https://commonimprint.com commonimprint Wed, 15 Apr 2026 19:53:57 +0000 https://commonimprint.com en https://commonimprint.com/Common-Practice-01 Wed, 15 Apr 2026 19:53:57 +0000 commonimprint https://commonimprint.com/Common-Practice-01 Common Practice, Gemeinsame Praxis, 공동의 실천, 共同实践 – Led by Dokho&nbsp;Shin <img width="2400" height="1600" width_o="2400" height_o="1600" data-src="https://freight.cargo.site/t/original/i/ff4e9ff2aac104578319792d3cf3714cb236065ce9118cf1fc469d58a44f19df/A-Never-Ending-Stone.JPG" data-mid="247256527" border="0" src="https://freight.cargo.site/w/1000/i/ff4e9ff2aac104578319792d3cf3714cb236065ce9118cf1fc469d58a44f19df/A-Never-Ending-Stone.JPG" /> <img width="2400" height="1317" width_o="2400" height_o="1317" data-src="https://freight.cargo.site/t/original/i/d2b590e8c5c2afe4e841fd8585cf5ea56a030bf8d0f742430f4adcab1deeee69/archive-prism.JPG" data-mid="247256528" border="0" src="https://freight.cargo.site/w/1000/i/d2b590e8c5c2afe4e841fd8585cf5ea56a030bf8d0f742430f4adcab1deeee69/archive-prism.JPG" /> <img width="2400" height="1388" width_o="2400" height_o="1388" data-src="https://freight.cargo.site/t/original/i/dc266ad1b876ed89c9c1c3c7508e84dbc06ea8d875c438022c03d742a3b0646f/ars-viva-2025-1.JPG" data-mid="247256529" border="0" src="https://freight.cargo.site/w/1000/i/dc266ad1b876ed89c9c1c3c7508e84dbc06ea8d875c438022c03d742a3b0646f/ars-viva-2025-1.JPG" /> <img width="1800" height="2400" width_o="1800" height_o="2400" data-src="https://freight.cargo.site/t/original/i/891e0cc0197aadbf8a222def69d1e667a6e07fe0cdf8531bfe64563d93acebef/ars-viva-2025-2.JPG" data-mid="247256530" border="0" src="https://freight.cargo.site/w/1000/i/891e0cc0197aadbf8a222def69d1e667a6e07fe0cdf8531bfe64563d93acebef/ars-viva-2025-2.JPG" /> <img width="1600" height="2400" width_o="1600" height_o="2400" data-src="https://freight.cargo.site/t/original/i/39d54ddf8a671c1fdf37abea48e3c8f4dbae5561b1e086b522e940d8c3be59e9/Faces-zine.JPG" data-mid="247256531" border="0" src="https://freight.cargo.site/w/1000/i/39d54ddf8a671c1fdf37abea48e3c8f4dbae5561b1e086b522e940d8c3be59e9/Faces-zine.JPG" /> <img width="2400" height="1600" width_o="2400" height_o="1600" data-src="https://freight.cargo.site/t/original/i/beb73763c7e664812b8be9adc6d92003fb4ac1267a6f38e17b471a11f9232488/GRAPHIC--47--.JPG" data-mid="247256532" border="0" src="https://freight.cargo.site/w/1000/i/beb73763c7e664812b8be9adc6d92003fb4ac1267a6f38e17b471a11f9232488/GRAPHIC--47--.JPG" /> <img width="2400" height="1600" width_o="2400" height_o="1600" data-src="https://freight.cargo.site/t/original/i/f7f185a2920fe6cc9dd69388b2395ff6459505fe3bfd24e21e7e1ea81c51d652/GRAPHIC--51-Art-Book-Fair-Now.JPG" data-mid="247256533" border="0" src="https://freight.cargo.site/w/1000/i/f7f185a2920fe6cc9dd69388b2395ff6459505fe3bfd24e21e7e1ea81c51d652/GRAPHIC--51-Art-Book-Fair-Now.JPG" /> <img width="2400" height="1800" width_o="2400" height_o="1800" data-src="https://freight.cargo.site/t/original/i/3dc45e903ca1a95d295b59d05658b279b9f6c72a6fc8318bc196d8b01473379b/How-to-work.JPG" data-mid="247256534" border="0" src="https://freight.cargo.site/w/1000/i/3dc45e903ca1a95d295b59d05658b279b9f6c72a6fc8318bc196d8b01473379b/How-to-work.JPG" /> <img width="2400" height="1600" width_o="2400" height_o="1600" data-src="https://freight.cargo.site/t/original/i/4c3abacaec0f0ba9f31df45c0000f342c85bf5bbee74a50cdfc262f83d8621dd/No-Middle-Ground.JPG" data-mid="247256535" border="0" src="https://freight.cargo.site/w/1000/i/4c3abacaec0f0ba9f31df45c0000f342c85bf5bbee74a50cdfc262f83d8621dd/No-Middle-Ground.JPG" /> <img width="2400" height="1600" width_o="2400" height_o="1600" data-src="https://freight.cargo.site/t/original/i/bb086305421d098361da9c66d3adf981ea197d461a1447c6a15992bf606361b6/Numbered-Landscape.JPG" data-mid="247256536" border="0" src="https://freight.cargo.site/w/1000/i/bb086305421d098361da9c66d3adf981ea197d461a1447c6a15992bf606361b6/Numbered-Landscape.JPG" /> <img width="1600" height="2400" width_o="1600" height_o="2400" data-src="https://freight.cargo.site/t/original/i/869113b4206cc41f67d5d0144f9ca6f3d8ddf54b622e0159d345f42c3d53911a/The-Non-Statistical-Body.JPG" data-mid="247256537" border="0" src="https://freight.cargo.site/w/1000/i/869113b4206cc41f67d5d0144f9ca6f3d8ddf54b622e0159d345f42c3d53911a/The-Non-Statistical-Body.JPG" /> 1st WorkshopConditions for Being a Book 24 May – 28 June 2026, Every Sunday, 1 – 4 pm (TBD)The first workshop, “Conditions for Being a Book,” and the second workshop, “Everything will become a book (in the end),” are planned to complement one another. “Conditions for Being a Book” aims to help participants understand the basic elements that are consist of a book—typography, images, paper, binding, and liniar structure—and to share practical information on book making process. Participants will research topics related to books or book culture that interest them individually, then create a 32-page saddle-stitched book. The workshop concludes with a collaborative project: participants will create a title for a magazine (composed of these saddle-stitched books) and design its components—such as the table of contents, title page, and credit—to experience the process of creating a complete book. 2nd Workshop Everything will become a book (in the end)(TBD) The follow-up workshop, “Everything will become a book (in the end),” includes a research process that reflects more personal interests. Over four weeks, participants will have the opportunity to closely connect their specific ideas with the formal language and structure of a book, or to restructure and contextualize their researched materials to suit their purpose. Participants will share their work processes with one another to develop their ideas, and in the final week of the workshop, they will discuss and implement production methods that align with their ideas. &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; Workshop Fee&nbsp; Standard: €360Student: €300Join the Workshop︎︎︎ &nbsp;* Workshop fee is&nbsp;only for the 1st workshop Conditions for Being a Book. A 6-week course (one session per week, 3 hours each)Maximum of 10 participants Offline classes at Common Imprint BerlinRequirements: Laptop with Adobe InDesign installed Workshop Facilitator: Dokho ShinDokho Shin is a designer based in Berlin and Seoul. He graduated from Dankook University’s Department of Visual Design and the Hamburg University of the Arts (HFBK)’s Department of Graphic Design. He has worked primarily with artists and cultural institutions, and works as an editor and designer for GRAPHIC magazine. He enjoys projects that focus on the formal characteristics of books as a material medium, and is interested in creating new contexts by weaving together materials and phenomena loosely connected to books. www.shindokho.krIG: @shindokho Output: A saddle-stitched book (32 pages) with visualizations of each participant’s ideas, and a magazine compiled from these saddle-stitched books This workshop is for: Students and designers interested in books and book-related cultureThose with a strong interest in dealing with typography and imageThose who want to experience the whole process of creating a bookWorkshop Level: Graphic design majors and students comfortable using Adobe InDesign Program Overview The workshop explores book structures through reference materials and shares ways to apply the knowledge.Participants will research books or phenomena loosely connected to the elements of a book. The subject of research can be anything related to books.Throughout the process, participants