​Artbites.

The work takes “green” and “plant” as dual themes to unfold interweaving imaginations and narratives. The two channels of the video were respectively shot in a studio and a tropical jungle, they have a consistent intertextual relationship in terms of concept and presentation. Green as a colour is far removed from humans’ skin colours, so it is used for cutting out images in film production. Plants are born of nature instead of humans. It is not only a signification of the colour of plants but also imbued with social significance, for instance, they are used in urban greenbelts to protect the environment, in green headbands used for protest, in green floors or countertops which are often seen in sports competitions, and in countless metaphors and symbols in paintings in art history. The artist deliberately blurs the boundaries between the ideas of “green” and “plant” in his thinking, thus presenting a false but true depiction of “artificial and natural”, “reality and camouflage” and “signification and symbol” in the video. The artificial greenery, green backdrops for special effects, green traffic lights, art historical images with botanical metaphors, and LED screens with rolling green texts appear alternately on the scenes, and are also interspersed in the video narrative. As the artist states, “This is a green space. Without depending on the narrative, the images themselves are left as green tones on different visual layers. At the same time, what is presented of the tone is the symbolic meaning of the color green as an abstract symbol at different levels.” Between various layers of green, Ma Haijiao has created a theatre of images in which green acts as a historical carrier, a cultural and abstract symbol, as well as a technological condition. Courtesy of the artist and Tabula Rasa Gallery Video ©Ma Haijiao

The work takes “green” and “plant” as dual themes to unfold interweaving imaginations and narratives. The two channels of the video were respectively shot in a studio and a tropical jungle, they have a consistent intertextual relationship in terms of concept and presentation. Green as a colour is far removed from humans’ skin colours, so it is used for cutting out images in film production. Plants are born of nature instead of humans. It is not only a signification of the colour of plants but also imbued with social significance, for instance, they are used in urban greenbelts to protect the environment, in green headbands used for protest, in green floors or countertops which are often seen in sports competitions, and in countless metaphors and symbols in paintings in art history. The artist deliberately blurs the boundaries between the ideas of “green” and “plant” in his thinking, thus presenting a false but true depiction of “artificial and natural”, “reality and camouflage” and “signification and symbol” in the video. The artificial greenery, green backdrops for special effects, green traffic lights, art historical images with botanical metaphors, and LED screens with rolling green texts appear alternately on the scenes, and are also interspersed in the video narrative. As the artist states, “This is a green space. Without depending on the narrative, the images themselves are left as green tones on different visual layers. At the same time, what is presented of the tone is the symbolic meaning of the color green as an abstract symbol at different levels.” Between various layers of green, Ma Haijiao has created a theatre of images in which green acts as a historical carrier, a cultural and abstract symbol, as well as a technological condition. Courtesy of the artist and Tabula Rasa Gallery Video ©Ma Haijiao