RATINGS and REVIEWS: Venice Biennale 2005 ~Swiss Pavilion special edition~

Hi all, I will continue on my reviews of the exhibition i had seen thus far. I must first emphasize that whatever rubbish i wrote in this blog is not representitive of the views of any organisation or country. It is what I see and what I think, as a contemporary art enthusiast, as an artist, as a filmmaker, as an individual, as a human.

P.S. pls do not be offended by my comments and ratings cos they are extremely subjective :-p

~Liao Jiekai
27th june 2005~

SPECIAL EDITION

Why special? Because I am only featuring one pavilion today. Just one. The Swiss Pavilion... and out of all 5 artist featured in the swiss pavilion this year, im only going to talk about one. okei, one for now, because the other 4 had their work in the giardini which I have not visited yet. But I must say that the this swiss pavilion is one of the most amazing display of art I had seen thus far... most amazing and mesmerizing, that I had to do a special edition feature for it.

Swiss Pavilion @ San Stae ~ 6 stars

This is simply a must see. I went back to this pavilion 3 times. The first time I could only see it for 10 minutes before they had to close for break. The second time to watch and photograph it. The third time, to photograph it again because I am simply unsatisfied with what I took the last time round.

Presenting to you : Homo Sapiens Sapiens, by Artist Piplotti Rist




I am totally blinded by the darkness when I first stepped into the pavilion, because of the huge contrast in lighting difference when i step through the curtains. Next I can barely figure out what I see, people lying on the ground all over? The next thing that came into my mind is " installation with 100 people sleeping on the ground" kinda thing, but the moment I looked up, I saw this huge gigantic screening of video that made me feel like I am in the Omnitheatre or IMAX theatre. I removed my shoes and wore the slippers provided and entered the space. I tried to find a more central bed and lied down. This is what I see:











































Okay after seeing so much pictures, i still don't suppose that you as the viewer have any clue to what this work is about. Unless you read history, then you can probably figure out what it is saying from the title of the work. Before I continue i must emphasize something, U MUST BE HERE IN S.STAE TO VIEW THIS WORK!!!
Just simply seeing pictures and reading what I wrote does not do ANY justice to the magnificience of this work at all, maybe I do exaggurate a bit, but you must be here to experience it. This work can only be experienced, not viewed over the computer monitor. Though I am probably contradicting myself by putting up so many photos, but well, those photos are not for you people to see, its for me and all others who have seen these work in Venice, as a reminiscence, as something to think about.

Okay let me get down to what this work really means to me. The first time I view it, I thought that it is about Adam and Eve in the Garden of Eden, and how they succumb to temptation and hence the fall of mankind into sin. But... and it is not exactly what it is. Adam is missing. Instead there are two "eves", and they seem to be "toying" with the fruits from the trees, not literally eating it as stated in the bible. They seem to be in this paradise that is free from worries, free from woes, freedom... They seemed to be really happy and enjoying themselves... and it ever more made this work mystical, mysterious and a bit fantasy like.

The notion of making people lie on those really comfy beds. I really appreciate, after walking under the blasted sun for so long, this place is really a good refuge, a good place to rest. One can simply fall asleep on the beds. Okay, that's besides the point, but what I really wanted to say is that it is suggesting something about dreams? that what we view on the screen is part of our subconscious state of mind? that in the minds of everyone in this world there is a hidden utopia, hidden paradise, hidden garden of eden, a place of rest and solace. Okay that is what I interprete, but maybe I shouldn't read too much into the work. Simply lie down, look up and enjoy!

RATINGS and REVIEWS: Venice Biennale 2005 ~part 2~

Hi all, I will continue on my reviews of the exhibition i had seen thus far. I must first emphasize that whatever rubbish i wrote in this blog is not representitive of the views of any organisation or country. It is what I see and what I think, as a contemporary art enthusiast, as an artist, as a filmmaker, as an individual, as a human.

P.S. pls do not be offended by my comments and ratings cos they are extremely subjective :-p

~Liao Jiekai
25th june 2005~

FOREWORD

As I begin my trip on a journey to discover the myriads of pavilions and collateral events scattered all over Venice, I am excited... with a tripod on my back, a camera on my hand, a brain on my head * if i ever have one* i set out on a jouney to the west... west side of Venice I mean...

