文_马泉

探究、实验、解码、编码

Explore, Experiment, Decode, Code

关键词：认知、动机、生产

Key Words: Acknowledge, Motivation, Creation

城市空间：人群聚落、建筑阵列、街道花园等应有尽有，但似乎与你无关。城市是人类制作的盆景。

City Environment: A city has everything, from population settlements and building permutations to street side gardens, yet these all seem irrelevant to you. Cities are man’s pot of creation.

沙漠空间：看似什么都没有，但无数沙粒尘埃组成的宏大空间，反而有无穷的想象与微观中的宏大！我喜欢在城市与沙漠这两个空间中转换，有中见无，无中生有。算是两个不同的场域，一个人造，一个天造，它们都具有场景性。

Desert Environment: This grand space created by countless sand and dust seems empty, but in truth, it embodies immeasurable imagination and glory through a micro lens. I love transitioning between cities and deserts, nothing created by something, and something created by nothing. These environments are differentiated by their provenance, one artificial, and the other natural, yet they both have individual sceneries.

十年前，一次内蒙之行，被朋友带到沙漠，严格来说还不算是纯粹沙漠，沙地加杂草之类的，部分沙漠……。Ten years ago, I, along with my friends, visited theA Desert during a trip to Mongolia. Strictly speaking,This Desert was a half desert instead of a complete desert because there were weeds that grew in the area.

我和轮胎第一次与沙地接触，兴奋不已，从来没有这种体验，进去才明白，车子根本就走不了，给油就陷车，越加油越陷车，最后干脆底盘直接落地，得，彻底动不了了，后来知道进沙漠之前要放掉部分轮胎的气，使车子轮胎与沙地接触面增大，加大摩擦面积，慢慢启动，等车速起来了，再根据地形较快的行进，尽量不要停车，要停也要停到好起步的硬沙地面或者有点坡度的沙丘，以防再次启动时陷车，这些都是慢慢才懂得的。

It was the first time I had ever set foot in a desert as well as the first time the car I was driving had ventured into such a place. I was extremely excited for I had never experienced this before. After gazing at the spectacular desertscape, we decided to proceed on our journey. I started the car, stepped on the gas, and soon realized that it could not move not all as the wheels sank deep into the sand. Then the chassis fell straight to the ground. I thought,“Great! Now we are completely stuck here.”I was then told I needed to deflate the wheel slightly in order to increase the surface of the wheel touching the ground, thus increasing the surface for friction. I started the engine and proceeded to move slowly forward, accelerating only when the topography allowed. It is important to avoid having to restart a car, and in cases where absolutely necessary, it is suggested to move to an area with hard sand or a steep hill to prevent the car from sinking. These were all the things I gradually understood as we attempted to return to safer roads.

尽管会有同伴一起，但，其实始终要自己面对各种未知地形和独自驾驶，只有在陷车或者遇到危险情况时，大家才互相救援帮助，最好自己掌握一些脱困技巧，尽量不麻烦人家。大家都是出来体验的，沙漠里由于地形复杂危险，难免出现险情，如车子在沙坡上侧行，抗拒着地球的引力，经常会因为掌控不好，造成失速，车子就会挂在侧坡上，这是比较好的情况了（严重的就直接翻滚下来了）。这时候就需要同伴救援。

Although I was accompanied by my friends, as the one behind the wheel, I alone needed to face the unpredictable topography and maneuver the car safely for all of us. Only during times when I was in a dangerous situation or when the car sank would my companions help me. To this end, it was better that I learned to recognize and escape from dangers on my own instead of having to bother others constantly. All of us were in the desert for the experience, but owing to its complicated and menacing topography, dangerous situations were unavoidable. For example, the car could sidetrack down the hill, not to mention the more serious situation of the car just toppling down. In these scenarios, I needed my friends to rescue me.

