Interview: Chu Ling-Jung
Luca Curci talks with Chu Ling-Jung during VISIONS, the third appointment of CANVAS INTERNATIONAL ART FAIR 2024 at Palazzo Albrizzi-Capello in Venice.

Chu Ling-Jung, born in Taiwan in 2000, is an artist focused on feminism and consciousness. Her works often explore the unease in women’s body shaping and gender perception under a patriarchal society, and present these themes through deliberate bodily transformations. Chu Ling-Jung’s creative forms are diverse, including performance art, video, and found objects. Through these mediums, she explores and presents the phenomena of the body in predetermined life events.

Chu Ling-Jung attempts to reflect on her own external heterogeneity through bodily performance and physical transformation. She believes that by establishing shared life experiences with the audience, the resonance created through the presentation of art appears to enable both herself and the viewers to mutually engage in each other’s sensory worlds. In her view, this sensory interpretation of art by the viewer is akin to achieving an enlightenment-like realization. She believes that the interweaving of human thoughts and the overlapping of life experiences in artistic expression represent her vision and ideals for the world of art.

In Chu Ling-Jung’s artistic statement, she mentions wanting to apply theatrical thinking to performance art. She uses chapters from dramatic concepts to present her work, a method of ‘dramatizing’ predetermined events in her life through performance. She arranges the content of each performance art piece by dividing it into chapters, linking these together to create a ‘dramatic’ performance work. In this process, she layers the narrative through changes in her physical appearance and adjustments in her performance form, extending the plot through the articulation of her actions. By utilizing various objects and tools to deform the body, this performance controls and resists the inherent physiological phenomena of the female body.

Luca Curci – Which subject are you working on?
Chu Ling-Jung – My current project aims to use theatrical art as a narrative medium to evoke the occurrence of performance art. Further exploring the expression of bodily transformation in performance art, using it as a narrative method to present the complete journey of life. I plan to incorporate these elements into experimental filmmaking as a form of performance, striving to present a deeper level of artistic expression.

LC – How did you get to your current artistic practice?
CLJ – I began exploring performance art creation in 2020. That attempt explored the relationship between fiber sculptures and the body, focusing on the shaping of the female body within a patriarchal society. After that, I began studying issues concerning women in public and private spheres, which led me to develop the idea of narrativizing performance art. However, it was only after two years of research that I found a method for this project. This year, I focused on exploring whether “natural” life events can be presented in a “theatrical” manner through the concept of “events” in performance art. I create based on this line of thought, attempting a reverse approach to contemplating the essence of the female body. I create based on this line of thought, attempting a reverse approach to contemplating the essence of the female body.

LC – What are the three hashtags essential to define your poetics that you could not give up?
CLJ – 1. Constructing life events from oneself 2. Possessing one’s own thought framework 3. Expanding one’s imagination of life.

LC – Where do you find your inspiration?
CLJ – Read a wide range of books in various fields such as philosophy, theology, and sociology. Watching movies and theater performances also provides me with a lot of inspiration, especially Italian Neorealism films, which have a profound influence on my creations.

LC – What is the most challenging part about creating your artworks?
CLJ – The scripts I write typically feature irreversibility in their performance, necessitating the use of a long take in filming, making it difficult to have opportunities for retakes.

LC – How much has the city/country in which you grew up/born affected your work as an artist?
CLJ – In Taiwan’s educational system, art is not highly valued, and having parental support during one’s upbringing is already considered a great fortune.

LC – Did you enjoy cooperating with us?
CLJ – I am delighted to collaborate with you and can deeply feel your appreciation and respect for artists.

LC – What do you think about ITSLIQUID Platform?
CLJ – This is an excellent platform that manages the planning details of various events very well.

LC – What do you think about the organization of our event?
CLJ – The overall planning is very well-developed. Every little detail reflects your thoughtfulness.