Peggy Guggenheim Collection @ Venice ~ 5 stars

Wow, this is the first 5 star I gave. Well deserving. I paid the 10 euros entrance plus another 5 for the audio guide ( which I really regretted. So hey all, unless you are an absolute noob/amatuer in art history, don't bother getting the guide. Firstly, not all works in the collection is included in the guide, secondly, it destroys your chance to interprete and understand the art work yourself. Thirdly, it is expensive)





This place is really gorgeous, the layout is a huge contrast with all the architectures you can see in Venice. The garden outside is littered with sculptures from giacometti and henry moore. As I stroll through the minimalist displays of sculptures, mainly bronze, I went to the toilet to drink some H2O, bcos I left my bag at the front counter and dun have my bottle with me. They have some NICE toilets, more modern than our Singapore one, but our's cooler though :-p
Okay, first of all, I looked at the Jackson Pollock retrospective. Very strict museum atmosphere, but i admired at the way they structure the exhibition, SAM have much to learn... Works shown vary from the early sketches of Jackson Pollock to his later AE works. What caught my eye is this particular watercolour landscape painting, and it is not FANTASTIC at all, amateurish to be exact. I really dun see the link between this piece of work and the rest of the exhibits... I can understand why they put some other sketches inside, as there are relevance to his later works, but definitely not this watercolour painting... As I walked to the other end, I came across to his true blue drip paintings... BUT only so few of them, and my favourite piece "lavender mist" and other more famous pieces are not around... what kinda retrospective is this? but well, I must admit that they do have a comprehensive show of his earlier works, especially his sketches and dawings. At the end of the space, we can view the works of other AE artists like Robert Motherwell and Mark Rothko.
I moved on to the maon section of the guggenheim collection, WOW! Picasso, Marcel Duchamp, Max Ernst, Matisse, Magritte, more Pollock, De Chirico, Jean Arp, Joan Miro, Brancusi, and many many more. An almost complete collection of modern art from the early 1900s onwards. My favourite piece is undoubtly Rene Magritte's "Empire of light" , so tempted to buy a gigantic replica of it and bring it home to be hung in my room.
The only missing movement, the futurist is made up by an exhibition of works from another collectior, featuring artists like Boccioni... wow... and even more wow...
At 12 pm, one of the intern working in the Guggenheim gathered everyone and give an extremely good, comprehensive and detailed art history lecture on the life of Peggy Guggenheim. I learnt a lot from listening to that, and it adds plenty of meaning to being here in the Guggenheim collection itself.
Lastly went to the corner with the stone plague that says " here lies Peggy Guggenheim", I think i respect her passion for art, it can be seen in every art work in this collection.
Before leaving the place, i chatted with another intern from LA, she told me that there are like 34 interns working in the museum, this place is run entirely on interns huh? well, but i do notice something. all the interns i had seen thus far are all female, where are all the guys man???

Accademia Art Gallery ~ 3 stars

Sorry man, not my kind of exhibition. Regretted paying 6.5 Euros to see all these medieval venetian art. The paintings inside are HUGE man, a lot of them are altar paintings from various churches. And this place is really big, simply overwhelming. For fans of religious/renaissance/medieval/classical art, this is a 5 star show. But not for me, I struggle looking through all of them... leaving in like 1.5 hours.

Grace Ndinta @ Nhova Konda ~ 3 stars

I stumbled upon this gallery while searching for the Armenian Pavilion. This show is suppose to be held in conjuction with the Biennale, though it is neither a national pavilion nor a collateral event.
A british artist... video installations. Video projected on an altar, video shown on a TV placed on the floor... The run down nature of this place elevates the work making it a very powerful experience. Worth taking a look.