通常，有个大家共同认可的默契，虽然结伴同行，但并不承担彼此的生命责任，有救援的义务，所以，应该量力而行，谨慎行车，既不能致自己于危险中，也尽量不给同伴添压力，所以，其实是在自己面对所有困难。

Usually, there is unspoken mutual consent for cooperation. Although we traveling together, we were not responsible for one another’s lives; instead, we were obligated to help one another. Therefore, everyone needed to move in their own capacity, drive carefully, not put our own lives in danger, and minimize the times we impose pressure on others. In the end, I needed to face the challenges myself.

之后，不知怎么，特别喜欢沙漠，有一种久违的感觉，然后就坚持每年平均两到三次进入沙漠腹地，也就是十一长假、春节或者元旦时间，每到这些假期前半个月，就开始准备各种设备工具和精神状态。不知道为什么这样，以至于都怀疑我的祖先是从沙漠里出来的，到了我这一代返祖了，总能听到来自远古祖先的呼唤，还好，幸好返祖到沙漠，没弄得浑身长毛。

After this trip, I started to love the desert; it brings me a long-lost feeling but I do not know why. Therefore, I insisted on returning to the desert two to three times every year during the October holiday, New Year festival, and Spring festival. A half-month before these holidays, I begin preparing all kinds of equipment as well as mentally prepare myself. I am confused as to the reason I love desert to the point where I question if my ancestry was of the desert, and it was only until my generation that we returned to my birthplace. I can almost hear my ancestors calling. Fortunately, I will not become hairy by returning numerous times to the desert.

也许是习惯了在人类社会环境的生活，也习惯了各种复杂结构和制约，突然进入到陌生的无人沙漠自然空间，真有点不知所措，不知道该如何和沙漠打交道，再加上地形的复杂险恶，操控技术的生疏，恐惧感油然而生，生怕阴沟里翻船，即使操控技术已经提高，这种恐惧感依然存在，但，心态已经舒缓，可以开始适应这个地球另类空间带给自己的极致般的惊喜，也尝试慢慢打量和沉浸在她的怀抱里享受下极致孤独后的通畅。

Perhaps I am accustomed to living in a civilized society with all its complicated structures and restrictions. I was overwhelmed as I entered the unfamiliar natural space of a desert, not knowing how to interact with it. Fear arouse as I was rusty with my driving technique in addition to the complex and dangerous topography. Even with my improved techniques, I was scared I would fail and this feeling refused to cease. However, as I calmed down, I was able to adapt to the surprises that this other space on earth brings. Moreover, I was able to attempt to indulge myself in her arms as I enjoyed the smoothness after extreme solitude.

我在想，这应该算是回到了人类出发的地方，那种似曾相识又非常陌生但又无比亲近的空间，或许就是地球编码的一个区域，否则不可能唤醒我身体内沉睡的、莫名的、冥冥之中的冲动，嗯……，看来我要好好的深入了解她，研究她……。并“解码”她。这就是我创作动机的缘起。而这个强烈的创作动机，是在我沙漠探究六年之后才有，也就是2012年。

I thought,“This is like returning to the birth of humanity—that familiar, intimate, yet estranged space.”Maybe the desert is a place coded by earth, because it can summon me to sleep, an inexplicable and faint sense of impulsion in my body. It seems as if I have to thoroughly comprehend her, explore her, and, importantly, decode her. This is my motivation for creation, a motivation that has only existed for six years since my exploration in the desert in 2012.

这个冲动决定，导致了我近十年的时间投入和实验，可以看作是个生产过程，这个启动貌似有计划，但创作开始后，就陷入了各种混乱，材料，技术，工具等等不适应，更麻烦的是，以为自己清楚，实际上内容始终混沌不清，仅熟悉工具就用了很长时间，还有初期对沙漠场景的不忍割舍导致的主观认识很难形成。

This impulsive decision led to a decade’s worth of effort and experimentation, perhaps even a process of production. This beginning seems as if it was well planned out, but it was not until I have started creating did I drown all sorts of chaos, including materials, techniques, and tools, among many others. It became even more vexing when I thought I was keen but was in fact clueless, simply getting to know the tools took me a long time. Furthermore, as I was unwilling to eliminate the scenery in the desert, my objective perception was difficult to form.

