family: Verdana,sans-serif; text-align: center;">0 || <span style="font-family: 'Verdana','sans-serif';">Absent. ||
 * <span style="display: block; font-family: Verdana,sans-serif; text-align: center;">1 || * <span style="font-family: 'Verdana','sans-serif';">Present, not disruptive.
 * <span style="font-family: 'Verdana','sans-serif';">Demonstrates infrequent participation in discussion. ||
 * <span style="display: block; font-family: Verdana,sans-serif; text-align: center;">2 || * <span style="font-family: 'Verdana','sans-serif';">Shares opinions on artworks but not constructive in criticism.
 * <span style="font-family: 'Verdana','sans-serif';">Is somewhat involved in discussion. ||
 * <span style="display: block; font-family: Verdana,sans-serif; text-align: center;">3 || * <span style="font-family: 'Verdana','sans-serif';">Offers constructive criticism on artworks that shows thought and is polite.
 * <span style="font-family: 'Verdana','sans-serif';">Shows consistent involvement in discussion. ||
 * <span style="display: block; font-family: Verdana,sans-serif; text-align: center;">4 || * <span style="font-family: 'Verdana','sans-serif';">Offers constructive criticism on artworks that shows thought and is polite, suggests other ways works could have been completed if necessary.
 * <span style="font-family: 'Verdana','sans-serif';"> Demonstrates ongoing active involvement in discussion. ||

<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">kimrm1. (2010.) <span style="font-family: 'Verdana','sans-serif';">//Heaven// by Yao Jui Chung. <span style="font-family: 'Verdana','sans-serif';">Retrieved from: http://teachartwiki.wikispaces.com/Heaven+-+Yao+Jui+Chung
 * <span style="font-family: 'Verdana','sans-serif';">References: **

<span style="font-family: 'Verdana','sans-serif';">Flordia International. (2010.) //Tour of "Taiwan Discovered: In Place and Time"// exhibit. <span style="font-family: 'Verdana','sans-serif';">Retrieved from: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=m2GyIK1gStc

<span style="font-family: 'Verdana','sans-serif';">NACD net. (2009.) National Standards for Art National Standards for Arts Education. Retrieved from: http://www.nacdnet.org/education/contests/poster/2009/National_Standards_for_Visual_Art_Link_To_State_Dept_of_Ed.pdf

<span style="font-family: 'Verdana','sans-serif';">ISTE. (2007.) National Education Technology Standards for Students. Retrieved from: http://www.iste.org/Content/NavigationMenu/NETS/ForStudents/2007Standards/NETS_for_Students_2007.htm

<span style="font-family: 'Verdana','sans-serif';">Teaching Resource Center of the University of Virginia, Publications. (2004-2006.) //Teaching Concerns A newsletter for faculty and teaching assistants//.(1996.) Retrieved from: http://trc.virginia.edu/Publications/Teaching_Concerns/Spring_1996/TC_Spring_1996_Maznevski.htm

Julie DeNeen. (2013.) //15 Education Technologies To Check Out in 2013//. Retrieved from: http://www.teachthought.com/technology/15-examples-of-new-technology/