Beyond “Site Specific”

Photograph exhibition of Chen Jiagang, Qu Yan and He Chongyue

Curator : Gao Minglu

Chen Jiagang, Qu Yan, He Chongyue, and their “Beyond Site Specific” attempt to ignore the so-called “on-the-spot,” while photographing in a more practical, in-depth, and rational way with a stronger sense of social liability, so as to shake off the “snapshot” concept of the present on-the-spot images. Therefore, on the question of how to record reality, these three artists have their distinctive way of thought.

“Beyond Site Specific” images emphasize the historical background of reality, and when shooting on site, photographers must understand the inseparable context of the “on-site” and the “beyond-the-site.” “Beyond Site Specific” is more rational, testified by its rational value in leading the viewers to surpass sensory delight and reaching the substance of matters. “Beyond Site Specific” is therefore anti-formalist, upholding the practical attitude of humanism and criticism and the aiming to spread honesty, goodness, and beauty of human beings and unmask fake, badness, and ugliness in any form of disguise. In terms of humanistic care, “Beyond Site Specific” seems to have returned to the “on-the-spot photography” represented by the “April Photo Society” in the late 1970s, after the Culture Revolution period. But, “Beyond Site Specific” photographers no longer trust the power of single images like journalist photos, after having been experienced narrative deceptions on many occasions. They believe in rationality and structure, and rather than the photograph itself, they would believe in its relationship with the external reality.

Rejecting the so-called “on-the-spot” record and symbolic assembly prevalent in present photography, “Beyond Site Specific,” as a new trend of art that combines impetus in methodological exploration and enthusiasm for humanistic criticism, has emerged not just in the field of photography, but also in other images, painting, and even architecture.