以及太多预想不到的问题和形式范式干扰，就像我曾经说过的，“理解她容易，表达她是另一回事”，过程中也的确是这样，时而曙光乍现，时而跌入低谷，好不容易形式语言有点起色，又陷入新的怀疑……。

The desert embodies numerous unpredictable challenges and paradigm interferences. As I previously said,“It is easy to comprehend her, but it is difficult to express her.”This process is similar to this place; sometimes it shines into triumph, sometimes it falls into the trough, and just as its structural language improves somewhat, it immediately falls into new doubts.

起初因空间条件限制，只能从水墨入手，陆陆续续实验了四年多，也有了点意思，但总感觉缺了很多东西，水墨不能完全表达我对沙漠的整体回应，就问自己，到底你想要什么？记得很清楚，当时我的回答是，声音，对，纯粹的声音，我自己创作的声音，还要时间性和空间，要精确的文献数据，要这要那，没完没了……。

At the beginning, due to spatial restraints, I could only start from paper and ink. Gradually, after four years of experimenting, I started to understand but it still felt like I was missing various things. Paper and ink were not able to fully express my response to the desert, so I asked myself,“What do you really want?”I remember clearly the response I gave,“My voice.”It was true. I yearned for a pure voice, the voice of my creation, with time and spatial factors, with accurate data, with this, with that, with everything.

到这时，我才开始逐渐清晰我到底要表达什么，那就是整体结构的叙事，对，是沙漠场域体验后的整体回应。既有对具体空间的回应，又有观念的回应，既要回应沙漠，又要回应自己……。带着这些新的角度，又不断的去沙漠，寻找和采集以往忽略的数据，观念的清晰，导致平时没注意的细节也都开始得到解读。同时，也开始了其它媒介的工具学习和创作实验。

It was not until then that I began to realize what I truly wanted to express; it was the delineation of the desert’s overall structure. Indeed, it was the response after fully experiencing the desert area, not only the response to the specific space, but also a conceptual response both to the desert as well as myself. With this new perception in mind, I continued to visit the desert, searching and collecting previously neglected data. My clear vision allowed me to decipher previously ignored details. At the same time, I started learning about other mediums and experiments.

这可能是几十年做设计养成的习惯吧，总要对自己的决定负责。设计是在解决别人问题中解决自身问题。自我探究和创作，是在解决自己的问题中介入社会问题！只是这次“客户”变成了自己，而且还是不断变化观念和要求，有时甚至不清楚自己要什么也始终对自己不满意的“客户”。

Perhaps it was my habit after 10 years in design, so I take responsibility for my decisions. Design is solving others’problem while likewise solving my own. Self-exploration and creation entail solving my own problem along with that of the society. Only this time, the“client”has become myself, one who has changeable perceptions and requirements. Sometimes, I am not even certain what I desire, a client who is never satisfied.

但我还是感谢自己大学的教育经历给我带来的非范式培养，使得我始终就没有把媒介本身的技术性当做我的主要关注点，才使得我毫无顾忌的根据叙事需要来尝试各种媒介的叙事可能性，并最终确定叙事媒介结构，即使这样，也还是需要大量的时间去学习媒介的基本技术原理，如绘画语言与材料技术，作曲的软件硬件和作曲所需手指的弹奏机能训练，影像的摄录与剪辑等等。有些人也许会说，可以找专业助手来做啊，我也想啊，但哪个人愿意给那个都不清楚自己要做什么的人当助手啊，怎么做啊！只能自己边学边做，边做边逐渐清楚！就当是用真诚的过程报答沙漠带给我的恩典吧，结果如何不重要了！走进沙漠需要勇气和技术，而走出沙漠去构建一个创作系统和语境并与之保持某种平行又不局限沙漠表象却很难。