Armenian Pavilion ~ 3 stars

The first work that caught my eye is another video fighting for female rights... again... I almost thought that the Guerilla girls are from Armenia. Some of the video is very inaccessible to me, but I like the layout of one of the series of video peojection. The video is shown on a brick wall, playing and looping 5 videos from 2 artists. It took me a min or so into each video b4 figuring out what I am actually looking at because of the textured background. The first pavilion I came across that requires the ringing of doorbell to gain entry.

Henri Foucault ~ 4.5 stars



Wow! My first step into the pavilion and I realised that what is welcoming me is the most gorgeous, authentic, beautiful house I have seen in Venice thus far. As I ascend the seemingly ancient stairway and entered the door, I was greeted by a huge video screened at the end of the corridoor.



Drawn to the only moving image in the whole space, I went to the end and sat down to view the video. A female nude dancing? Or doing some strange ritualistic movements? There is a video effect being used here that creates ghosting ( what we call it in adobe premiere pro) hence the staggering effect of motion. Not quite understanding it, I headed from the screen back to the main hall. Panels of figure line both sides of the wall. What struck me is the lighting of the display of furnitures, the strange juxtaposition of objects, authentic ladders, lights, shelves, books in this hall. They seem to be part of the architecture, yet they seem to be what the artist intended for.



The ambience gripped me totally! This place is totally cool and authentic, it will become one of the contemporary art centers in Venice after the biennale from what I have heard. The only drawback is the unavailability of English catalogue.

Croatzia Pavilion ~ 2.5 stars

What a great way to end/spoil my day. If Marocco's Pavilion has the content but lacks the concept, this Pavilion has the context but lacks the content. I totally could not connect to any single work. Weird is the common theme. This Pavilion present art as a form of stimulant, only the right person can connect with them in the right manner. Too bad they barely leave a scratch in my brains.

Coming up next we have even more exciting reviews about the other pavilions and collateral events. Catch the Swiss pavilion - possibly the best one ever. Will it be the first ever 6 star rated pavilion? Also featuring reviews of the central asia art academy, thai pavilion, and more! Watch out for the next issue of RATINGS and REVIEWS: Venice Biennale 2005!

iakeijiekai
25 june 2005

RATINGS and REVIEWS: Venice Biennale 2005 ~part 1~

Hi all, today let me give you my humble comments and reviews of the exhibition i had seen thus far. I must first emphasize that whatever rubbish i wrote in this blog is not representitive of the views of any organisation or country. It is what I see and what I think, as a contemporary art enthusiast, as an artist, as a filmmaker, as an individual, as a human.

P.S. pls do not be offended by my comments and ratings cos they are extremely subjective :-p

~Liao Jiekai
23rd june 2005~

FOREWORD

As I begin my trip on a journey to discover the myriads of pavilions and collateral events scattered all over Venice, I am excited... with a tripod on my back, a camera on my hand, a brain on my head * if i ever have one* i set out on a jouney to the west... west side of Venice I mean...

Play the glass ~ 4 stars

My first stop. Play the glass... an exhibition by a japanese artist. I think that this is an inspiring installation. Black glass. I mean... people in this world give their own definition of glass, pre-conceived qualities such as the glass being transparent/translucent, shimmering, reflective, pretty. The artist completely shatters these aspects of glass. Black, opaque, deformed bubbles. Can u imagine? I don't think so, until you can come down personally to feel it like I do. One simply can't tell that this black lump of matter is glass just by looking. But the truth is... it is...





the black and opaque ones



the black and shiny ones

Glass... moulding glass into environments. Putting a hidden shiny one amongst the opaque ones. Giving the glass fluid and living qualities, movement, fluidity, like plants growing towards sunlight. The artist had given "life" to these black objects.
Though the catalogue is expensive - 20 Euros, the smaller version which is rather comprehensive as well costs only 2 Euros. Best of all is the friendly gallery sitter who only charged me 1 Euros, because she don't have the change when I flash my 5 Euros note. Guess art is not all about money :-p





the hidden gem, this one is hidden in a secluded corner at the back of a staircase. One can only possibly catch it on their way down from the top level.

I enjoy this space, think that the artist not only brings in and exploits tje structure, hidden spaces, length of the house, he also put a video for ppl who wants to know how the glass is being made. Play with glass... indeed. And the chairs in the room look as if it is a glass ball too... except that it is soft and comfy. very conducive, I like it. well deserving 4 stars.