will share their research and ideas with one another and explore various possibilities for making their own books.Participants will experience the entire book-making process within the workshop culminating in individual saddle-stitched booklets that are compiled into a single publication. What Sets This Course Apart: The workshop provides specific insights into the major considerations when creating a book.Participants will explore typography in depth, focusing on how it relates to the content.The workshop shares practical information related to important steps of the printing process. Week 1Structure of a book, terminology, and expanded forms <img width="800" height="800" width_o="800" height_o="800" data-src="https://freight.cargo.site/t/original/i/a8207513f6984dab92c7626d6146a48617edb357a6ff02daec4f8ffa8a430231/week-1-1.jpg" data-mid="247277833" border="0" src="https://freight.cargo.site/w/800/i/a8207513f6984dab92c7626d6146a48617edb357a6ff02daec4f8ffa8a430231/week-1-1.jpg" /> <img width="1200" height="1200" width_o="1200" height_o="1200" data-src="https://freight.cargo.site/t/original/i/a60203fc6de568839a65ec649c9d239b1494f80472e5a866aa335f7b474e6b4a/week-1-2.gif" data-mid="247277834" border="0" src="https://freight.cargo.site/w/1000/i/a60203fc6de568839a65ec649c9d239b1494f80472e5a866aa335f7b474e6b4a/week-1-2.gif" /> Instructor introduction and orientationWorkshop overviewTerminology for specific parts of a book, and possible alternatives after understanding the basic structure Brainstorming research topics and preparing workshop materials (Research): What kinds of materials can become more interesting when compiled into a book? The workshop introduces projects related to “the book as a medium” and shares the background of the projects. Q&amp;A and assignment guidelines Week 2Presentation and discussion for research directions <img width="2497" height="1895" width_o="2497" height_o="1895" data-src="https://freight.cargo.site/t/original/i/f4314ba1777afb64f643faded41021e615a6a9def999eca63579367aa6e192fb/week-2-1.jpg" data-mid="247278276" border="0" src="https://freight.cargo.site/w/1000/i/f4314ba1777afb64f643faded41021e615a6a9def999eca63579367aa6e192fb/week-2-1.jpg" /> Assignment feedback and Q&amp;APresentations on individual research directions (from participants)About the process of visualizing ideas: How can we find a form that complements or collides with the content? The workshop explores the relationship between a book’s content and design principles, with several specific projects.Exchange of materials among participants; finalization of research directionsQ&amp;A and assignment guidelines Week 3Sharing research processes, and exploring types of printing and binding method <img width="1579" height="980" width_o="1579" height_o="980" data-src="https://freight.cargo.site/t/original/i/471fdf8af6a898ea620599c5aa3cc13b2520efeb41bf26e6d3c1bdd787a80f55/week-3-0.jpg" data-mid="247278285" border="0" src="https://freight.cargo.site/w/1000/i/471fdf8af6a898ea620599c5aa3cc13b2520efeb41bf26e6d3c1bdd787a80f55/week-3-0.jpg" /> Assignment Feedback and Q&amp;ASharing individual research processesPrinting methods: The workshop introduces the most commonly used printing methods such as offset, UV, silk-screen printing, and lithography. The workshop talks about the pros and cons of each technique, and how they are applied for specific purposes.Binding methods: The workshop explores binding methods suitable for mass production, such as saddle-stitch, perfect/PUR, and sewn-binding. We will discuss the pros and cons of each binding technique.Individual feedback session: The group will focus on discussing how to present the researched materials (text/images) in a tangible form.Q&amp;A and assignment guidelines Week 4Presentation of research findings, pre-printing checklist <img width="674" height="674" width_o="674" height_o="674" data-src="https://freight.cargo.site/t/original/i/e923f70871ef309b4f15c2c1a9e5597dd8bc81c38f372612701904cc4f6120da/week-4-0.jpg" data-mid="247278408" border="0" src="https://freight.cargo.site/w/674/i/e923f70871ef309b4f15c2c1a9e5597dd8bc81c38f372612701904cc4f6120da/week-4-0.jpg" /> <img width="1736" height="1406" width_o="1736" height_o="1406" data-src="https://freight.cargo.site/t/original/i/e244bbee6fe7776cc46f2d0a1f48fc7c2db6b3a8c84a4e50c1e89ef17dcedf61/week-4-1.png" data-mid="247278409" border="0" src="https://freight.cargo.site/w/1000/i/e244bbee6fe7776cc46f2d0a1f48fc7c2db6b3a8c84a4e50c1e89ef17dcedf61/week-4-1.png" /> Assignment feedback and Q&amp;ASharing of individual research findings and presentation of planned design directionsIndividual feedback session: Final feedback for the 32-page saddle-stitched bookletPre-printing checklist: There are many variables in the printing process. The workshop will discuss the steps that must be taken in advance to minimize unforeseen issues and ensure they remain under control. We will share practical information such as image optimization, PDF export settings based on paper type, and final checklists.Q&amp;A and Assignment Guidelines Week 5Individual book presentations. Magazine title workshop (collaborative project) <img width="1280" height="869" width_o="1280" height_o="869" data-src="https://freight.cargo.site/t/original/i/a31f6397fc9785369973e4572f4b3812413b1f23fdb02b7316f6de039cb36d04/week-5-0.jpg" data-mid="247278418" border="0" src="https://freight.cargo.site/w/1000/i/a31f6397fc9785369973e4572f4b3812413b1f23fdb02b7316f6de039cb36d04/week-5-0.jpg" /> <img width="4500" height="5625" width_o="4500" height_o="5625" data-src="https://freight.cargo.site/t/original/i/a7e2877ad1c79fa1be0446bc8ff1c4589ac8a39c6ad4972d537f9ac88e7362bd/week-6-0.jpg" data-mid="247278419" border="0" src="https://freight.cargo.site/w/1000/i/a7e2877ad1c79fa1be0446bc8ff1c4589ac8a39c6ad4972d537f9ac88e7362bd/week-6-0.jpg" /> Presentation of Saddle-Stitched Books: Participants will try to get an understanding of each other’s works through the presentation process. Pagination plan: Considering the ideas, concepts, and contexts of each book, participants explore layout arrangements that create a specific narrative when compiled into a single volume. Naming the title: Brainstorm potential titles and consider the ideas or direction the book conveys.Magazine title design workshop: Design the title based on the chosen title and ideas.Q&amp;A and Assignment Instructions Week 6Final decision on the book (collaborative project) <img width="1600" height="1600" width_o="1600" height_o="1600" data-src="https://freight.cargo.site/t/original/i/0cce24b67dca6973d75a3abe8991a6b289d3d8ee9e0825c0b04cd073fb540704/week-6-2.jpg" data-mid="247278473" border="0" src="https://freight.cargo.site/w/1000/i/0cce24b67dca6973d75a3abe8991a6b289d3d8ee9e0825c0b04cd073fb540704/week-6-2.jpg" /> <img width="1600" height="1600" width_o="1600" height_o="1600" data-src="https://freight.cargo.site/t/original/i/d7435f6c39b987b8933486c64ba297a768b6691ecc097e3bf6cabe5834e01952/week-6-3.jpg" data-mid="247278474" border="0" src="https://freight.cargo.site/w/1000/i/d7435f6c39b987b8933486c64ba297a768b6691ecc097e3bf6cabe5834e01952/week-6-3.jpg" /> <img width="1600" height="1600" width_o="1600" height_o="1600" data-src="https://freight.cargo.site/t/original/i/185d37849a824415483db349003acdc3f0788a686a29b85785e8f3f02ac3a7ca/week-6-4.jpg" data-mid="247278475" border="0" src="https://freight.cargo.site/w/1000/i/185d37849a824415483db349003acdc3f0788a686a29b85785e8f3f02ac3a7ca/week-6-4.jpg" /> <img