I am thankful for my university education for it provided me with non-paradigm training. It taught me not to turn the techniques of a medium into my central focus. As a result, I am capable of exploring all the possibilities with the mediums depending on the requirements, thus determining the medium structure to delineate the events. Nonetheless, I still require considerable time to study and learn about the fundamental principles of the medium, such as painting language and material technology; software and hardware for composing; and the ability to play the fingerings required for composition, such as video recording and editing. Some people might say I can hire a professional assistant. It is not that I do not want one, but how can I find an assistant who is willing to work for someone who does not even know what they want to do? I can only learn and practice by myself and, in time, start to understand while I practice. I think of this process as using my sincerity to repay the grace the desert has given me. The result does not matter! Walking into the desert requires courage and skills, but walking out of the desert, creating a system and language for creation, and maintaining a parallel yet not constrained expression are infinitely more difficult.

2018年的某个时间，关山月美术馆副馆长颜为昕先生邀请做展，心想做了这么多年的实验，也有一定数量的作品积累，应该没问题，就满口答应，时间确定在2019年底。

Sometime in 2018, the director of“Guan Shan Yue”Art Gallery invited me to partake in an exhibition. I thought that after so many years of experimentations, I must have created a large collection of art works, so it should be fine. Thus, I accepted, and the exhibition time was determined to be at the end of 2019.

回来赶紧网罗已有的作品，才发现作品整体碎片化不成系统，很多自己的疑问尚未得到解答，文献也不够精确……。这时候才体会到散漫的自由研究和创作一旦有了时间性就显得苍白不堪。

I commenced examining all my existing art works as soon as I returned, but I realized my works were fragmented, lacking a consistent system of creation. Many of my questions remained answered, and the documentation was inaccurate. The sloppy research and creation were plain to see when time had passed.

如何在展期前完成梳理工作，如何不受时间干扰继续作品呈现方式的实验与探究，如何根据展览现有空间进行叙事结构的整体考量等等事项迫切的摆在了我的面前和有限的时间内！

How can I organize my work before the exhibition? How can I continue experimenting and exploring within the limited time frame? How can I delineate the structure and the overall picture given the spatial restraints. All these issues were right in front of me with very limited time left!

展览之约，加速了我实验的进程和速度，事实上，也的确很有成效，很多想法也是在准备展览期间被逼出来的，随着新实验作品形式的出现，也使得展览架构和内容板块得到不断优化，展览也是一种催化剂，所以，要感谢关山月美术馆，感谢颜为昕副馆长的邀请！

Accepting the offer to participate in the exhibition increased my experiment process and speed; in fact, it was effective. Many ideas were forced out of the preparation period for the exhibition. As new form of experimenting work arose, it optimized the exhibition structure and content sections. The exhibition was a catalyst. Thus, I am sincerely thankful for“Guan Shan Yue”Art Aallery and to Director Xin for his invitation.

如果说，沙漠探究和文献数据采集算作对沙漠的解码过程，那么观念的形成和作品实验呈现过程就是编码的过程，而展览本身，就是这一过程的整体呈现，过程就是结果，同时，也期待展览能够带来观众多维度解码程序的启动。

沙漠的空间场域宏大浩瀚，高大沙山连绵数万平方公里，且与周边环境千丝万缕。

If saying that desert exploration and documentation collection is the process for decoding the desert, then forming a perception and showcasing the experimental work is the process of coding. Hence, the exhibition itself is the representation of this entire procedure. The process is the result. At the same time, I am hoping that the exhibition can demonstrate to the audience the various dimensions of this decoding program procedure. The desert is vast; its tall sand mountains cover tens of thousands of square kilometers in territory, and the surrounding environments are inextricably linked.

