Song Dong's "Writing Diary with Water" at the 2018 Kochi-Muziris Biennale

From December 12, 2018 through March 29, 2019, Song Dong's Writing Diary with Water is on view at the Aspinwall House in Kochi, India, as part of the 2018 edition of the Kochi-Muziris Biennale.

An extension of an older series by the same name, Writing Diary with Water is situated in an encircled glass structure amid the greenery of the Aspinwall House grounds. Inside, paintbrushes are kept in water pots of different sizes and shapes, inviting visitors to dip the bristles in water and move the brushes along the translucent wall however they wish. With time, each visitor's design fades and disappears, inviting continuous interaction and engagement from each person that visits the installation. 

The work, according to the artist, is about the "inherent impermanence" of the world. “The interactive sculpture allows the same meditation on impermanence in a shared, secular space as a metaphor for the processes of history, lack of communication and alienation that the world is steeped in,” he adds. “Even the mirrored floors denote the temporariness. The reflection stays only when you are there. When the person leaves the place, it too vanishes.”

For more information, please visit the Kochi-Muziris Biennale's (opens in a new window) website.