width="1600" height="1600" width_o="1600" height_o="1600" data-src="https://freight.cargo.site/t/original/i/0b409e20a4f40bfb7d9beb2ac2e74de7d54cd95e4ce3fac50305d1b936533e35/week-6-5.jpg" data-mid="247278476" border="0" src="https://freight.cargo.site/w/1000/i/0b409e20a4f40bfb7d9beb2ac2e74de7d54cd95e4ce3fac50305d1b936533e35/week-6-5.jpg" /> Typesetting: Considering typefaces that complement the magazine title and apply it throughout the layout.From the table of contents to the credits page: Review all components of the publication.Printing and binding methods: Consider the magazine’s form and structure, referencing the printing and binding methods discussed in Week 3.Creating a mock-upFinal feedback on the project and Q&amp;A https://commonimprint.com/Texts Tue, 23 Jan 2024 13:48:24 +0000 commonimprint https://commonimprint.com/Texts <img width="288" height="150" width_o="288" height_o="150" data-src="https://freight.cargo.site/t/original/i/74baafc6f9910b1a3b03549b74ecdb63447fa79dc5d512ec5c6611b9c38099da/Element-1.svg" data-mid="202581964" border="0" src="https://freight.cargo.site/w/288/i/74baafc6f9910b1a3b03549b74ecdb63447fa79dc5d512ec5c6611b9c38099da/Element-1.svg" /> <img width="150" height="150" width_o="150" height_o="150" data-src="https://freight.cargo.site/t/original/i/b832472bdcfb43f654d7634999f7e8c53eb361bc0e8bf7462d5146818e095794/Element-5.svg" data-mid="202561347" border="0" src="https://freight.cargo.site/w/150/i/b832472bdcfb43f654d7634999f7e8c53eb361bc0e8bf7462d5146818e095794/Element-5.svg" /> <img width="170" height="150" width_o="170" height_o="150" data-src="https://freight.cargo.site/t/original/i/e9035edd72e8621a8be18b3439af562773aaf79008e8148b95e7064e6187a78b/Element-3.svg" data-mid="202561326" border="0" src="https://freight.cargo.site/w/170/i/e9035edd72e8621a8be18b3439af562773aaf79008e8148b95e7064e6187a78b/Element-3.svg" /> <img width="300" height="125" width_o="300" height_o="125" data-src="https://freight.cargo.site/t/original/i/a8d4b15e00d4ce3e9b81453c510d51ada9542cffbd28726ab9f19719658de709/Element-2.svg" data-mid="202581968" border="0" src="https://freight.cargo.site/w/300/i/a8d4b15e00d4ce3e9b81453c510d51ada9542cffbd28726ab9f19719658de709/Element-2.svg" /> <img width="300" height="118" width_o="300" height_o="118" data-src="https://freight.cargo.site/t/original/i/a80b38562f95a65fd9cf318eedf8a26baf98a6c6aba033d2cba1eb4695e3980f/Element-1.svg" data-mid="204791558" border="0" src="https://freight.cargo.site/w/300/i/a80b38562f95a65fd9cf318eedf8a26baf98a6c6aba033d2cba1eb4695e3980f/Element-1.svg" /> <img width="300" height="139" width_o="300" height_o="139" data-src="https://freight.cargo.site/t/original/i/ca116bf52ec1e18d7a2a4a552261cebafb8c450d3c9bd00a06a1b30711553ceb/Element-4.svg" data-mid="202558492" border="0" src="https://freight.cargo.site/w/300/i/ca116bf52ec1e18d7a2a4a552261cebafb8c450d3c9bd00a06a1b30711553ceb/Element-4.svg" /> <img width="300" height="125" width_o="300" height_o="125" data-src="https://freight.cargo.site/t/original/i/8926e1f51b9ca475138a119d5fa9715aff9f712e84d0c4c90119e373417039d8/Element-6.svg" data-mid="204791664" border="0" src="https://freight.cargo.site/w/300/i/8926e1f51b9ca475138a119d5fa9715aff9f712e84d0c4c90119e373417039d8/Element-6.svg" /> https://commonimprint.com/home_2024 Tue, 19 Mar 2024 14:58:15 +0000 commonimprint https://commonimprint.com/home_2024 &nbsp; &nbsp; Common Imprint Common Imprint’s reading room presents over 1000 independent publications from Asia, open by appointment every Weekend. It aims to create a shared platform and laboratory for investigating publication-related disciplines from South- East– and East Asia. The space will be for anyone who loves books and will host talks, events, workshops, and exhibitions relating to Asian publications in the field of fine art, photography, film, design and architecture. &nbsp; &nbsp; Gemeinsames Impressum Reading-Room von&nbsp;Gemeinsames Impressum präsentiert über 1000 Independent-Publikationen aus Asien und ist jedes Wochende nach Anmeldung geöffnet. Ziel ist es, eine gemeinsame Plattform und ein Labor für die Erforschung von publizierenden Disziplinen aus Süd-, Ost- und Ostasien zu schaffen. Der Raum ist für alle gedacht, die Bücher lieben, und bietet Vorträge, Veranstaltungen, Workshops und Ausstellungen zu asiatischen Publikationen in den Bereichen Kunst, Fotografie, Film, Design und Architektur. &nbsp; &nbsp; 공동의 출판 공동의 출판 리딩룸은 1000여 종의 아시아 독립 출판물이 구비되어 있으며, 매주 주말에 예약제로 운영됩니다. 이는 동남아시아 및 동아시아의 출판 관련 분야를 연구하는 공유 플랫폼이자 작업실로 활용되는 것을 목표로 합니다. 책을 좋아하는 사람이라면 누구나 이용할 수 있는 공간으로써 미술, 사진, 영화, 디자인, 건축 분야의 아시아 출판물과 관련된 강연, 이벤트, 워크숍, 전시회를 기획합니다. &nbsp; &nbsp; 一般出版 一般出版的阅览室现藏1000多本来自亚洲的独立出版物，每个周末均可预约阅读。项目的目的是创建一个探讨东南亚和与东亚出版物相关内容的共享平台。这个空间为所有热爱书籍的人开放，并将定期举办与艺术、摄影、电影、设计和建筑等领域有关出版物的讲座、活动、研讨会和展览。 Appointment&nbsp;The appointment for the Reading Room can be booked via link: Appointment Opening Hours&nbsp;every Weekend&nbsp;from 11:00–17:00 Contact Common ImprintZionskirchstraße 16,10119 Berlin, GermanyTel.: +49 (0)30 279 886 98commonimprint@gmail.comIG: @commonimprint <img width="3000" height="3000" width_o="3000" height_o="3000" data-src="https://freight.cargo.site/t/original/i/d1aafae6fc3f016bc9e7f61f19818daa5e9c679b990c22a1ca464cbde4705830/DSC03372requadrad.jpg" data-mid="207122858" border="0" data-scale="80" src="https://freight.cargo.site/w/1000/i/d1aafae6fc3f016bc9e7f61f19818daa5e9c679b990c22a1ca464cbde4705830/DSC03372requadrad.jpg" />Furniture &amp; Spatial Design ENFP(1/16) © Sanghyeok Lee <img width="238" height="150" width_o="238" height_o="150" data-src="https://freight.cargo.site/t/original/i/e1f86e38e2590bf72af385d666ff7d35803d8905f033c67eb3072c6ab34b18d0/Texts_Button.svg" data-mid="207122860" border="0" src="https://freight.cargo.site/w/238/i/e1f86e38e2590bf72af385d666ff7d35803d8905f033c67eb3072c6ab34b18d0/Texts_Button.svg" /> <img width="258" height="150" width_o="258" height_o="150" data-src="https://freight.cargo.site/t/original/i/55bc3b7ceeabb87916c6caa5f5f755e6547265c8591c31ba5f248f68cf3c996a/Booking_Button.svg" data-mid="207122859" border="0" data-no-zoom="true" src="https://freight.cargo.site/w/258/i/55bc3b7ceeabb87916c6caa5f5f755e6547265c8591c31ba5f248f68cf3c996a/Booking_Button.svg" /> <img width="268" height="150" width_o="268" height_o="150" data-src="https://freight.cargo.site/t/original/i/ff5c39d75cc8220df21930f85e85f8e3d6bfc881b5419c7adb0e659fecdaa7a7/Spaces_Button_2.svg" data-mid="212983320" border="0" src="https://freight.cargo.site/w/268/i/ff5c39d75cc8220df21930f85e85f8e3d6bfc881b5419c7adb0e659fecdaa7a7/Spaces_Button_2.svg" /> Our Donor List Thank the publishers, designers, artists, curators and collectives who donated exceptionally beautiful books to the Reading Room. Donating books to the reading room Common Imprint offers access to its research and contemporary Asian art book collections, as well as to its programs, without charge. As an independent non-profit, we are pleased to accept book donations and other forms of support. &nbsp; &nbsp; If you would like to donate books to the Common Imprint reading room, please note the following information:The books are published in Asia, or the subjects are related to Asia.We are not selling books and accept only one copy for each title for the archive.The books we collect are from the arts and culture sector, and we also welcome independent publications and experimental printed matter. Before sending your books, please get in touch with us. abC, art book in China, Website I Instagram Ahmad Makia(U.A.E), Website I Instagram Akira Nishitake(JP), Website I Instagram Allegro Print(SG), Website I&nbsp;InstagramAtelier HOKO(SG), Website