在沙漠腹地，会有处于不真实的空间场景感觉，与经验里的空间形态无法对接，仿佛游离在地球之外的某个位置很不具体。

In the hinterland of the desert, there will be feelings of unrealistic spatial scenes, which cannot be docked with the spatial form of experience, similar to floating in a non-specific place outside the earth.

要说有什么近似的联想，最接近的就是曾经看过的火星或者其它星球的文献图片资料了，总之，不是熟悉的地球，很具体，也很抽象。

If I must offer an approximate association, then the closest thing is a documentary illustration of Mars or other planets that I have seen. In short, it is not a familiar earth, but rather one that it is highly specific and abstract.

我曾经在想，这里也许是早期人类离开的地方，从地球发展史来看，这里曾经也是过什么，如大海？森林？或者其它地貌，否则，地底下不可能有石油和地下水源，至少有机物存在过。地球在数亿年的形成过程中，经历了无数次变迁和自我整合运动，包括生命迭代更新，最终塑造了多样、生动的地球生态环境，同时，有选择的推进了生命形式的分类进化和升级，人类是被最终优选的唯一高级进化物种……。

I used to think that the desert may be the place where early humans left. From the perspective of the history of the earth, what has happened here? Was it the same as in the sea, the forest, or other landforms? If not, then it would have been impossible to have oil and water from under the ground or for the least organic matter to have existed. During the formation that took place over hundreds of millions of years, the earth underwent countless changes and self-integration movements, including the iterative renewal of life, which finally shaped a diverse and vivid ecological environment on earth. At the same time, such transformation has selectively promoted the evolution and upgrading of life forms. Human beings are the only advanced evolutionary species that are ultimately preferred.

也许上帝是存在的，这个上帝就是形成宇宙的推手和能量，谁知道呢！

Maybe God exists. God is the promoter and energy that formed the universe. Who knows?

有趣的是，宏大浩瀚无垠的沙漠，尽然是由一粒粒微小尘埃所组成的，小到肉眼几乎无法辩识，随着探究的深入，我的兴趣也逐渐由宏观的空间关照，转入对微观个体沙粒的好奇上来。

Interestingly, the vast desert is composed of tiny grains of dust almost invisible to the naked eye. As my inquiry deepened, my interest eventually transitioned from the macro space to the microscopic individual sand grains.

我想知道它们是谁？从哪来……

I want to know who they are and where they are from.

查阅了很多沙漠科学资料，大致了解了地理学方面的知识，以及沙漠的形成过程和成因。了解到一颗颗沙粒其实来自不同的区域，各种物质的尘埃在地球气压和季风作用下，神奇的历经数万年先后到达地球指定区域，逐渐形成目前的规模尺度。

I have reviewed extensive desert science materials, and I have a general understanding of geography and the formation process and causes of deserts. I learned that sand grains actually originate from different regions. Under the earth’s pressure and monsoon, the dust of various substances reached their designated area on earth after tens of thousands of years, gradually forming the current scale.

作为一粒沙尘，在浩瀚的大漠里，显得微不足道，当在高倍显微镜下观察时，你会发现每一粒微小的尘埃，都结构清晰复杂，五彩斑斓，生动有趣，表面呈现的各种纹路结构和痕迹，分明记录了自身摸爬滚打的身世，也记录了沙漠的发展简史，有的晶莹剔透，有的斑驳沧桑。

A tiny speck of dust appears to be insignificant in the vast desert. However, when you observe it under a high-power microscope, you will discover that every speck of dust has a clear and complex structure, colorful, vivid, and interesting with various lines on the surface. The structure and traces clearly record the life of each speck as well as offers a brief history of the desert’s development—some crystal clear, others mottled vicissitudes.

某种意义上来说，人类进化史与之非常相像，人类毕竟也是自然进化的产物。

In a sense, the history of human evolution is very similar to the evolution of the desert; after all, human beings are products of natural evolution.

用艺术的方式提出问题，用设计的方式解决问题！

Ask questions in an artistic way and solve problems in a design way!