Week 1, message from 3.1412

Dear Tauren Shaman,

Warm greetings to you! It is serendipity to be connected. Over the next few weeks, I would love to share my art inspirations and thinking. It is an open exchange, and I welcome what you may want to share.

“To constitute an ideal object is to put it at the permanent disposition of a pure gaze.” – Jacques Derrida

In the past year, my life has had immense realizations, due to sudden events and cumulation of doings. The most important learning for me, is understanding “presence”. Within the dichotomous frame, absence seems to be the counter. I want to embrace and feel beyond that, for presence to fill the being. A being with things, a being with senses.

Best regards,
3.1412

Week 2, Message from Tauren Shaman

Dear 3.1412,

The compressed file contains my feedback on the text you wrote before. Please check it. :)

The word "absence" you mentioned reminds me of many things. It's the starting point of many of my works and also the source of the pictures you'll see.

These images point to a creative process that didn't reach its intended outcome, or rather, didn't achieve what I wanted at that time. But I didn't continue to try; I just stopped. Or, from another perspective, they continue to exist in another way: starting from two years ago, and even further back, from seventeen years ago, from the moment that "event" ended, until now.

Perhaps there's no need for others to see the result, because the "process" is still carried by these papers at this moment.

After this collaboration (game) is over, if you're interested, I'll tell you the specific details about this failed work. But for now, with these images, I'm responding to your first text and also want to pose a question to you: In what circumstances would the «Process» (continuously experiencing "existence") be more important than the result? Maybe I can get your answer from you : )

Thank you for your time.

Best wishes,
Tauren Shaman

Week 3, Message from 3.1412

Dear Tauren Shaman,

Thank you for sharing so openly about your “failed work”, linked to the idea of absence. It seems that this creative process has certainly stayed within you, and sounds more like an ongoing thinking rather than a “failed” work.

You asked an interesting question: In what circumstances would the «Process» (continuously experiencing "existence") be more important than the result?

I would like to share my personal experience in response to your question. Last year, I was diagnosed with cancer. It was a big shock to me and my family, and I initially thought about all the worst outcomes including death. I was put on a treatment plan of chemotherapy and surgery, and the medical team also advised me to exercise and eat well to build up my body to withstand the treatment effects. It was especially gruelling during the chemotherapy, but I held hope that if I could push through the treatment, I still could live. Thankfully, I completed the whole treatment process, I am now in remission and monitor my health regularly. Having to work on my health and fight for my life has changed everything. The result at this point is that I am now cancer-free. But it may still come back later, some relatives and friends have shared that they have battled cancer two times, or even three times.

 So I think the process is just as important as the result of the intermittent moment, because that fighting spirit and the new mindset I’ve gained are necessary for the longer journey. I do believe that as artists, sometimes art and life follow parallel trajectories, and they come out from the same being of inspiration and action. In line with this, another approach to art and life that I have been thinking much about, is Gesamtkunstwerk, which translates as a "total work of art" and describes an artwork, design, or creative process where different art forms are combined to create a single cohesive whole. Perhaps this would be a way of looking at how the ongoing process could loop into various points of results.

Welcome your thoughts or works that you may want to share. Thank you

Regards,
3.1412

Week 4, Message from Tauren Shaman

Dear 3.1412,

I'm sorry for replying 2 days late.

Thank you very much for opening up so sincerely to me. I'm glad that you overcame the physical challenges and the premature call of death. Even if life and living are full of hardships and trivialities, they are still worth our best efforts to cherish and love. My cousin also previously underwent surgery for cancer. If you allow, I would like to convey your story to him, hoping it can inspire him.

On the other hand, given the pain you have endured and your battle against the illness, if I were to say that I understand, it would be extremely insincere. So I made a small thing, hoping that in the future I could give it to you. In this region where I live, there is a plant called 

 (I'm not quite sure about the exact English name for this plant.). In our traditional medicine culture, it has certain effects on regulating the immune function and post-cancer recovery. I used the leaves of this plant to try to form a circle， laid it on the pulp，and after drying, it turned into the form shown in the attached photo. The circle corresponds to your ID name. It represents circulation，continuation，and also new life. But this circle formed by the leaves is definitely not a perfect circle and cannot be perfectly parallel to π. But that's life. Sometimes there will be stagnation，repair，and restart.

Regarding the Gesamtkunstwerk you explained in the last paragraph, I think it also means that the production and practice of art are not solely aimed at the final, single, complete work. Sometimes, the purpose of artistic actions is the process itself and the real-time impact, which can occur within the rhythm of daily life. Just like the collaborative project we are involved in. Of course, "a total work of art" is a topic that can be discussed further. Maybe later we can exchange views on specific artistic practices.

Hope your road to recovery goes smoothly and with peace of mind! :)

Best,
Tauren Shaman