Today we’d like to introduce you to ZhenZhen Zhong.
Hi ZhenZhen, can you start by introducing yourself? We’d love to learn more about how you got to where you are today?
I am a sculptor, installation, and video artist. I grew up in the Pearl River Delta region of China, an area heavily impacted by globalization. It was a large base of China’s manufacturing hub for the world; a rapidly changing and developing region. Seeing the effects of globalization heavily impacted my work and many of my projects and stories come from this region. Speaking both Mandarin and Cantonese, the sounds of switching languages and dialects are important in my work. Playing with the sounds and the subtleties of language is central in my art practice. Throughout my life, I have been moving. As an undergrad student, I went to The Central Academy of Fine Arts in Beijing. Since my undergrad, I have been involved in experimental theatre working as a costume, scenic, and video designer. I continued my studies, receiving a double major MFA in Art and Technology / Costume Design at Cal Arts where I continued expanding my art practice by incorporating elements from theatre, experimental video, sculpture, and installation. Currently, I am based in Los Angeles, working as an artist and designer.
Would you say it’s been a smooth road, and if not what are some of the biggest challenges you’ve faced along the way?
Constantly being on the move and adapting to new environments have been engaging with many new challenges and observations. Understanding the nuances of American culture from the position of an immigrant constantly presents new surprises where the overlapping asymmetrical histories of globalization are felt in the everyday.
Appreciate you sharing that. What else should we know about what you do?
A lot of my current artmaking centers around themes of migration, feminist worldbuilding, post-globalization, and technology. My interdisciplinary art practice involves multimedia video and projection, custom electronics, multichannel sound, and sculpture. These various forms and materials help me extend my interests in the material world by thinking about the connections between sound, shadow, movement, and light in relation to these larger themes of understanding my place in the world and the larger networks that I am a part of.
Much of my artwork involves fictional worldbuilding and storytelling. This fictional worldbuilding weaves a combination of local folk customs, myths, beliefs, news, and geographical elements to form a larger picture of how I understand and explore the world.
We’re always looking for the lessons that can be learned in any situation, including tragic ones like the Covid-19 crisis. Are there any lessons you’ve learned that you can share?
After the pandemic, I spent a lot of time thinking about different ways of linking emerging technologies with new creative practices. Much of the connections shifted to forming connections online and finding new ways to collaborate and share ideas virtually rather than in real life.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://www.zhenzhenland.com/
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/zhen_zhen_zhong/
Image Credits
photo 1, personal photo shot by Fog Moss photo 2, installation archive of *Gardening the Ruins*, photo shot by Shiqing Ban
