Hello!
I hope you are healthy and happy today!
I am Hu Yifei, and I am honored and delighted to share my “life” through this means.
Is Life Itself Life?
It’s currently 23:25 on March 31, 2023, Beijing time. I’ve just taken a shower and poured a glass of water in an apartment in the Songzhuang Art District in Beijing. Today has been fulfilling for me. I wrapped up my dance teaching and choreography work in the morning. In the afternoon, I visited a friend’s art studio to see five newborn kittens and chatted with other friends over tea. After returning to the apartment, I spaced out for a while, replied to some emails, and engaged in some physical exercise in the evening.
At this moment, I feel like the universe is asleep, everything is calm, and I’m enjoying the tranquility of solitude. So, I’ve decided to attempt to write about my “life.”
My travels during the epidemic
Is 2023 a New Beginning or an Extension of the Past?
I won’t make any hasty statements about whether 2023 is a new beginning or a continuation of the past. Thoughts like these are hard to determine and might be a bit melodramatic.
Four years ago, a curator and I established a contemporary international art space. We planned to organize international contemporary art festival exhibitions and art residency programs in this new space, building on our years of experience. Who would have known that the pandemic would happen? Many plans were halted, so I chose to enter the realm of teaching by stepping into schools. The concept of the pandemic has been part of China for about three years. The state of my personal reality isn’t beautiful, but I cherish the time spent with family during the pandemic and the friends who have been in my life during this period. I also hold my classes dear. It’s like experiencing pure happiness and beauty in the midst of adversity. However, let me be frank; I don’t consider this luck.
Once, I made prep
Looking back over the past four years, I’ve been to 16 cities in Germany, Finland, Switzerland, Italy, Estonia, and Latvia. I spent up to three months in some of these countries. Within China, I visited cities like Macau, Shenzhen, Zhuhai, Nanning, and Beihai. Most of the time, I was invited by art organizers to participate in events and exhibitions. Some trips were purely for travel. I’m grateful to every curator who invited me and to every friend I met and connected with during my travels. Encounters are beautiful, whether it’s a flower, an object, a person, or a scene—everything is natural.
tonight, apartment, wine
Continuing the “Journey” of Life
During the pandemic’s three-year span, I’ve done my best to maintain the state of my life’s “journey.” During this period, I frequented nucleic acid testing stations and engaged in conversations with over 80 people about “masks” (a form of “communication” I initiated during the pandemic). Now, I think: Unpredictable real-world events are life itself. How we perceive and face them is the power of feeling alive.
Right now, my cat is starting to snore. It’s a stray cat from a highway, and we’ve lived together for over two years. We deeply feel each other’s love and companionship. For me, “companionship” sometimes comes from a sense of duty, sometimes from human nature’s instinct of “love,” and sometimes—it comes from “loneliness.” Yes, just like the book I recently reread (David Christian’s “Maps of Time”), they’ve also accompanied me for many years. Ironically, do you think I’m reading it, or is it reading me?
Discoveries in lazy time
Recently, I participated in a poetry book and film discussion about Pasolini, as well as a few independent filmmakers’ screening discussions. We shared films, music, books, wine, and food, as well as our thoughts and ideas. My circle of friends is very small, and the equality and respect between friends make me feel comfortable. This is one of the interesting aspects of my life.
My Travel
Creating More Possibilities
I’d like to thank Mr. Liu Qiming and NYRcA New York Contemporary for the invitation. Now, I’ve written about my current “life.” My present “life” is the thought process behind this piece of writing. For me, life is the process of experiencing time. If you want to understand more about my “life,” I’d be delighted to explore more ways of sharing. Feel free to follow my website: https://yifei.mystrikingly.com/
In 2023, I wish NYRcA New York Contemporary and everyone:
Happy April Fool’s Day! Cheers!
Thankful and appreciative,
Warm regards from Yifei! Wishing you sweet dreams!
April 1, 2023, 00:16
Thinking Diary
The first snow in Beijing in 2023
Reflection Triggered by an Incident of Violence in Tangshan City
YIFEI
06/20/2022
In a turbulent land, during a period of chaos, Numerous societal issues arise, feeling even more tragic than the world in “Les Misérables,” truly a profoundly tragic situation! The torment of women occurs frequently in society, and social events repeat like a brawl between wild beasts, Is all this driven by the hormones of “animalistic” nature?
In this society built upon human civilization, can “animalistic” hormones really drive people to act so recklessly? What is truly lacking here? Or rather, what does this situation reveal?
What leads to such a severe loss of human essence? What causes the expression of human animality to reach such an extreme?
Cause for concern… …
I still want to say, “Without human rights in a country, where does women’s rights come from?”
In a society devoid of human rights, devoid of legal systems, lacking basic ethical morality, If we must approach this from a gender perspective, beyond the above, It is a society dominated by males, a society dominated by male ideologies,
So, where do we go from here? Where do women go?
Oh no! Actually, in this situation, it seems more appropriate to ask, where do males go… …
Because at present, it doesn’t seem like a society dominated by males, it’s more like a society dominated by animalistic instincts!
Why do the vast majority of males strongly reject feminists? What are they afraid of? What concerns them?
