Artists Ying Liu and Rachel Long will stage a performance partly inspired by the Mid-Autumn Festival at the Reservoir in Central Park tonight. On such a beautiful evening, why not head to the park and check it out? Press release: Ying Liu and Rachel Long: Breeze September 19, 6:30 – 7:30pm, 2013 On the night of Chinese Mid-Autumn Festival (also called Moon Festival, the 15th day of the eighth month on the lunar calendar), Ying Liu and Rachel Long will create a “gentle breeze” over the surface of Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis Reservoir with a single silver thread during a full moon. The performance starts right before sunset when two spools of silver string are tied together on the west side of the reservoir (paralleled with 86th street). As Ying Liu and Rachel Long walk in opposite directions, each releasing their first spool, the jointed thread is stretched into a straight line across the reservoir. New thread will be added to the existing length as the distance between Ying and Rachel increases. When they reach the pump houses respectively on north and south side of the reservoir, they will attach either end of the thread to the side of the pump houses and continue their walk until they meet each other. Then they will collect the thread together. The performance shall end after the collection of the thread, or when stopped by obstacles, (e.g., tree branches, park personnel, etc.) or when the thread breaks. The act, of roughly 45 minutes in duration, is a meditation on human connections. One of the traditions surrounding the Moon Festival is (family/friends) reunion. Through departure and reuniting, the performance suggests one of the simplest human grouping cycles. It also shows how brief and fleeting it is in relation to the history of the universe, even though the “breeze” created by the thread moving across the surface of the lake is almost in a kind of extreme slow motion. By leaving the thread alone (it could be easily taken off by a jogger or a park worker), it also evokes trust and confidence and risk-taking, traits that matter in human interactions. As two non-native New Yorkers, artists Ying Liu and Rachel Long are compelled to perform at the location of the iconic JKO Reservoir as a Thank You note to the City of New York which has made so many interesting encounters of personalities possible.
Posted on: Thu, 19 Sep 2013 20:58:41 +0000
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