The nature of things: Artists from Northen Ireland ~ 2.5 stars

Hello??? I totally don't see the flow of the exhibition at all. Some works talk about politics, some about nature. Some were simply inconceivable. The structure of the exhibition is awkward. And the video pieces are simply too political for my taste. Some how i begin to think that discussing politics, or using art as propaganda is a trend in international exhibitions like this. Even the paintings aren't fantastic or exceptional. What a disappointment, to think I spend half an hour looking for this place, cos the location on the map is TOTALLY OUT. and the catalogue is an expensive as well...

New Zealand Pavilion ~ 4 stars

When I walked through the garden leading to the exhibition, I thought about the renowned beauty of New Zealand's landscape, I was greeted by a punch in my face. Industrial fences, crude ugly signboards, posters, noise, moving grey machineries, disgustingly confusing setup, metal, lumps of cement, whatever you can think of. For a while, i thought i stumbled into the film set of a mad scientist's home in universal studios... The artist had extremely successfully transformed this place into a junkyard/construction site. And this uniformity is seen not only in the work, the way the video is shown, also in their reception area, working area, as well as their browsing catalogues. It is successful in a lot of dimensions. I can totally engage with the entire space, this is what I call installation man! It strucks you in all 5 senses, I felt submerged, endangered, pierced, sliced... rammed... Though I don't exactly know what it is showing, there is something screaming in the veins of this place that struck me. As I left the pavilion, I know that I can never forget this work, this work is all about SENSATION :-p

Morocco Pavilion ~ 2 stars

Sorry... I think that the paintings are killing this space. KILLING... I say it literally, For goodness sake, these paintings all of different contrasting qualities are arranged on a systematic block format in a CATHEDRAL. Though i agree that there is not much space to play with... But it is still dull, boring and disappointing. This space do not deserve such treatment, neither do the paintings... The last time I see such arrangements are in silly art shows in ******* **** ( a s'pore shopping center). And this is the Venice Biennale!! However , I do like some of the paintings, there is this particular one by this artist who paints like S'pore landscape artist Thomas Yeo, I hope I get the name correctly, my art history stuff are slowing slipping out of my brains. And the gallery sitter from Arte Communications refuse to give me a catalogue, "For Press Only" she says... so sad... maybe after I get my Arte Comm pass, i go back to her again and try :-p

The Spectre of freedom: Taiwan Pavilion ~ 4.5 stars

This is it. The long awaited Taiwan Pavilion. As I climb the stairway, I was greeted by brochues, catalogues.... how generous of them! Before seeing the show, I went straight up to the gallery sitter to ask for the free bag. I need something to hold all that paper and brochures im carrying, and most importantly, I have seen far too many people carrying that bag around, I MUST have it!!! haha... showing the true colours of a KS Singaporean. The first works, 3 super 8mm animations. This is the first time I've seen 8mm works. The first one shows a torment, paradox of a headless person hammering repeatingly at this floating skull amongst a pool of water, I think it is talking about war, violence and liberation. The second one is a pretty surreal animation about war and nuclear bomb i think... not very sure, but it features characters from "Doraemon" as well as Hayao Miyazaki's " Tombstone of the fireflies", both my fav animae! So you can already see myt biasness revealing itself... heh. But I must say that the animation is brilliant, the artist did not win golden horse award for animation for nothing. yupz... lets proceed to the next one. This work is about an artist going on strike. De-Strike, it is named. It is a loud, interactive multimedia work, loud in the use of reds. They have these computer terminals for people to interact with the concept of going on strike. And they have webcams all over the room. Hope they did not record anything, or they will catch the KS singaporean taking a STACK of postcards and stickers... The next work is by a video artist, videos of him vommiting at different places, banging his head at different objects at different places, changing his clothes at different places, waving the race flag at different junctions, i don't know whether to call this clever or pure idiocy... but I am definitely amused by his videos. I didn't see the work of the 4th artist... missed him completely, only realised there is a 4th one when i reach home and read the free catalogue. But overall i must say that this exhibition had definitely lived up to it's name as one of the best shows around.