I InstagramBananafish(CN), Website I Instagram Bangkok CityCity Gallery(TH),&nbsp;Website I Instagram Bird Pit(KR), InstagramCorners(KR), Website I Instagram Currency Design(SG), Website I Instagram Daisuke Kano(JP), Website I Instagram Doooogs(DE, CN), Website I Instagram Dongming Tian(CN)dmp Editions(TW), Website I Instagram Falgoush(U.S.A), Website I Instagram Further Reading(ID),&nbsp;Website I Instagram Gloria Glitzer(DE), Website I InstagramHaeju Kim(KR), Singapore Art Museum, WebsiteHiromi Nakajima(JP), Website I InstagramHsiang-Lin Kuo(TW), Website I Instagram Jason Wee(SG), Website I Instagram Jiazazhi Press(CN), Website I InstagramKeita Noguchi(JP), Website I Instagram KioskKiosk(KR),&nbsp;Website I InstagramKun Liang(CN), Website Lao Gou(CN)Lee Reum(KR), Instagram Loneliness Books(JP), Website I Instagram Maria Jooyoung(KR/FR): Instagram&nbsp;Masashi Mihotani(JP), Website I Instagram Moonsick Gang(KR), Website&nbsp;I InstagramNorthing(NO), Website I Instagram Neutral Colors(JP), Website I Instagram Patsachon Toyingpaiboon(TH), Website&nbsp;I InstagramRobert Zhao Renhui(SG), Website&nbsp;I InstagramRobineggpie(KR), Website&nbsp;I InstagramSewfont(HK),&nbsp;Instagram Sharjah Art Foundation(U.A.E), Website I Instagram Shin Shin(KR), Website&nbsp;I Instagram A&nbsp; I Instagram BSojanggak(KR), Website I Instagram Soi Hong(KR), Website I Instagram Suburbia Projects(MY),&nbsp;Website I Instagram Temporary Press(SG), Website&nbsp;I InstagramTicket to Nowhere(ID), Website I Instagram The Floor Plan(KR), Website&nbsp;I InstagramThe Type(U.K./CN), Website I Instagram White Fungus Magazine(TW), Website I Instagram workroom(KR), Website&nbsp;I InstagramYifei Chen(CN), Instagram Yitong Feng(CN), Website&nbsp;I Instagram Yumo Wu(CN), Website I Instagram Imprint Director, Founder Sam Kimwww.samkim.deIG: @o.sam.kim CollaboratorsThe Book Society (Mediabus)www.thebooksociety.org www.mediabus.orgIG: @tbs_book_societyDokho Shinwww.shindokho.krIG: @shindokho Siyu Maowww.siyumao.comIG: @uyisoam https://commonimprint.com/Notice Tue, 04 Apr 2023 09:15:25 +0000 commonimprint https://commonimprint.com/Notice Dear Book Lovers, The books in the reading room are mostly donations from designers, publishers, writers, and collectives, including some that are difficult to obtain again. Therefore, we would appreciate it if you could kindly refer to the following points: &nbsp; &nbsp; 1.Please note that beverages and bags are not allowed inside the reading room. We appreciate your cooperation in keeping the space clean and free from any potential spills or clutter.&nbsp; &nbsp;2.The books on the wall shelves are not securely fixed and occasionally fall to the floor. If you take a book from the wall shelf to read, you may place it on the desk after reading it.&nbsp; &nbsp;3.We would love to hear your thoughts on the books you've read! If you could take a moment to share a brief one-line review along with a photo of the book on our social media account, @commonimprint, it would greatly benefit the many creators involved. Your feedback will serve as a source of inspiration and support for them. &nbsp;If you are unable to keep your appointment, please cancel for the benefit of other visitors. If that's not possible, you can send us a short notice email. Thank you for your understanding and cooperation. Enjoy your time in the Common Imprint reading room! Best regards, Common Imprint https://commonimprint.com/texts-Interview Sat, 06 Jan 2024 17:53:03 +0000 commonimprint https://commonimprint.com/texts-Interview <img width="3719" height="3719" width_o="3719" height_o="3719" data-src="https://freight.cargo.site/t/original/i/c040dccae7cda6e8213b8fe294f06ed5fb88a6f9e99bd516383734f17ba45e74/DSC04491.jpg" data-mid="200953403" border="0" src="https://freight.cargo.site/w/1000/i/c040dccae7cda6e8213b8fe294f06ed5fb88a6f9e99bd516383734f17ba45e74/DSC04491.jpg" /> <img width="3559" height="2373" width_o="3559" height_o="2373" data-src="https://freight.cargo.site/t/original/i/0504814c9839ea65a7f53ffa133e2c53bc79052dd0b3ce03f767572416ec0063/CommonImprintPawel-Wolowitsch.jpg" data-mid="200953392" border="0" alt="Poster Design &copy; Pawel Wolowitsch" data-caption="Poster Design © Pawel Wolowitsch" src="https://freight.cargo.site/w/1000/i/0504814c9839ea65a7f53ffa133e2c53bc79052dd0b3ce03f767572416ec0063/CommonImprintPawel-Wolowitsch.jpg" /> <img width="2500" height="1667" width_o="2500" height_o="1667" data-src="https://freight.cargo.site/t/original/i/76c1996d2093c6fb1d0f45d91f3f99d26f05f65cd446c62457bb6e995796ad24/DSC04490.jpg" data-mid="200953400" border="0" src="https://freight.cargo.site/w/1000/i/76c1996d2093c6fb1d0f45d91f3f99d26f05f65cd446c62457bb6e995796ad24/DSC04490.jpg" /> <img width="2128" height="2128" width_o="2128" height_o="2128" data-src="https://freight.cargo.site/t/original/i/7ef8637b5a8ce14105fd815409d787914f57543a96379e7d763c6c90026a6005/DSC04439.jpg" data-mid="200953398" border="0" src="https://freight.cargo.site/w/1000/i/7ef8637b5a8ce14105fd815409d787914f57543a96379e7d763c6c90026a6005/DSC04439.jpg" /> <img width="2000" height="3000" width_o="2000" height_o="3000" data-src="https://freight.cargo.site/t/original/i/57d8f08e6bbe3c3020b4dd73d254b1c00bf298264e5003a0a8e55cb21331f06b/DSC04529.jpg" data-mid="200953401" border="0" src="https://freight.cargo.site/w/1000/i/57d8f08e6bbe3c3020b4dd73d254b1c00bf298264e5003a0a8e55cb21331f06b/DSC04529.jpg" /> 아시아 독립출판물을 위한 플랫폼, 베를린의 ‘커먼 임프린트’ 인터뷰•글: 박은지 베를린에 거주하며 ‘아시아'라는 카테고리를 전면에 내세운 콘텐츠를 접할 때면, 종종 그 대상과 관계 없이 불편함이 밀려올 때가 있다. 지구에서 가장 넓은 대륙인 아시아의 지역 간, 문화 간 차이를 무시한 채, 이를 유럽의 구미에 맞게 이렇게 저렇게 섞어 그럴싸하게 차려낸 듯한 모습은 씁쓸하기도 하다. 이 때문에 아시아 독립출판물을 소개하는 리딩룸, 커먼 임프린트Common Imprint의 오픈 소식을 들었을 때, 설렘과 기대, 그리고 궁금증이 함께 일었다. 독일과 한국을 오가며 활발히 활동 중인 그래픽 디자이너가 이를 기획해 열었을 때는 분명 무언가 있을 것이라는 기대감과 개성 있는 출판물들이 ‘아시아 독립출판물'이라는 이름 하나로 납작해지지 않을까 하는 우려 말이다. 그래서 커먼 임프린트의 운영자인 김영삼 디자이너를 만나 물었다. 베를린에서 왜, 그리고 어떤 책들을 보여주려 하느냐고. "일단 베를린에서 아시아 출판물을 접하기 쉽지 않아요. 이 곳에 독립출판물이나 예술 출판물을 다루는 서점은 많지만 아시아 출판물은 굉장히 한정적으로 소개되고 있고, 특히 독립출판물 중에 ISBN이 없는 경우가 많은데 이런 책들은 일반 서점에서 보기 어렵습니다." 실제로 베를린 시내에 위치한 독립서점만 해도 수십 개에 달하지만, 그 어디에서도 아시아 독립출판물을 다수 구비 해두거나 이를 중점적으로 소개하는 곳은 보지 못했다. 그나마 연례 행사인 북 아트 페어에 아시안 퍼블리셔나 작가가 참여한다면, 일주일 남짓 안되는 기간 동안 그들의 출판물을 볼 수 있는 정도다. 이는 단순히 아시아와 유럽의 지리적인 조건 때문이라고 보기도 어렵다. 유럽 기반의 출판사와 그래픽 디자이너, 책 제작자의 출판물이 국내 독립서점과 북 아트 갤러리, 미술관 내 서점 등에서 꾸준히 소개된다는 점을 떠올려 보면 말이다. "독일은 출판의 역사가 오래된 만큼 규모가 크고 나름대로 시스템이 잘 구축되어 있는 출판사들이 많아요. 예술 출판물을 전문적으로 발간하는 출판 업계에도 기획부터, 인쇄, 유통까지 전 과정을 혼자 해결하는 대형 출판사들도 몇몇 있고요. 이런 출판사들은 아시아의 현지 디스트리뷰터 없이도 어렵지 않게 출판물을 유통하기도 합니다. 