I would like to offer a non-academic appraisal of Chen Zhonghao’s work, focusing on a tangential aspect of the artist himself – that being his musicality -rather than any particular paintings. Please excuse the personal tone of this short essay. I would rather think of it as an investigative documentary whose purpose it is to understand something of Chen Zhonghao’s fascinating (and mysterious) images. In this way, what he chooses to paint might be examined. I can’t offer any definitive examination because . . . who could? But I can say a few things.
I’ve known Zhonghao since 2004 and consider him one of my very best friends. I’ve seen his work develop in theme and content over the years; his prowess as a painter magnify; his approach become more and more focused. But I have not just been a spectator: Zhonghao and I have collaborated on a number of musical projects and I have seen him working first hand in this respect. Strangely, I have never seen him paint. This seems to be a private affair. Outside of the studio though, Zhonghao is in fact an extremely talented musician and composer and I believe his tendencies as a musical architect run in tandem with his painterly ones. And if I might say so, his paintings strike me as wonderfully musical. The interplay of foreground and background, the deliberate tinkering with the ‘space’ of the composition (often playfully skewed), the use of dynamics in the moments of stillness and abrupt crescendos, the inspired non-sequiturs, recognition and ambiguity (the recognizable instruments and the unrecognizable abstractions), moments of tonality over melody and vice versa, classical and punk, folk and experimental electronica, a journey both linear and non-linear. I see these as powerful structural elements in his work, as they are elements of his music.
I offer this as an alternative perspective on his images rather than a left-brained appraisal of art historical context and political statements. Zhonghao and I went through our mid twenties listening to the same music, becoming inspired by similar aesthetic trains of thought, and were on the same wavelength when collaborating with sound. I will say this: over the years Zhonghao tried his hardest to make musical statements that transcended expectations while still remaining listenable. Can you see this in his paintings? When making music Zhonghao would find the most unusual sounds to play in the middle of a song, or talk in an altered voice, play a keyboard in such a way to destroy the song, add impractical layers of polyrhythm, pick a dulcimer in 13/4 and record a bike wheel over it, anything to create a beautiful or intriguing sonic place while adding elements in a surprising or humorous way. Not unexpectedly, his compositions also tended towards complexity. Zhonghao instinctively knew that if done right, the complexity would collapse into a simple space of its own and he (and I) found this meditative in its own right. The complexity would stimulate the listener obliquely, and in the eye of the storm there would be calm. When calm, the ‘picture’ would open up.
Zhonghao would also contrast bright plastic noise-some sounds with plains of roiling digital darkness, and therein would be another structurally interesting juxtaposition. And he was always concerned with the authenticity of the music because it was never enough to be merely conceptual; the music had to be real. I doubt I could tell you what exactly this means, but I see it in his paintings. He is concerned with skill and craft as well as ideas. Screwing up a piece of paper and throwing it on the floor of an art gallery is not art to Zhonghao, or at least, it lacks quality. And you can see the effort and the attention to detail that goes into his work, which can only come from years of dedication to perfecting his techniques. In music, too, he was a perfectionist with his performances. It was never enough to merely edit everything in Pro Tools.
I believe all of these elements are in Zhonghao’s paintings. When I see his latest images I hear the same artist who made such challenging and four-dimensional music in my presence. I hear the same flexible performer who can play guitar, xun, dulcimer, harmonica, didgeridoo, and gu qing, among many other things (I think he could play any instrument if he wanted to). I hear the same artist who would push us both further and was not satisfied with music that didn’t offer something original. So it seems to me that what he chooses to paint, while informed by his philosophy, by his depth of feeling and by experience, is also pure music.
We made music together during the years we both lived in Christchurch, New Zealand. In 2011 we both left and went separate ways and for the first time since we met, we now live in different countries. As our paths diverge I wonder where my good friend’s painterly sensibilities will go. What kind of music will he will make in the years to come? I bet it will be quite unreal in content, but always real in execution.