Afghanistan Pavilion ~ 3 stars

A very simple exhibition of 2 works. 1 video installation and 1 gallery of carpet/rugs or whatever u call it. I love the video of the woman painting the battered ruins white and then the back of the man white. I think it is a very powerful depiction, especially the setting of the video, the afghanistan landscapes, the dark skies, the sheeps running through the ruins... such subtlety... A very honest depiction of an artist from a war-torn kingdom.

Iran Pavilion ~ 3 stars





Another simple exhibition of 2 works. I like the work with the concrete cube hanging on 4 braids of hair at 4 corners. Simple portrayal of tension. Tension built up from simplicity.
The second work is a bit awkward for me, Golden babies hanging on the ceiling with stylized shapes of mothers on the floor. Though the technical aspect of carving the scuplture babies deserve praise, but the concept is... "A" level art standard I think. It does not shows the maturity of a visual artist representing the nation in the Venice Biennale...

Ukraine Pavilion ~ 3.5 stars

Another very honest one man show. Powerful photographs from childhood contrasting with the complexities of a rioting video. The innocence of a man, a dream... a desired state of things. The video is about riots and protests, a simple 3 screen documentry about the interesting or even "less tense" moments in a riot.

Slovenian Pavilion ~ 2.5 stars

The artist attempts to depict the state of a room when light shines through the window on a 24 hour basis. Accelerated time 24 hours in mere minutes... artificial light created. I can't really follow what i see in the space, the environment shown in the catalogue is 20 times better than what I see. The ambience of light and space is so much more mild as compared to the pictures in the catalogue. I think that it can definitely be much better. And the small tiny catalgue costs a blasted 20 euros... unless i'm from the press of course...

Latvia Pavilion ~ 4 stars

Wow, I loved it! I enjoyed deciphering the story that is written backwards in the form of a hologram. I enjoyed the sense of fear and uncertainty when I am about to enter the dark room. The fear for the dark, especially after hearing the story. This whole work plays around the human psychology and the human mind. Interesting videos and environment. A super humongous "brain" in the center of a pitch dark room. Bump into it accidentally and i garantee u will scream if u have a faint heart. It seem to tell that there is something in every corner of darkness left to be seen, to be explored, to be uncovered. The exit is actually another entrance, if you walk through the exhibition from the "exit" u will get a different sensation, and hear the story when your journey ends. The fact that to anyone person coming to visit, there can only be one entrance and one exit, 1 experience, 1 sensation. What you choose is what u get.

Estonian Pavilion ~ 3 stars

Generally I only like one piece in this whole area. The "10 men" video. It portrays 10 men looking at the video camera and it is interesting as the video forms a basis of interaction between the men in the video and the audience. Every men have a secret, have something in their mind, and I feel something, every eye i observe, every expression I see, every motion that goes into my mind. Though the other works are not really very conceivable, the friendly gallery sitter gave me a free hard cover catalogue! cheers!

Republic of Cyprus Pavilion ~ 3 stars

I feel that I'm entering the Children's art Biennale. Though I don't really like the works and drawings as such, but in some ways, it is cohesive. It speaks something about connectivity. Is art only for those intellectually superior? Art should be something universal and a child's language is something most people have experienve before. The childish animations are simple but provocative. Welcome to the AGE OF INNOCENCE!

Turkey Pavilion ~ 3 stars

The video is... a bit to "teched" and futuristic for my appreciation. So let's just move to the sculpture parts. I have never seen sculptures being places in such dark environments before, and it gets me thinking.



Sculpture is not merely about the 3D object alone, but also how the environment interacts with it. And I feel that the context and space is beautifully presented. I like the space more than the sculpture or video.

Hong Kong Pavilion ~ 4 stars

Am I biased towards east asian countries? I realised that I gave all of them at least 4 stars. Maybe as a Chinese I can connect to them better.