반면에 아시아에서 유럽으로 오는 판로는 명확하지 않으니까, 이 곳 베를린에서 아시아 독립출판물을 다양하게 접하기는 어렵죠." Common Imprint, a platform for Asian independent publications in Berlin Interview•Text: Eunji Park Living in Berlin, I often feel uncomfortable when I come across content that is categorized as Asian regardless of the culture it highlights. It's a bitter pill to swallow when the differences between regions and cultures of the largest continent on the planet are ignored and unique cultures are blended to suit European tastes. Therefore, when I heard about the opening of Common Imprint, a reading room for Asian independent publications, I was excited, expectant, and curious. A graphic designer based in Germany and Korea organized this project, which led me to anticipate that there might be something special about it but also to fear the result of lumping together unique publications as “Asian independent publication.” I caught up with the designer behind Common Imprint, Sam Kim. I asked why he had initiated the venture, and what kind of books he wanted to showcase in Berlin. Kim replied, "First of all, it's not easy to find Asian publications in Berlin. There are a lot of bookstores here that carry independent and art publications, but the selection of Asian publications is very limited, especially independent publications, which often don't have ISBNs, and it's hard to find these books in regular bookstores." Indeed, there are dozens of thematic and independent bookstores in the city of Berlin, but none has a large selection of Asian independent publications or focuses on them. If an Asian publisher or author is just represented at the annual Book Art Fair, it's for a little less than a week. This is not simply due to the geographical distance between Asia and Europe. Consider that the work of European-based publishers, graphic designers, and bookmakers are consistently available in independent bookstores, book art galleries, and art museum bookstores in Korea. "Germany has a long history of publishing, so there are a lot of publishing houses that are large and well-established in their own system. There are also some large publishing houses that specialize in art publications and handle the entire process from planning, printing, and distribution on their own. These publishers are able to distribute their books without the need for local distributors in Asia. On the other hand, it is difficult to find a wide range of Asian independent publishers here in Berlin, as the distribution channels from Asia to Europe are not as clear-cut." <img width="3000" height="2000" width_o="3000" height_o="2000" data-src="https://freight.cargo.site/t/original/i/c1bf1fb3b06315fecee900073f4aae5edcb43ecf4e11d072cb5d153744c7fd84/DSC03379re.jpg" data-mid="200953397" border="0" alt="Furniture &amp; Spatial Design ENFP(1/16) &copy; Sanghyeok Lee" data-caption="Furniture &amp; Spatial Design ENFP(1/16) © Sanghyeok Lee" src="https://freight.cargo.site/w/1000/i/c1bf1fb3b06315fecee900073f4aae5edcb43ecf4e11d072cb5d153744c7fd84/DSC03379re.jpg" /> <img width="2500" height="2500" width_o="2500" height_o="2500" data-src="https://freight.cargo.site/t/original/i/77db6951f2365ad7a614b7012f62b062ab04a2f8546f2599b05cb6b3eb4a06c4/Common-ImprintsDokho-Shin_1.jpg" data-mid="200953393" border="0" alt="Catalogue Design @ Dokho Shin" data-caption="Catalogue Design @ Dokho Shin" src="https://freight.cargo.site/w/1000/i/77db6951f2365ad7a614b7012f62b062ab04a2f8546f2599b05cb6b3eb4a06c4/Common-ImprintsDokho-Shin_1.jpg" /> <img width="2288" height="2288" width_o="2288" height_o="2288" data-src="https://freight.cargo.site/t/original/i/bf83fda702d7fb481ba315d644c7bb3d9ce8835d3fe71ca8a65013e4763a4fdf/Common-ImprintsDokho-Shin_2.jpg" data-mid="200953395" border="0" src="https://freight.cargo.site/w/1000/i/bf83fda702d7fb481ba315d644c7bb3d9ce8835d3fe71ca8a65013e4763a4fdf/Common-ImprintsDokho-Shin_2.jpg" /> 현재 예약제로 운영 중인 리딩룸에는 동아시아와 동남아시아에서 제작된 400여 종의 출판물들이 진열되었다. 대부분은 리딩룸 프로젝트를 처음 제안한 서울의 ‘더 북 소사이어티’의 협력으로 마련되거나 그가 북 페어를 직접 방문해 가져온 출판물로 꾸려졌다. 리딩룸에 마련된 서가를 찬찬히 둘러보며 자연스럽게 한국에서 출판된 전시 도록과 작품집, 잡지에 눈길이 오래 머물렀다. 낯선 언어로 출판된 책들 앞에선 잠시 머뭇거렸지만, 페이지를 넘길수록 미묘하게 다른 페이지 레이아웃과 책의 구성이 흥미로웠다. 그는 리딩룸의 컬렉션을 구성하는 데 있어 몇 가지 원칙을 세웠다고 했다. 원어와 영어가 함께 병기되거나 원어만 기재되어도 이미지와 일러스트레이션, 디자인적인 요소가 눈에 띄는 책들, 그리고 해당 지역의 로컬리티를 이해하는 데 유의미한 역할을 하는 책들을 중심으로 선별했다고. “The Type에서 발행한 이 시리즈는 중국 서체에 대한 타이포그래피를 연구한 결과물이에요. 라틴 알파벳이 베이스라인을 기준으로 조합되는 반면 CJK(Chinese-Japanese-Korean)는 스퀘어 안에서 정렬되고 디자인 되거든요. 중국의 타이포그래피 역사와 조판 방식을 소개하는 책이지만 동시에 한국어와 일본어의 문자 디자인과 연결해 생각해 볼 수 있죠.” The reading room of Common Imprint, which is currently open by appointment, features more than 400 publications from East and Southeast Asia. Most of them were chosen in collaboration with The Book Society in Seoul, which first proposed the reading room project, and were brought to Berlin by Kim after he obtained them at book fairs. As I perused the shelves in the reading room, my eyes naturally lingered on the exhibition catalogs, catalogs of art collections, and magazines published in Korea. I paused for a moment in front of books published in an unfamiliar language. As I turned the pages, I was intrigued by the subtly different page layouts and organization of the books. Kim said he had a few principles in mind when organizing the collection in the reading room. He focused on books that contained both their original language and English or those that were in the original language alone but had striking images, illustrations, or design elements. He also carries books that have played a significant role in understanding one or another region. "This series published by The Type is a typographic study of Chinese typefaces,” Kim said.&nbsp; “The Latin alphabet is assembled around a baseline, while CJK (Chinese-Japanese-Korean) is arranged and designed in squares. It's an introduction to the history of typography and typesetting in China, but you can also connect it to the character design of Korean and Japanese”. <img width="3574" height="3574" width_o="3574" height_o="3574" data-src="https://freight.cargo.site/t/original/i/f45dd3402c6eee5382bc173c6d3bcfcb0b68274c3dc962a456c481fdac1bd879/02_Typo_31_DSC03865.jpg" data-mid="200953404" border="0" alt="Kŏngquè&ndash;restoring the mindset of Chinese typesetting &copy; The Type" data-caption="Kŏngquè–restoring the mindset of Chinese typesetting © The Type" src="https://freight.cargo.site/w/1000/i/f45dd3402c6eee5382bc173c6d3bcfcb0b68274c3dc962a456c481fdac1bd879/02_Typo_31_DSC03865.jpg" /> <img width="3537" height="3537" width_o="3537" height_o="3537" data-src="https://freight.cargo.site/t/original/i/2f956f22b1ae6d6848c8808ffc7dc234dab47c902d030dcdfa8708b1eeed681a/02_Typo_32_DSC03868.jpg" data-mid="200953406" border="0" src="https://freight.cargo.site/w/1000/i/2f956f22b1ae6d6848c8808ffc7dc234dab47c902d030dcdfa8708b1eeed681a/02_Typo_32_DSC03868.jpg" /> <img width="2600" height="2600" width_o="2600" height_o="2600" data-src="https://freight.cargo.site/t/original/i/661d2b77b19669038542c11b91826546ae37c867a5642ce7e0b40a83f624e2d7/02_Typo_33_DSC03869.jpg" data-mid="200953408" border="0" src="https://freight.cargo.site/w/1000/i/661d2b77b19669038542c11b91826546ae37c867a5642ce7e0b40a83f624e2d7/02_Typo_33_DSC03869.jpg" /> <img width="3460" height="3460" width_o="3460" height_o="3460" data-src="https://freight.cargo.site/t/original/i/94d847f0b107e49da8b26f18a4a962bf4f4436fe70c3e00bd70c42cbdf081cec/02_Typo_35_DSC03877.jpg" data-mid="200953409" border="0" src="https://freight.cargo.site/w/1000/i/94d847f0b107e49da8b26f18a4a962bf4f4436fe70c3e00bd70c42cbdf081cec/02_Typo_35_DSC03877.jpg" /> 그는 최근에 샤르자 아트북 페어 와 싱가포르 아트북 페어에도 다녀왔다고 했다. 아랍 에미리트에서 열렸던 샤르자 아트북 페어는 주최 측에서 참여자를 직접 초청하는 행사로 멕시코 시티, 카이로, 뉴델리, 키이우 등 아프리카와 중동, 중앙아시아에서 활동 중인 퍼블리셔와 작가들이 다수 참여했다. 그곳에서 독일과 한국, 그 어느 곳에서도 쉽게 볼 수 없는 출판물을 직접 보고, 관계자들을 만나 주고받았던 대화는 리딩룸을 실현하는데 기분 좋은 동력으로 작용했다. 