What many people may not know (within the premise of this societal system I mentioned earlier) Is whether feminism is also striving for a form of human rights?
Notes on Gender
YIFEI
06/22/2022
Biological gender is determined by genetics, yet gender concepts originate from social roles, family concepts, moral norms, and are induced into being. The term “induced” is used because before humans came to the three-dimensional space, this three-dimensional world already had its own established and ever-changing rules, order, and cognitive concepts. This process of continuous evolution of gender culture and gender cognition is a part of the historical progression of human civilization.
Traditional gender concepts (i.e., radical feminism) are built on a framework of oppression based on biological gender, resulting in an unequal hierarchical concept of gender. This is more evident in social gender categories; for instance, male social gender signifies earning money to support the family, being aggressive, firm, rational, leaders, and physically strong, while female social gender signifies homemakers, passivity, submission, nurturing, sensitivity, raising children, and physical fragility. Due to these gender concepts, people’s gender consciousness is formed, giving rise to activities of rape, violent behavior, and social legal systems of the patriarchal era, such as the prohibition of abortion for women.
However, in the third wave of feminism (i.e., liberal feminism), self-identity is proposed to define gender, emphasizing understanding oneself, expressing oneself, and viewing oneself, as this is crucial. Biological structure does not determine gender, and traditional female labels are replaced by the concept of self-gender identity.
In my view, this represents a breakthrough in gender concepts, transforming the traditional objectification and labeling of gender into an inward awakening of self-awareness. This can be analyzed from the perspective of building upon the “individual,” enabling different genders to strive for self-value and recognition in society. Simultaneously, it appears to emphasize the importance of the right to choose one’s own gender, while diversifying gender concepts and gradually eroding the concept of gender. From another angle, this grants every individual the right to make fair choices within society, pushing the primitive “gendered society” toward a more free and equal trend in human civilization.
We all know what conditions are necessary to be an independent individual (including independent thought and social independence). However, if we still exist within a traditional gendered society, whether male or female, neither can be genuinely independent individuals in any sense. Can we call this a “functional” individual? I’m not certain yet… … because from my perspective, gender society is a shackle on human pursuit of free will. Within this societal framework of consciousness, so-called independence appears incredibly fragile.
My Life Photo
“On the last day of 2022, confirm whether you are still alive”
YIFEI
12/31/2022
Time will continue moving forward, reflecting on the realities that have occurred within the scale of this year. Regardless, the brain will shape it into a memory and then digest that memory as time moves on. The depth of reality, the uncertainty of reality, are eternally present.
This reality has pervaded and exposed many distortions and greed of human nature, illuminating the scant glimmers of humanity as radiant and precious.
This reality, the so-called game of rights created by humans, allows the freedom and goodness within human nature to be displayed vividly.
It’s not particularly unique, what’s unique is the experiences one hasn’t undergone.
It’s not particularly unique, what’s unique is the aspects of oneself one hasn’t discovered.
Time is for experiencing, experiencing is for confirming that you are alive, living is for better experiences.
Be brave, strive to maintain a belief in freedom and goodness, and give a hug to the living self, giving a warmth to this fleeting life.
Hu Yifei
Born in 1986 in a region of China’s northern borderlands where the Han ethnicity coexists with nomadic groups. I hail from Zhangjiakou, a historically significant trade border and strategic location during the Qing Dynasty. Thanks to my parents’ open-mindedness, I had the freedom to make most of my own choices while growing up, which I am very grateful for.
In my childhood, I raised pet eagles and dogs, dabbled in playing the guzheng and piano, engaged in painting, dance, calligraphy, embroidery, and more. I remember every vacation, my parents would take me out to explore. I was the mischievous student in the eyes of teachers and the “big-eyed” neighbor. As I loved dancing, I only completed five years of elementary school (normally six years) before entering a specialized art school (junior high and high school combined for six years), focusing on professional dance training and participating in various stage performances.
MA CLASSROOM.
During China’s national college entrance examination, I recall receiving acceptance offers from six universities. I chose a university based on my desire to go there—Nanjing University of the Arts, majoring in Choreographer. University life was almost equally split between studying and traveling. I would occasionally join various dance troupes to learn and improve.
In 2008, I embarked on my formal professional career, residing successively in Beijing’s Xuanwumen and Xizhimen areas, working as a Choreographer and TV show director. In 2011, I had the privilege to encounter contemporary art, prompting me to move to the Beijing 798 Art District to begin my artistic journey. After about six years, I moved again to the Songzhuang Art District in Beijing. I also co-operated an art private restaurant with friends (which closed before the pandemic). Currently, I am residing here.
sample tea
My creative work encompasses performance art, experimental film, images, installations, and writing. I am honored to have been invited to numerous domestic and international art festivals for exhibitions and exchanges. I have also been interviewed by media outlets such as Reuters and Swedish Radio.
Presently, I am an independent artist, also engaged in organizing and planning art festivals, as well as taking on some directing and teaching roles.
This is me, my life’s journey from the 1980s to the present day. Experiencing life within time is a source of joy. Experiencing life and experiences with “enjoyment” brings “happiness”!
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