I like the tea house made up of blue, white and red. for a moment I almost thought that I can pour hot water from the pot into the tea cup and drink. Maybe people do hallucinate when they are thirsty. Well thats besides the point... I realised that the tea leaves in the cups are actually strips of newspaper... disappointment. The adjacent installation signifies some sort of a pathway in a concrete sea. Not as photogenic as the previous, but this space got me thinking. As I climb and ascend the wooden structure, my sight is elevated to a different level, seeing different things, feeling a whole different space. Back to the first space, I felt that the position of the pavilion is rather strategic. Teahouse by the river, very "jiang1 nan2" huh?

Indonesia Pavilion ~ 3 stars

The works are "okay". Expressionistic paintings, video art encrypted with cultural and religious meanings, this is so "Indonesian", I mean they literally bring Indonesian art and put it on display in Venice. And this is a problem. They fail to realise the context, even the set-up is very casual, fleeting. The space is noisy, a lot of people walking about the surrounding areas. Some installation are nice, but the background space fail to elevate it. They should not have had the pavilion in the same building as a private school in the first place...

Argentina Pavilion ~ 4.5 stars



This work should have been 5 stars, if not for the location. I had so much trouble trying to find the Pavilion, it is too secluded and the path in is so littered with pigeon shit that it really turns me off. Okay that is besides the point. This work should have won the best national Pavilion. Okay maybe that's because I haven't been to Giardini and see the French one. But it is the best I had seen thus far. Perfect context, perfect ambience, perfect music, perfect execution, perfect concept. I couldn't criticize it because I like it so much.



A reflection of the ceiling mosaic in terms of an elastic jumping board. Haunting music and sound of a person jumping... yet there is no one there. Melancholic... mysterious... the sound form a basis of connecting the floor board and the ceiling. The old vs the new. The renaissance art vs the conceptual art. I totally admired the artist. It is haunting, captivating and contemplative. If only I had my video cam with me, But I think even a video camera cannot do justice to a work like this. One must be here to experience it.

Macedonian pavilion ~ 3.5 stars

Before I start this... allow me to make a side comment. ALL MOSQUITOES are to be CONDEMNED!!! As I was writing, there is this darned black pest injecting it's needle into me. Killed it in 3 attempts... a warning to all mosquitoes - do not underestimate the anti-mosquitoe abilities of a recce trooper, I have seen and killed too many of you, just get lost will ya :-p



Okay Mecadonia's work. Mozart's boat. A romantic and elegant name for a piece of wood that simply lived up to it's name. Boat that look like a violin, or violin that look like a boat? But the former seem much more suited because of the sheer size. Zhangyi??? Where art thou??? U must see this thing man.



A nice way to end my day. This piece is simple, straight forward, yet elegant and provocative. Cheers to Mozart! and his boat... and the catalogue is free :-p

Coming up next we have even more exciting reviews about the guggenheim, accademia art gallery and 4 other pavilions. Watch out for the next issue of RATINGS and REVIEWS: Venice Biennale 2005

iakeijiekai
23 june 2005

Xing

It’s quite shocking how endless streams of drunken fellas (mainly British, for some reason) come our way in the afternoon. An early over-indulgence at lunchtime, and they gab away, such nonsense. The one who just left did a little stumble as he went out.

And then there’re all these ancient-old-fish types with Van Winkle beards who try to open the purification tank, burble wild-eyed about the obscene smell, and regale us with their travels in Singapore from thirty years back. Where they stayed, what they saw, what we would have seen if we’d been alive.

All we need is a little push-button and a trapdoor in front of the table. Woosh-Bang!

Xing

Ewww, I just tried a little best-in-the-world Tiger Beer (we had a few bottles left over from the opening, but they’re all given away now) and I can’t believe people drink this stuff! It’s like pee mixed with ginseng and bittergourd. My body simply rejects it. I’d to open the fridge and grab the first thing available (carrots) to clear the taste from my mouth. I would only serve it to guests if I really disliked them. At least ginseng and bittergourd are supposed to be healthy.

just a statement

ART DOES NOT HAVE TO BE UGLY TO LOOK CLEVER

little excursion...