싱가포르 아트북 페어에 대해서는 실제로 책을 직접 한 권, 한 권 소개하며 이야기를 이어갔다. Kim recently traveled to the Sharjah Art Book Fair (Focal Point 2022) and the Singapore Art Book Fair. The Sharjah Art Book Fair, held in the United Arab Emirates, was an invitation-only event that brought together publishers and authors from Mexico City, Cairo, New Delhi, and Keiwu, as well as publishers from other cities in Africa, the Middle East, and Central Asia. Seeing publications from Germany, Korea, and elsewhere that were not readily available in person in Berlin, as well as conversing with the people involved, strongly motivated Kim to realize the reading Kim. He was also impressed by the Singapore Art Book Fair. <img width="2500" height="1667" width_o="2500" height_o="1667" data-src="https://freight.cargo.site/t/original/i/332a21e431d297775faac6168ded4493508ec5b9db8364761a77d8752d236139/DSC02574.jpg" data-mid="200953411" border="0" alt="Focal Point 2022 in Sharjah (U.A.E)" data-caption="Focal Point 2022 in Sharjah (U.A.E)" src="https://freight.cargo.site/w/1000/i/332a21e431d297775faac6168ded4493508ec5b9db8364761a77d8752d236139/DSC02574.jpg" /> <img width="2500" height="1667" width_o="2500" height_o="1667" data-src="https://freight.cargo.site/t/original/i/8b83f03eaefc30be56aa47d04ee570d69adcdbd146440280017b79dae443bca3/DSC02626.jpg" data-mid="200953414" border="0" src="https://freight.cargo.site/w/1000/i/8b83f03eaefc30be56aa47d04ee570d69adcdbd146440280017b79dae443bca3/DSC02626.jpg" /> <img width="2500" height="1667" width_o="2500" height_o="1667" data-src="https://freight.cargo.site/t/original/i/939e2592ebe7e54d49fce9087181dbc920bf87c21c97ffaa883645d5cfb7d3d0/DSC02892.jpg" data-mid="200953417" border="0" alt="Singapore Art Book Fair 2023" data-caption="Singapore Art Book Fair 2023" src="https://freight.cargo.site/w/1000/i/939e2592ebe7e54d49fce9087181dbc920bf87c21c97ffaa883645d5cfb7d3d0/DSC02892.jpg" /> <img width="2500" height="1667" width_o="2500" height_o="1667" data-src="https://freight.cargo.site/t/original/i/c0f42339cad0227b1cb70340601e52e35e4680107bf121a8e896a5fb79444f4d/DSC02889.jpg" data-mid="200953416" border="0" src="https://freight.cargo.site/w/1000/i/c0f42339cad0227b1cb70340601e52e35e4680107bf121a8e896a5fb79444f4d/DSC02889.jpg" /> “싱가포르 북 페어에서 만난 작가들의 작업 방식이나 출판을 대하는 태도가 무척 흥미로웠어요. 이들에게 출판은 일상에서의 경험을 기록하는 것이자 리서치의 한 방식이기도 하거든요. 예를 들어서 이 사진집은(DAMNSEL)은 싱가포르의 사회적 규범이나 고정된 성 정체성에 반항하기 위해 자신만의 패션 스타일을 고수하는 젊은 여성들을 촬영한 것이에요. ’STREET REPORT’ 또한 싱가포르 출판사인 Temporary Press에서 제작한 것인데, 첫 호인 ‘Public Bin’은 길거리에 쓰레기통이 어떻게 놓여 있는지, 그리고 사람들이 이를 어떻게 사용하고 있는지 관찰한 것입니다. 두 번째로 발행된 ‘Hooks &amp; Holes’는 숭게이 로드에 있었던 벼룩시장의 도로에 나 있는 구멍이라든가, 혹은 천막을 고정하기 위해 설치된 고리 등이 기록되었어요. 흔히 싱가포르 하면 깨끗한 나라 정도로만 알고 있는데, 실제로는 현대화를 겪은 다른 도시처럼 이곳도 도시 재생이라는 이름으로 전통시장이나 근대 문화가 많이 사라진 거죠. 이 간행물은 이렇게 사라져가는 것들에 대한 디자이너의 리서치 결과물입니다.” 2017년 공식적으로 폐지 수순을 밟은 이 시장은 현재 100여 년의 역사 속으로 사라졌고, 과거 시장의 활기는 무심코 지나쳐 버리기 쉬운 길 위의 흔적으로만 남았다. 그러나 디자이너의 시각으로 재발견된 이 흔적들은 이 책에서만큼은 객관적인 사진과 텍스트로 기록된 역사적 지표로 자리한다. "I was very interested in the way the artists I met at the Singapore Book Fair worked and how they approached publishing. For them, publishing is a way of documenting their daily experiences, as well as a form of research. For example, this photography book (DAMNSEL) is about young women who choose their unique fashion style to rebel against social norms and fixed gender identities in Singapore. STREET REPORT is also produced by Singaporean publisher Temporary Press, whose first issue, "Public Bin," is an observation of how trash bins are placed on the streets and how people use them. The second issue, “Hooks &amp; Holes,” documented the holes in the pavement of a flea market on Sungei Road, or the hooks used to secure tents. People think of Singapore as a clean country, but in reality, like other cities that have undergone modernization, a lot of traditional markets and modern culture have disappeared in the name of urban renewal. This publication is the result of the designer's research into these disappearing things.” The flea market officially closed in 2017 and its former vibrancy has been reduced to a trace on the road that is easy to ignore. Rediscovered through the eyes of designers, however, these traces stand as historical markers, documented in the photographs and text of this book.&nbsp; <img width="2500" height="2500" width_o="2500" height_o="2500" data-src="https://freight.cargo.site/t/original/i/fcfe6f0c8b6a3552681d92a141734172bba56ce2e812e538100a694dbda6302d/DAMNSELJoseph-Koh_1.jpg" data-mid="200953422" border="0" alt="DAMNSEL &copy; Joseph Koh" data-caption="DAMNSEL © Joseph Koh" src="https://freight.cargo.site/w/1000/i/fcfe6f0c8b6a3552681d92a141734172bba56ce2e812e538100a694dbda6302d/DAMNSELJoseph-Koh_1.jpg" /> <img width="2500" height="2500" width_o="2500" height_o="2500" data-src="https://freight.cargo.site/t/original/i/74be7c9a6e3e47ff355026a0decb4630454cd7480e38fe37a4bc554681ad90fe/DAMNSELJoseph-Koh_2.jpg" data-mid="200953423" border="0" src="https://freight.cargo.site/w/1000/i/74be7c9a6e3e47ff355026a0decb4630454cd7480e38fe37a4bc554681ad90fe/DAMNSELJoseph-Koh_2.jpg" /> <img width="2010" height="2010" width_o="2010" height_o="2010" data-src="https://freight.cargo.site/t/original/i/74c152225f34541a41ded8db6071dec5f19dba57dd8e3020b2ea9597f1933d6b/Street-Report-No2Hooks---HolesFaiz-Bin-Zohri_1.jpg" data-mid="200953427" border="0" alt="Street Report No2&ndash;Hooks &amp; Holes &copy; Faiz Bin Zohri" data-caption="Street Report No2–Hooks &amp; Holes © Faiz Bin Zohri" src="https://freight.cargo.site/w/1000/i/74c152225f34541a41ded8db6071dec5f19dba57dd8e3020b2ea9597f1933d6b/Street-Report-No2Hooks---HolesFaiz-Bin-Zohri_1.jpg" /> <img width="2500" height="2500" width_o="2500" height_o="2500" data-src="https://freight.cargo.site/t/original/i/b39b82172b4deaf8945cc2a9aeeb608397b656aa698f1ad97e6c79da8a64aad4/Street-Report-No2Hooks---HolesFaiz-Bin-Zohri_2.jpg" data-mid="200953428" border="0" src="https://freight.cargo.site/w/1000/i/b39b82172b4deaf8945cc2a9aeeb608397b656aa698f1ad97e6c79da8a64aad4/Street-Report-No2Hooks---HolesFaiz-Bin-Zohri_2.jpg" /> <img width="2000" height="2000" width_o="2000" height_o="2000" data-src="https://freight.cargo.site/t/original/i/719ef45a8487d9b48076a9502adb081a5493cbc57f8536e443f7c5e5ad16f85e/DSC05668.jpg" data-mid="200953425" border="0" alt="Donated Books from Jason Wee(Grey Project)" data-caption="Donated Books from Jason Wee(Grey Project)" src="https://freight.cargo.site/w/1000/i/719ef45a8487d9b48076a9502adb081a5493cbc57f8536e443f7c5e5ad16f85e/DSC05668.jpg" /> “북페어에서 그레이 프로젝트 Grey Projects 의 운영자 'Jason Wee'도 만났어요. 15년이라는 꽤 오랜 시간 동안 그레이 프로젝트는 싱가포르와 동남아시아에서 수집된 수백 권의 출판물을 열람할 수 있도록 ‘그레이 프로젝트 라이브러리’라는 물리적인 공간을 운영하고 있고, 동시에 작가 레지던시와 전시 프로젝트 또한 기획하고 있어요. 얼마 전에 제이슨이 그레이 프로젝트에서 출간한 책들을 가지고 이곳을 방문하기도 했습니다.”그레이 프로젝트를 설명하는 문장 속에서 앞으로 그가 리딩룸에서 구현해 낼 풍경이 어렴풋이 내비쳤다. 그동안 그래픽 디자이너로서 주로 스크린과 지면 위에서 자신만의 시각적인 규칙과 배열을 만들어내던 그였다. 그리고 지금, ‘공간 운영자'라는 역할을 하나 더해 독립출판물을 기점으로 퍼블리셔와 작가, 일반 대중이 만나는 플랫폼의 중요성에 대해 강조한다. ‘Common Imprint, Gemeinsames Impressum, 공동의 출판, 一般出版‘ 영어와 독일어, 한국어, 중국어로 쓰인 커먼 임프린트의 풀네임처럼, 그는 여기에 어떤 지역적인 정체성을 강조하거나 독립출판물의 각기 다른 매력을 한 문장에 욱여넣지 않는다. 그보다 책마다 지닌 가치와 예술성을 지면에서 공간으로 확장하고, 이를 매개로 사람과 사람을 잇는 장소로서 리딩룸을 말한다. 이곳에서 그는 오늘도 동료들과 함께 독립출판물을 사랑하는 이라면 누구든 반갑게 맞이할 준비에 여념이 없을 것이다. 박은지는 현재 베를린 예술대학교(UdK)에서 박사 논문을 작성 중이며, 아티스트 북의 서지정보를 LOD로 발행해 컬렉션을 구축하는 프로젝트를 진행하고 있다. «디자인프레스», «월간 디자인», «퍼블릭 아트» 등에 기고했다. 