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Edition #2:
Kai-Oi Jay Yung
Interval; A Narrative Psychosis
11 Dec 2010 – 16 Jan 2011
Cornerhouse, Manchester, Gallery 1
This winter, Cornerhouse continues its annual month-long programme venture Edition, with the second instalment Edition #2, which presents new works by artist Kai-Oi Jay Yung.
The exhibition comprises of a multi-channel video installation, which includes new work, Amnesia; A Rehearsal (2010) and Sarah Winchester; A Mystery House (2010), plus a series of accompanying documentaries and ambient films, which make up the overall show,Interval; A Narrative Psychosis presented in Cornerhouse’s Gallery 1 space.
Interval; A Narrative Psychosis draws on Yung’s recent investigative journey across Hong Kong and California. Throughout 2007 and 2008, Kai-Oi Jay Yung undertook a research trip with a focus on pinpointing parallels between the topographical, social, and political landscapes across Kowloon to New Territories, San Francisco, LA and into the Mojave dessert. Whilst there, Yung gathered a volume of footage; some 60 hours worth combine chance encounters with pre-arranged interviews and location specific filming. After producing the main focal and counterpoint piece for this show, Amnesia; A Rehearsal (2010), Jay has compiled this footage into a series of themed short films that explore Love, Architecture, Present, Death, Incantation and Journey, which are presented within a labyrinthine installation. Expect ghost operas, unspoken ceremonies, and traces of invasion and colonisation interspersed with Yung’s own
experiences – from the South China seas to Palm Springs, from a Hong Kong face-reader to an Alcatraz inmate.
Amnesia; A Rehearsal (2010), sees a restaging of the occult fixations of 19th Century American figure, Sarah Winchester at the sprawling Winchester Mystery House in San Jose. Sarah believed she was haunted by a perceived curse, and spent her life doing outrageous things to this mansion house in an attempt to keep the evil spirits away. Today, the mystery mansion is open to the public, and Yung’s own experience of this inspired her to take on the persona of this fascinating character, exploring some of her obsessions through scripted and improvised performance. The resulting film also interweaves stories about Jane Austen and Marigold Verity, a harpist in Sherborne, Dorset, which links Yung’s residency at the Jane Austen Centre with San Jose.
Sarah Winchester; A Mystery House (2010), follows Yung’s interview with long-standing Wincester Mystery House director, Shozo Kagoshima on the house that Ms. Winchester built and its legacy, taking us behind the scenes of a life directed by séances and numerous years of construction.
Through her editing process, Yung explores the potential to distil and reconfigure individual experiences, inviting visitors to forge their own personal trajectories through the places and voices presented in the work as well as gaining a reflection of the artists’ own psyche.
Credits
This exhibition is produced by Cornerhouse with initial development through the Micro Commissions programme supported by the Paul Hamlyn Foundation.
Events
The exhibition will be accompanied by an Exploring Narrative workshop on Sat 18 December at 14:00, where Yung will lead an interactive exploration of her new commission using different creative approaches to consider the narrative themes running through this new work. Plus an informal introduction tour by Yung on Sat 15 January at 14:00-15:00, who will explore the themes and motivations surrounding her work.
Support
Initial development through the Micro Commissions programme supported by the Paul Hamlyn Foundation.