It is 19.45, the shuttle bus is still not here.
we looked and stared at the bus that stopped at corsia B9, Piazzale Roma
elderly venetians alight from the bus, with groceries in their hand.
our hearts sunk, this bus is definitely not from the Pink house...
then where is their shuttle bus???
are we cheated or something???



the crows at san marco seem to be laughing at us
coca cola
xing walked off, heading back to the apartment herself
Sam and I walked off too, also going back...
and our little excursion started...

first stop, a nice evening view of the grand canal on the bridge. sam decided to be touristy, and i helped him took a pic cos his cam is spoiled. we move on and started our hunt for the cheapest gelato in town. i settled for a scoop on a cup for 1 euros, he got 2 scoops on a cone for 1.5 euros.




violinist by the street. zhangyi, can u do that in spore?
*for the sake of all who dunno who is zhangyi, he is my fellow scout platoon mate, violinist, composer, and he wrote the score for my previous film. a hunk who can do 23 pull-ups effortlessly. sometimes i think that he attached weights or lead to his violin bow to train his biceps*




dracula's nest, a spooky mansion...




the skyline... the lighted building... the pair of birds...



who can be my light?
in the darkness of the night...




our last stop... a famous arc i suppose. so many tourists taking pic of it, they even have a spotlight to light it up at night... well... despite the extremely low lighting condition and lack of tripod, im glad i can find a space to support my camera for long exposure... not realli very long la, this one is 1 sec only. its because stupid me forgot to change the ISO...

home sweet home... im back at the apartment already... xing is already back, expected, i never fail to marvel at the speed she walk... it is the scout platoon fast march speed lol...
got down with Sam and tasted a bit of the left over wine from the farewell dinner, he says it is good, but i still can't appreciate it... darn
time to go to zzz... have to wake up at 4.25am to open the door for Sam who needs to reach Trevisto at 8 to catch a flight back to Brussels...

iakeijiekai
18 june 2005
10.51am

Xing

It’s so embarrassing being a tourist. They walk so slowly, and stop and stare at the silliest things in the streets, and take photos of everything. Hulking, sweating husbands walking backwards as they film their wives walking across the pigeon-infested place, or a bridge crammed with other hulking husbands and Italian gondoliers repeating ‘gondola, gondola’. Other tourists, wary of being cheated, try not to look desperate for an exotic experience on the canals while they ask the price. Then they end up reclining on tasteful little gold-and-red chairs as other tourists take pictures of them. So special.

How do people ever manage one-month tours of Europe? I’d need to spend at least three weeks, if not a couple of months, in each major city. When I’m ridiculously rich, I’ll pick out smart, lucky young people for company, to travel with me, and sponsor their trips. When I’m old, that is- I won’t have time for very young people till I’m at least semi-retired. Then again, I could do that for friends my own age. But it’s so much better to be a benevolent sugar-granny, and have the stupidity and enthusiasm of the little ones rub off on you.

TOP TEN FILMS

oh well let me post my top 10 fav films

1. A short film about killing - Krzysztof Kieslowski
2. Samaritan girl - Kim Ki-Duk
3. 3 Iron - Kim Ki-Duk
4. Eternal sunshine of the spotless mind - Michel Gondry
5. Nobody knows - Hirokazu Koreeda
6. A short film about love - Krzysztof Kieslowski
7. The return - Andrey Zvyagintsev
8. Run lola run - Tom Tykwer
9. Last life in the universe - Pen-Ek Ratanaruang
10. Princess Mononoke - Hayao Miyazaki

iakeijiekai
17 june 2005

Today is like any other day, im listening to S.E.N.S music in the pavilion while im rethinking all that happened in the past 2 weeks. time flies, its one quarter through the internship already...
what did i achieve? that is one thing i always ask myself? do i always need to have a aim? a target? i don't really know, but i guess the one big thing is to experience. whether it is life, food, music, art or any other thing, experience makes up anything and everything.

as i walk, look, observe and feel, my mind is charged with the sensation, the experience, the engagement with the space around me. i feel that i am whole once more, ideas stream into me. I think artists are people charged with the responsibility of interpreting this world. but don't everyone else do that? so what make artists so special? im beginning to understand why tzay chuen do not claim to be one.

