Le Liang

07/2023

Installations & Videos

Roland Miller’s book “Intimate Relationships” mentions that ideal partners for men focus on appearance, while women focus on resources. However, everyone expects their partners to be kind, easygoing, lovable, and warm. When facing a partner, we are often enamoured with subjective fantasies of the “other” and driven by intense passion. But once the false facade is stripped away, the disparity between imagination and reality creates a significant relationship gap. The process from sweetness to boredom in a relationship is particularly complex. Despite disappointments, separating and letting go of intimate relationships becomes difficult. These emotions undoubtedly do not serve as shackles or bondage.

Based on my personal experiences, I have created the “Bondage of Love” series of installation artworks. I documented the process of creating the installations through photography and video recordings. In the post-production editing of the videos, I incorporated voiceovers from movie clips featuring couples making vows, sweet moments, arguments, and painful breakups. This was done to express abstract emotions in relationships, such as suffocation, sugar-coated bullets, and incompatible connections that are difficult to articulate.
 

1.Sugar-Coated Bullets

“Sugar-Coated Bullets,” features resin-coated iron nails arranged to resemble lollipops. It symbolizes how relationships often start sweet like candy while remaining unaware of the hidden thorns beneath the candy’s outer coating.

2.Suffocation

“Suffocation,” is one of the most time-consuming pieces. It represents something created out of nothingness. I used glass rods to construct cube-like forms and secured them with plastic wrap and UV glue. In the centre, there is a silicon-made breathing device in flesh colour. The cube is surrounded by iron nails, symbolizing the pain and unbearable aspects of relationships that cannot be severed. It represents the struggle and suffocation within a relationship.

3.Broken Mirror Reunion

“Broken Mirror Reunion,” involves smashing a vase and reassembling it using staples, resulting in a wholly transformed appearance. Even if water is poured into the reconstructed vase, it continuously leaks from all sides. This represents the evolution of a relationship from its beginning to its end, reflecting the ancient Chinese proverb that a broken mirror can be reunited but never return to its original state.

4.Man & Woman/Contrasting Efforts

“Man & Woman/Contrasting Efforts,” features canvas surfaces showcasing the contrasting efforts made by men and women in relationships. The male side predominantly displays physical efforts, while the female side exhibits a chaotic assortment of objects. This installation highlights the different attitudes and emotions between men and women in dealing with relationships, expressing the inequality within intimate relationships.

5.Decaying Wood

“Decaying Wood,” draws inspiration from the saying, “Decaying wood cannot be carved.” It also echoes the phrase “All that glitters is not gold”, which describes how appearances can be deceiving. The same applies to relationships. No matter how elaborately adorned, decaying wood ultimately turns to nothingness. Therefore, I futilely decorate the wooden surface with dripping red candle wax, capturing its burning process. This expresses the futility often experienced in relationships.