Rayna Li and Wenxin Tang (order by last name), ESCAPEment
2020
Video
Can anyone escape from the omnipresent influence of time?
To wrestle with the intangibility of the ever-elapsing hours, humans have invented the mechanical clock as their aide. At the center of this intricate piece of machinery is a small mechanical linkage called the escapement. It is this regulating device that enables the controlled advancement of the clock hands, which have now risen as the visible surrogate for temporality itself.
Our work started as a conceptual exploration of the many paradoxes embodied by the clock and the act of timekeeping. The peculiar name of the ‘escapement’ fascinates us. While suggesting the potential to escape and referencing the act of release, the escapement as a physical device serves one unwavering purpose — enforcing predictable precision if not onerous order.
This implicit detachment of the escapement’s appearance in etymological terms from its function in actuality serves as the theoretical basis of our mask design. Like the escapement, the mask releases information strategically; its use fluctuates in the liminal space between freedom and constraint. Laser-cut technology is central to our design. Yet, these clean-cut shapes and forms inspired by the clock’s inner workings are nevertheless subject to spontaneous manipulation by a human designer. We explore the fraught relationship between humans and the systems they invented further through the choreography, emphasizing repetition, juxtaposition, and problematized symbiosis.
The dance portrays this loop of fate and non-escapement by incorporating the idea of Lever Escapement. The dancer as a clock, following the rule of time at the start, tries to escape, struggle, and break free, but eventually back to the starting point. We explore the mechanic sound - the clock ticking, and natural sound - heartbeat and breath.
The film projected on the wall features stillness in that the dancer has a dancing dialogue with the visual art installation on her head, a revelation of falling down and yearning - and the dancer on the stage interacts with the film through movements.
Through this work, we present a vision of time and timekeeping technology as fractured, contradictory, and open to multiple interpretations.
Creative Team:
Rayna Li - Studio Art & Production Design
Wenxin Tang - Choreography & Performance
Technical Advisor: Leah Dou, Yifan Lin