A VISITOR

Sameul from NUS BUSINESS came by or pavilion today, he is doing an exchange in Brussels and is currently backpacking on his own. i think he will be bunking in our apartment tonight, or joining us for the trip to the PINK HOUSE in the outskirts of venice tonight. Heard from him that some ppl from NUS choir is around in venice too. hope that some of them can come into our pavilion, its always nice to meet new people...

FEELing BLUe

Blue Blu Blue Blu...

iakeijiekai
17 june 2005

deuteronomy 5:17 THOU SHALT NOT KILL

I have not seen anything as powerful as this
Decalogue V
the tint of death, the smell of guilt, the fist of the law
the landscapes, never had i seen trees crying
never had i seen the streets weeping
weeping for the killing, the desire to kill, we had lost him...
the ochre colours, seem to point out that all that happened is in the distant past
but it could not hide, the suffering man, the guilty soul
the lonely violin music plays out in the eve of his sentence
he took his last puff, and made his last struggle, his last fight against his destiny
an unchangable destiny. for once, i feel so helpless, it is so inevitable, so correct...
but i can't help but feel the diminishing humanity... of life...

sorry " run lola run" and "eternal sunshine of the spotless mind", this film is now in my number one list.
it is not a film that can be gauged, or judged. No doubt it is good, but it can kill, it killed me. can anyone still claim to be guiltless upon watching this film?

as i turned my head and lie back on my chair in the singapore pavilion, i do not have the mood to watch another one of the decalogue series. the death scene still looms in my head, and i have plenty to think about...

iakeijiekai
16 june 2005
14.11

hungry Hungry HUNGRY

this post is dedicated to Aun, deputy director of the visual arts team, and an "internationally acclaimed" food critic, haha...




Fish Soup - the venetian style
Xing said that it is too salty
But i think that it is saltily delicious, especially when dipped with those bread that seems to be deep fried in oil, deliciously unhealthy.
Didnt have the chance to try the fish, so couldn't comment much.





Crab meat recommended by Aun. looked at those juicy lemon and enticing white fleshes. yummy.
its a cold dish though, personally i prefer singaporean style chilli crab more, but this is good too!




My main course - grilled eel. A bit of "chao4 da1" smell, but i guess thats because it is grilled. It is very very fresh though, sorry for squeezing the lemon first before taking this photo. I think that japan Unagi is better, but still it is good. I'm just biased towards asian food, i think...

Harry's bar - a expensively luxurious meal. Very very cramped though. This photo is stolen from Aun's food blog, i must insist that i did not add those ugly black stripes over Eugene, June and Eliza's eyes. But i do add the words for easy identification.

June - my beef??? it is totally cooked?? oh gosh, look at this stiff meat, is it even edible at all? i want a refund!!
Eugene - i shall smile... and still smile
Eliza - venetian style curry! a taste from home with a twist. ( wait till u taste jiekai's curry)
Xing - AUN!! i would love to be inside this photo, i will not blame you for excluding me *grinz*
Jiekai - i shall eat silently, and... smile at the camera... and xing, u and your sarcasm.... haiz...

Kee hong and Ida has evaporated silently... Aun, how could u?

Oh, i must mention one last thing, this sinfully delicious black chocolate cake that we had for desert... it is disgustingly rich, and it is simply a must eat...

i guess we might have spent like 600 - 700 euros on this meal in total... goodness...




Aun, it's too bad that you had left already. you should have tried this. this is simply the best plate of rice u can find in venice. We ate at this restaurant near arsenale, and the this venetian mushroom rice is simply the best u can find in this region. mushrooms fried with sizzlying garlic and baked with white italian rice. comeon man, i shall give u the address to this restaurant.

#5 at Pirandello
Castello, 2523, 30100 Venice

I had a talk with the chef, i believe that he will be making a trip to Singapore in early august, perhaps u can catch up with him then and interview him, and probably put him on some front covers of some food magazine.




Shrimps from rialto, eggs from the italian chics fried with italian onions. what more can u ask for?

iakeijiekai
14 June, 12.30pm