Event 3

On April 27, I went to the solo exhibition “Is it just me, or have we not moved?” by Jonathan Moore. When the door of the exhibition opened, my first thought was that it did not look like an art exhibition at all. Audiences were asked to line up to enter a room set up like airport security check. There was one staff member at the entrance standing behind a desk asking for photo ID. I showed her my ID and she checked it for a few times with a very intense gaze. I felt a little uncomfortable but still proceeded as she instructed.

The setup of the exhibition

The entrance and the staff member checking IDs

Inside the room was a setup very similar to an airport security check. At this point, the sound of the staff members shouting to each other and to the audiences became very clear and it made me anxious and nervous. Before going through the scanning gate, I put my bag in a baggage scanner and other stuff in a wired basket that was put in front of me very loudly and rudely by a staff member. I was asked to raise my arms and turn around for metal detector to scan me, and everything was just like an airport security check up to this point.

An audience being scanned by a fake metal detector

The fake baggage scanner

After the scanners, the staff put some tags on me and my bag such as “rejected,” “tested,” or “accepted.” Having these labels assigned to me arbitrarily, my anxiety climaxed and I was reminded of my experiences of entering America as an international student. Every time I go through the custom or the security check in an airport in America, it feels strange. There is no explicit expression of racism or discrimination, but the discomfort is real. I feel the airport staff and the custom officer scanning me with their eyes as if they are questioning whether I have any suspicious backgrounds or harmful purposes. The authority they have over me that they can deny my entrance at any time is like a shadow over me. Although I know that they would not judge me unfairly because of my identity, it is somewhat sarcastic that I come from a country where the imperial authority just ended a century ago to a country that emphasizes power again.

An audience being assigned a label

A label saying “Rejected”

This theme echoes with the exhibition’s title that we have not moved from a society that advocates power and authority as we thought. Rather, a lot of advances we thought we made brought us back to where we started. In unit 4, we discussed plastic surgeries that are advancing increasingly faster technologically, which enables us to look “perfect” or at least closer to the appearances we want. In unit 6, we saw how human beings can manipulate genes now to produce novel creatures such as florescent bunnies. Unit 7 introduced neurochemicals that can manipulate our own perceptions and sensations and unit 8 demonstrated how dominant physical laws change when we manipulate nanoparticles. It seems very convincing to say that anyone with money has been granted the control and domination over everything by the increasingly advanced technology we enjoy.

However, these advances might be just bubbles. In a recent exhibition of Lauren Greenfield’ photography, Generation Wealth, I truly felt the dramatic consumerism and materialism in the modern society and the feeling of possessing everything. There was a film shown at the exhibition about a man who owns a luxurious castle with priceless artworks and antiques. He said with remorse that he has lost his family and money is all he has left. He thought he was working hard to earn something he ultimately wants, only to find out that the thing he has been searching for has always been his family besides him. At least he has gotten to a realization that those who spent much more than they can afford just to gain control and to look rich would have never gotten to.

Consumerism demonstrated by Lauren Greenfield’s photograph

In this endless pursuit of money and control and respect that come with it, technology plays the role of enabling money to transform into all sorts of ideals including a perfect body. Technology itself is also a form of the pursuit for control because it is largely driven by our desire to know, to control, and to change. Sooner or later, we will need to think about what we are ultimately striving for.

My thoughts have gone far from Jonathan Moore’s exhibition, and it is a truly inspiring experience for me. Therefore, I would definitely recommend it to my classmates if they want to experience the direct and intense pressure from authorities that can be invisible sometimes.

Jonathan Moore and I at the exhibition

Event link: https://dma.ucla.edu/events/calendar/?ID=1005

Works Cited

A label saying “Rejected,” UCLA Broad Art Center. Personal photograph by author. 2017.

An audience being assigned a label, UCLA Broad Art Center. Personal photograph by author. 2017.

An audience being scanned by a fake metal detector, UCLA Broad Art Center. Personal photograph by author. 2017.

Gimzewski, James. “Nanotech Jim pt3” Uploaded by uconlineprogram, 21 May 2012, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=X0HCNiU_108#action=share.

Greenfield, Lauren. N.d. One Photographer Spent 25 Years Documenting Wealth. Web. 27 May 2017. <https://www.nytimes.com/2017/04/07/t-magazine/art/lauren-greenfield-photography-generation-wealth.html?_r=0>.

Jonathan Moore and I at the exhibition, UCLA Broad Art Center. Personal photograph by author. 2017.

The entrance and the staff member checking IDs, UCLA Broad Art Center. Personal photograph by author. 2017.

The fake baggage scanner, UCLA Broad Art Center. Personal photograph by author. 2017.

The setup of the exhibition, UCLA Broad Art Center. Personal photograph by author. 2017.

Vesna, Victoria. “Medicine pt3.” Uploaded by uconlineprogram, 22 Apr. 2012, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FIX-9mXd3Y4#action=share.

Vesna, Victoria. “5 BioArt pt3.” Uploaded by uconlineprogram, 17 May 2012, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3EpD3np1S2g&list=PL9DBF43664EAC8BC7#action=share

Vesna, Victoria. “Neuroscience pt3.” Uploaded by uconlineprogram, 16 May 2012, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=E5EX75xoBJ0#action=share