Thom Page
Independent Critic/Sound Artist
我很想为陈钟昊的作品献上一份非学术的赞赏，集中在艺术家自身的一个侧面–那是他的音乐性–而非任何具体的绘画。 请谅解任何这篇短文中的个人口气。我更认为这是一部目的在于理解某些钟昊精彩（神秘）图像的研究性记录。从这个角度他在绘画中所做的对于“画什么”的决定和选择可能会得到一些证实。我不能提供任何明确的检验。。。谁能呢？但是我可以发表个别我的见解。
我从2004年起便以认识了钟昊并认为他是我最好的朋友之一。我目睹了他这几年中作品主题和内容的发展；他作为画家的能力在增长；他的处理方法变得越来越专注。但我并不只是单纯的作为一名观众；钟昊和我曾经在好几个音乐项目中进行过合作，我也在这方面第一手观看到了他的创造。奇怪的是，我从未亲眼见他画过画。这好像是他的个人外恋。不过在画室外，钟昊其实是一个极其有天赋的音乐家和作曲者，我相信这种作为一名音乐性建筑师的倾向与他的绘画是齐头并进的。如果我可以这么说的话，他绘画的精彩音乐性给我留下深刻印象。前景与背景的相互影响，构图中空间的熟练摆弄（经常是调皮般倾斜的），在静态的瞬间和突然的渐强时所使用的动态，受到灵感的非逻辑性产物，识别–含糊比如可辨别的乐器和无法辨别的声音抽象，片刻覆盖着主旋律的音调和其相反运用，古典和朋克，民谣和实验电子，一次同时线性的和非线性的旅途，我认为这是他作品中强劲的构建性因素，就如同他音乐中的因素。
我提供的是一种对他图像的另类的视角而不是偏左脑的艺术历史语境和政治声明的赞扬。钟昊和我在听着同样的音乐中度过了我们“二十年龄段”的中期， 为同样的美学思想而受到灵感启发，我们也同样在音乐创作时心有灵犀。我可以这么说：这些年钟昊尽最大的努力去尝试让音乐在超越期待时又同时保持可听性。你能在他的画面中看到这些吗？在制作音乐中钟昊会找到最不常见的声音并将它们置放在曲目的中间，或者用变声对话，用怪异到能摧毁曲目的键盘弹奏，添加没有实用性的复合节奏层，用13/4的节奏弹一段扬琴并录制自行车轮胎的声音覆盖其上，任何可以创造出美丽的或者有神奇魅力空间的东西同时以令人惊喜的或者幽默的方式加入各种因素。不出乎意料，他的音乐结构也趋向于复杂。钟昊直觉性地发现如果执行的成功，这种复杂将会坍塌裂变为一种属于她自己的空间，他（和我）发现这个过程本身是冥想的。 这种复杂会非直接地激励听众，就像暴风中心的平静。 当平静到来时，“画面”就会打开。
钟昊也会将亮丽的塑料噪音与颠簸的数码黑暗进行对比，因此而形成另一种结构上有意思的并置。他总是为了音乐的确实性而担心因为单单的概念性是不够的；音乐必须是真实的。我怀疑我可以完全告诉你她的含义，但是我在他的绘画中见到她。他也像想法一样关心技巧和手工。揉捏一张纸后将它丢进一个艺术画廊对于钟昊来讲不能算作是艺术，或最起码，它缺少些东西。你可以看到他绘画中的努力和在作品细节上所花费的精力，这些都必须是在长期坚持不断的练习中才能够得以完善。在音乐方面也同样如此，面对自己的演奏和表演他永远是个完美主义者。单一的在Pro Tools里编辑所有东西是绝对不够的。
我相信所有的这些因素都存在于钟昊的绘画中。当我看到他最新的图像时，我眼前听到是由同一个艺术家所创造的带有挑战性和4D的音乐。我听到了同一个演奏吉它，勋，扬琴，口琴，迪吉里杜管和古琴等的灵活表演者（我想只要他愿意他可以演奏任何乐器）。我听到了同一个不断促使我们俩不停向前探索和无法为不能带来原创性的音乐而感到满足的艺术家。所以，对于我来说他所选择去画的，同时被他个人哲理，他深层的感受和体验所启发的，也是纯粹的音乐。
同在新西兰基督城居住期间我们一起制作了音乐。2011年我们同时离开了并从我们认识以来第一次步入了各自的旅途，我们现在生活在不同的国家。当我们的路途分岔时我很好奇我这位好朋友的画家敏感性将如何成长发展？在未来几年他会制作什么样的音乐？我敢打赌她的内容会是非现实的，但他的完成总会是真实的。
Thom Page
独立音乐人/实验音乐人