Appendix: Hysterical Attack, 2019
Single channel video projection, black & white, stereo sound, 4 min 6 sec, dimensions variable
In the nineteenth century, Dr. Jean-Martin Charcot asked the female patients at Salpêtrière Hospital to portray their particular hysterical type in front of the camera. The iconography as medical documentation has been stated to be true and objective, however it is actually highly performative. The project addresses the relationship between the development of photography and the medical category of hysteria. Based on medical images, it reconstructs and imitates hysterical attack movements in order to highlight the manipulation of these documents.
Che-Wei Chen’s recent practice has focused on the subjectivity of people with mental disorders and reflected upon the complexity of contemporary conditions. He explores the boundaries between reality and fiction through multiple perspectives within complex structures and narratives. His work not only reveals the repressed collective unconscious but also re-examines the power and political structures underlying the social system. Besides, the artist also addresses issues such as postcolonialism, modernity, classification, biopolitics, etc.
Chen has participated in many exhibitions and artist in residence programs in recent years such as Spear, Künstlerhaus Bethanien, Berlin (2019); Cité Internationale des Arts, Paris (2018); The Vessel of Time, Museum of Contemporary Art, Taipei (2017); Tropical Cyclone, Kuandu Museum of Fine Arts, Taipei (2017); RIVERRUN, Taipei Fine Arts Museum, Taipei (2017); Oblivion: Yang-Shen-Yuan, Taipei Fine Arts Museum, Taipei (2016).
CROSSED SEASON
FRANCE - PORTUGAL
Appendix: Hysterical Attack
Che Wei Chen
CRITICAL HISTORIOGRAPHY
