74. KAMI HU: A SPACE BETWEEN THE COSMOS AND THE DEW.
Kami Hu. 2023.
The first time we met - I heard you before I saw your work - do you remember this? You asked a question on a zoom without a camera - and you spoke as you create - poetically precise and rooted in curiosity - asking me about my perception of cosmic order...
Yes, that’s in a Critical Historical Study lecture I think, you mentioned of cosmic spirit, by coincidence, I’m working on my dissertation studying cosmic dance at that time. Though I forgot about what we talked, we knew each other without seeing or knowing anything, but with a concept, that’s cool. After the Zoom, we followed each other on Instagram, then finally we met in London.
And then when we met - I remember - iced avocado green juice and an armful of first edition catalogues of Isamu Noguchi with their canvas covers behind tawn paper jackets... and we spoke of the present and dreams for the future - that was a few years ago - and now you are in Shanghai - what are your memories and learnings from this time?
And crepes. We had crepes that day : ) mine is strawberry flavoured. You had classic vanilla flavoured. From London to Shanghai, my dreams are the same. My job required lots of travel, I worked in different cities not only in Shanghai, but sometimes in the wild. But I didn’t change much, I still use the tawny paper-covered notebook to record what I’ve learned.
Kami Hu, Yangzhou, Jiangsu, 2023. For M-A (A SPACE BETWEEN) issue 3.
Your pictures for the new issue of M-A (A SPACE BETWEEN) are charged with a state of MA - can you recall the experience behind making that series...
That’s an unexpected journey —— to the secret garden of Bonsai on the rooftop. Chinese try to conclude the natural mountains and rivers into their artificial works, either paintings or sculptures, also gardens. That’s Bonsai’s principle. Before I visited the garden, I read a photo book of Japanese photographer Yamamoto Masao. The name of the book is Bonsai - Microcosms Macrocosms, in Japanese and Chinese is 手中一滴, which means a dew in hand. This originates from Zen Buddhism—— the cosmos is in a dew. With these notions I observed the Bonsai very carefully, shot them in a close distance with micro lenses. After the Bonsai garden, I also visited He Garden built in late Qing Dynasty, where I saw how they use corridors, windows, mirrors to extend and fold spaces, to “frame” nature into architecture.
You didn't study fashion but you have such an understanding - a way far beyond clothing - the emotion, the touch, the science of transience, the freedom of movement, the erotism of the unsaid, the tension of poise... what is your reading of this period of time and how are you translating it from your media?
My favourite fashion designers are great artists at the same time, they know precisely what they want to convey, it can be a concept, or some kind of temperament. They use textile, cutting, styling, shows to perform their art. As an image maker, I try to understand and feel the spirit in their design, imagine the profile of who will wear this, then I choose my tool to annotate the design. Fashion is a strong manifesto of “who I am”.
You studied in London during such a period of change and unrest - what do you feel is the legacy - the effect of that period on culture in terms of your generation?
We learned to live with uncertainty, and witnessed the fragility of human beings and social structures. We are aware of wilderness in civilisation. Many of my generation moved from metropolitans to small towns and countryside. I personally think it’s good, since it’s normal if we look through our history.
Kami Hu, Yangzhou, Jiangsu, 2023. For M-A (A SPACE BETWEEN) issue 3. Still life image: Harry Nathan.