이메일: ejpark8073@gmail.com 웹사이트: udk-berlin.academia.edu/EunJiPark *국문 텍스트 하단본 인터뷰는 2023년 9월 네이버 디자인프레스에 발행되었습니다. Kim continued, "At the book fair, I also met the owner of Grey Projects, Jason Wee. Almost for 15 years, Grey Projects has been running a physical space called Grey Projects Library where you can browse through hundreds of publications collected from Singapore and Southeast Asia, and they also organize artist residencies and exhibition projects. Not long ago, Jason visited with some of the books published by Grey Projects." The way Kim describes the Gray Project gives me a glimpse of what he'll be creating in the reading room. As a graphic designer, he had been following his own visual rules, mostly on a screen or on the page. Now, he has taken on the role of "project owner" and emphasizes the importance of platforms where publishers, writers, and the general public can meet, especially those that feature independent publications. Like the full name of the reading room, which is written in English, German, Korean, and Chinese, “Common Imprint, Gemeinsames Impressum, 一般出版,” he doesn't emphasize any regional identity, nor does he lump the different attractions of independent publishing together when he discusses the items he carries. Instead, he speaks of the reading room as a place where the value and artistry of each book can be extended from the page to the space, and connect people from different cultures. He and his colleagues might be busy welcoming anyone who loves independent publishing even at this moment. Eunji Park is currently a PhD candidate at the University of the Arts Berlin (UDK), where she is working on a project to build a collection by bibliographic information of artists’ books as LODs. She has published articles in the Korean art magazines NAVER DESIGN PRESS, MONTHLY DESIGN, PUBLIC ART, and BEATITUDE. Email: ejpark8073@gmail.com Website: udk-berlin.academia.edu/EunJiPark * The Korean version of the article was published in the Naver Design Press&nbsp;in September 2023. https://commonimprint.com/Spaces-LimestoneBooks Sun, 26 May 2024 11:39:50 +0000 commonimprint https://commonimprint.com/Spaces-LimestoneBooks Limestone Books is a bookshop in Maastricht, the Netherlands, that showcases non-Western perspectives and organises exhibitions, talks, and workshops around design and artist books. Common Imprint interviewed them to hear more about their approach to engaging with the local community and exploring possible ways of collaborating. Limestone BooksGrote Gracht 63 Maastricht Limestone Bookshop Instagram <img width="1333" height="1000" width_o="1333" height_o="1000" data-src="https://freight.cargo.site/t/original/i/c711fce11729ebbfd9f620e0ce89bf64d428a24d13f05287ad23a2ba6e2e9e60/Limestone_11.jpg" data-mid="211670843" border="0" data-scale="63" src="https://freight.cargo.site/w/1000/i/c711fce11729ebbfd9f620e0ce89bf64d428a24d13f05287ad23a2ba6e2e9e60/Limestone_11.jpg" /> Please tell us briefly about Limestone Books. Normally, when we think of bookstores, they focus on selling books, but it seems like you also operate publishing house and various programs. We are a very new collective, so we didn't intend to do so many things in the beginning. It's more like these ideas sounded fun, so we thought, why not just do it? There has been quite a bit of trial and error for us. Not everything has been an absolute success, but from all these experiences, we are learning who our audience is and what we can offer them. <img width="1499" height="1000" width_o="1499" height_o="1000" data-src="https://freight.cargo.site/t/original/i/0969bc984660550a0633709b2e070aa2bf10b0e9716c9df6a88aaff07f1fe3fe/Limestone_13.jpg" data-mid="211670900" border="0" src="https://freight.cargo.site/w/1000/i/0969bc984660550a0633709b2e070aa2bf10b0e9716c9df6a88aaff07f1fe3fe/Limestone_13.jpg" /> <img width="1500" height="1000" width_o="1500" height_o="1000" data-src="https://freight.cargo.site/t/original/i/44ec7cba7cbf3ff08e0dca46b3b383aef4a302c3317340f9fdb7b694cbe78f39/Limestone_7.jpg" data-mid="211670962" border="0" src="https://freight.cargo.site/w/1000/i/44ec7cba7cbf3ff08e0dca46b3b383aef4a302c3317340f9fdb7b694cbe78f39/Limestone_7.jpg" /> What made you decide to open a bookstore in Maastricht, Netherlands? How do you engage with the local community and collaborate with Dutch and Asian publishers? I was participating in an artist residency program at Jan Van Eyck Academie. It was a one-year program, and afterward, COVID struck. So I stayed in Maastricht for a while. That’s when I started to think about trying something different besides doing graphic design for clients. I thought it might be interesting to have a bookshop and use it as a platform to experiment with all those projects I had in mind but never had the time and space to work on. We also learned how hard it is to work with artists and publishers outside of the Netherlands because of the distance, time differences, and information gaps. So we had to think creatively about how to solve this puzzle, such as bringing the books when people are traveling or exchanging information within the network to find out what interesting things are happening and if it would be possible to bring them to Maastricht. The programme seems to place a lot of emphasis on engaging with the local community, including Silent Reading Club and Artist Takeover&nbsp;inviting people who does publishing practice differently to curate the space for a certain period of time. Can you tell us about your programme and what you expect from it? For Silent Reading Club, it was our colleague Elinice who came up with the idea. We just wanted to try it once and see how it went, and it eventually became one of my favorite events. We now hold it regularly every Thursday. Silent Reading Club has a very simple setting: you just come, bring your own book, find a spot, and read. It is simple but very powerful because it creates the most intimate and straightforward relationship between an author and a reader. Afterward, people spontaneously talk about the book they just read. We are amazed at the wide range of genres people are reading in the same room and how these can spark interesting conversations.&nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; We have a recurring project called Artist Takeover, where we invite artists to take over the bookshop, becoming the owner of the shop for a short period of time. The artists can use the space and books as materials to express their ideas. The point is to create a new relationship between the artists and their audience (our community). Because we are a bookshop, not a gallery or museum, the environment is less formal and more integrated with everyday life. A bookshop is in the neighborhood, and you can simply walk in every day. There is always noise and people walking by, but visitors feel more at home while interacting with the artists. Art can happen in everyday life, and I think it can be realized in our shop. <img width="750" height="1000" width_o="750" height_o="1000" data-src="https://freight.cargo.site/t/original/i/8270fa844c68d1f6b1be81a59b859b2673f38532f46f016d0b94fb1fea9db359/Limestone_14.jpg" data-mid="211670991" border="0" src="https://freight.cargo.site/w/750/i/8270fa844c68d1f6b1be81a59b859b2673f38532f46f016d0b94fb1fea9db359/Limestone_14.jpg" /> <img width="2048" height="1371" width_o="2048" height_o="1371" data-src="https://freight.cargo.site/t/original/i/32a5ac1588a54fb1370db89ed795e81c9d53c850705a4a1206644a72b70badc3/Limestone_1.jpg" data-mid="211671136" border="0" src="https://freight.cargo.site/w/1000/i/32a5ac1588a54fb1370db89ed795e81c9d53c850705a4a1206644a72b70badc3/Limestone_1.jpg" /> <img width="4032" height="3024" width_o="4032" height_o="3024" data-src="https://freight.cargo.site/t/original/i/a88d916acec7880a07f9d0e46726c9b69ac2fa69b31584d42fd69b106e950b11/Limestone_6.jpg" data-mid="211671138" border="0" src="https://freight.cargo.site/w/1000/i/a88d916acec7880a07f9d0e46726c9b69ac2fa69b31584d42fd69b106e950b11/Limestone_6.jpg" /> <img width="1500" height="1000" width_o="1500" height_o="1000" data-src="https://freight.cargo.site/t/original/i/40bb62155d289c1d27f2a60d98f5aef8d3be7638b276f4b7fd198e79317c1231/Limestone_8.jpg" data-mid="211800942" border="0" src="https://freight.cargo.site/w/1000/i/40bb62155d289c1d27f2a60d98f5aef8d3be7638b276f4b7fd198e79317c1231/Limestone_8.jpg" /> As a different kind of collaboration, the book Tropical Reading by Taiwan’s publisher Photobook DUMMIES Day has been redesigned and republished. This book is about photobooks and self-publishing in Asia. In addition, the production and design of the published book have changed a lot. What were the reasons behind the republishing? My initial idea, probably the same as many booksellers in the Netherlands, was to have more non-Western publications in the shop. You can find European art books in Asia, but rarely the other way around. I found Photobook DUMMIES Day's research super interesting and felt it hasn't been discussed enough in a European context. So that's why we decided to republish it. The design of the first edition is really nice and interesting; we all like it very much.&nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; On the other hand, in the context of the Netherlands, I wanted to reach readers who will bring the book on the train, and read along the way. I wanted a book that is easy to carry and easily accepted by libraries. So we made the book a more humble and simple book-book object. However, we wanted to keep elements of the original design as a response. That's why we have some half-page spreads within the pages. <img width="1445" height="1633" width_o="1445" height_o="1633" data-src="https://freight.cargo.site/t/original/i/4e63b10d3dff2aa94988bbd906a73b1354200d7678b4ad4615d3d6d4587172b9/TR1-ezgif.com-webp-to-jpg-converter.jpg" data-mid="211671296" border="0" src="https://freight.cargo.site/w/1000/i/4e63b10d3dff2aa94988bbd906a73b1354200d7678b4ad4615d3d6d4587172b9/TR1-ezgif.com-webp-to-jpg-converter.jpg" /> <img width="1445" height="1633" width_o="1445" height_o="1633" data-src="https://freight.cargo.site/t/original/i/736c8d679297a9f75c599b7237bd2d6c4cfc27fd769d287617d13bd45223ac42/TR5-ezgif.com-webp-to-jpg-converter.jpg" data-mid="211671297" border="0" src="https://freight.cargo.site/w/1000/i/736c8d679297a9f75c599b7237bd2d6c4cfc27fd769d287617d13bd45223ac42/TR5-ezgif.com-webp-to-jpg-converter.jpg" /> <img width="1445" height="1633" width_o="1445" height_o="1633" data-src="https://freight.cargo.site/t/original/i/8d44f7eb3fdebe76eeba04c37bdb00b0eec23111a759afcb640068423ab7f462/TR6-ezgif.com-webp-to-jpg-converter.jpg" data-mid="211671298" border="0" src="https://freight.cargo.site/w/1000/i/8d44f7eb3fdebe76eeba04c37bdb00b0eec23111a759afcb640068423ab7f462/TR6-ezgif.com-webp-to-jpg-converter.jpg" /> <img width="1445" height="1633" width_o="1445" height_o="1633" data-src="https://freight.cargo.site/t/original/i/e74020c1b7a2c2d4e488aa5d1a4241c35a3555fc66122b8235fdb905f58a4d2b/TR7-ezgif.com-webp-to-jpg-converter.jpg" data-mid="211671299" border="0" src="https://freight.cargo.site/w/1000/i/e74020c1b7a2c2d4e488aa5d1a4241c35a3555fc66122b8235fdb905f58a4d2b/TR7-ezgif.com-webp-to-jpg-converter.jpg" /> What are your criteria or themes, if any, for the books you feature and distribute? It's pretty much instinctive. I choose books that I like, find interesting, and would want to read or own myself. Within our collective, all the members come from different disciplines, and I fully trust their recommendations. I also consider our community in Maastricht, paying attention to what they are talking about and what they care about. So it's never just about me; the collection is influenced and shaped by the people around us. There have been recent initiatives to bring Asian art books to Europe in diverse ways. And spaces like Limestone Books can be an important alternative. Do you have any strategies of your own or what possibilities do you see? I see us as a portal in the network connecting different parts of the world. Not only between the West and the East, but also including any underrepresented voices in Europe. Our strategy is to be open and flexible, allowing different kinds of voices to be heard. Could you briefly explain the tendency for publications produced and circulating independently in Asia how to be received by your local community? It was satisfying to see that some customers simply like the books from non-Western perspectives as much as the other books. The language can be a barrier, and some books need to wait for a while until the right customers find them. But that is fine. The point is to allow all kinds of books to be seen in the same place so that customers can be surprised by exploring the collection. <img width="1000" height="1000" width_o="1000" height_o="1000" data-src="https://freight.cargo.site/t/original/i/aaafd9c3e14e9fe963939cf93f28ffe20171f96ab4e79c0878eccb276278f7e6/Limestone_5.jpg" data-mid="211800933" border="0" src="https://freight.cargo.site/w/1000/i/aaafd9c3e14e9fe963939cf93f28ffe20171f96ab4e79c0878eccb276278f7e6/Limestone_5.jpg" /> <img width="747" height="1000" width_o="747" height_o="1000" data-src="https://freight.cargo.site/t/original/i/4e48c10d4fb126c8d1205dd73805b299519f6c905078dab195e81f516291fd1a/Limestone_4.jpg" data-mid="211800930" border="0" src="https://freight.cargo.site/w/747/i/4e48c10d4fb126c8d1205dd73805b299519f6c905078dab195e81f516291fd1a/Limestone_4.jpg" /> <img width="1333" height="1000" width_o="1333" height_o="1000" data-src="https://freight.cargo.site/t/original/i/04c41734983c7652913cbecf403840157d44988f7bd70de36314fa26f8317082/Limestone_12.jpg" data-mid="211800934" border="0" src="https://freight.cargo.site/w/1000/i/04c41734983c7652913cbecf403840157d44988f7bd70de36314fa26f8317082/Limestone_12.jpg" /> <img width="1002" height="1000" width_o="1002" height_o="1000" data-src="https://freight.cargo.site/t/original/i/4cc91ab32a43ce1656f6542791c0852f8e612613d9d69f3e3fdb79c9f03fcc5c/Limestone.jpg" data-mid="211800977" border="0" src="https://freight.cargo.site/w/1000/i/4cc91ab32a43ce1656f6542791c0852f8e612613d9d69f3e3fdb79c9f03fcc5c/Limestone.jpg" /> Tell us about your future plans. We like to build a strong connection with publishers and artists from outside the Western context and, through collaboration, develop more publishing and distribution possibilities. https://commonimprint.com/texts-Asia-as-Principle Fri, 05 Jan 2024 21:46:10 +0000 commonimprint https://commonimprint.com/texts-Asia-as-Principle 孙歌：亚洲作为原理 采访、编辑：林昱（Aimee Lin） I 亚洲意味着什么 林昱（Aimee Lin）&nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp;亚洲意味着什么？在地理之外还有别的意义吗？ 孙歌&nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; 当然了，亚洲并不仅仅是一个空间概念，也就是说它不仅仅是一个地理的概念，而且也不仅仅是一个政治历史地理概念。现在在学术领域里面已经有这样一个领域叫政治历史地理，这个领域是把各种政治、文化、历史问题，放到它发生的那个空间里进行讨论，亚洲其实也是这样的一个政治的、历史的和地理的结合体的概念，但是除此以外，我认为还有很重要的另外一方面的功能，这个概念常常被忽视的，就是它的精神风土性格。 林昱 &nbsp; &nbsp;&nbsp; 风土是什么？ 孙歌&nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; 风土，是讲一个地区，某一个地理空间里面所具有的一些自然的地理特征，当它和人的精神活动结合起来的时候，自然地理特征通过社会活动这一媒介，与特定人群的精神活动结合，我们把它称为“风土”。所以亚洲概念至少是以自然地理的特定空间，承载了其中由于人类活动所造成的政治、历史和精神文化，种种人文的和社会的精神产物，把它放到特定空间里面来讨论。 林昱 &nbsp; &nbsp;&nbsp; “亚洲”最初是外部于亚洲的人对这样一个地理空间的称呼，亚洲或者说亚洲这个观念，对于生活在这个空间里面的人本身是否也有含义？ 孙歌&nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; “亚洲”在近代以前不具有主体认同的含义。但是这个情况在20世纪以后发生了变化。最早自十字军东征时期——那时候亚洲指的还是小亚细亚地区——直到20世纪之前，在欧洲向全世界进行殖民扩张的过程中，西方的亚洲论述一直持续到现代的基本方向，就是说亚洲是欧洲的“他者”。这个“他者”在伊斯兰世界很强大的古典时期是一个强敌的概念，近代以后这个“他者”就成了反证欧洲文化先进性的参照物。在欧洲的意识形态里面，应该说直到第二次世界大战之后，才开始存在把亚洲作为一个平等的而且可以相互理解的对象加以认知的可能。可是这也只是作为一种可能，事实上这样的可能，在欧洲到现在为止还是比较边缘的，这是欧洲的情况。 &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; 就亚洲来说，直到第二次世界大战结束之后，才形成了比较广泛的、把“亚洲”反转为主体认知的政治符号的趋势。这时就不能再说亚洲只是一个西方制造出来的概念，因为历史是在不断改变的。这个变动的典型符号是1955年的万隆会议，当然它也只是一个阶段的状况。从历史的大趋势来看，亚洲论述的性质发生变化是在20世纪以后，它开始被转换成了亚洲地区一部分社会自我认同的符号。这个自我认同最早发生在日本，而它的亚洲主义的高峰期是1904-05年的日俄战争，这场战争被日本人认为是一个人种之间的战争，它意味着黄种人对白种人的胜利。孙中山在其三民主义的讲演里也提到，日俄战争后他回中国的途中，在轮船上有阿拉伯人问他你是日本人吗，阿拉伯人很少有机会向东亚表示他们的一体感，但是日俄战争使阿拉伯人作为黄种人产生了亚洲认同。很不幸的是日本的亚洲主义是伴随着战争推进的，它模仿的是欧洲殖民的方式。所以它走的并不是一条真正意义上的亚洲主义道路，而是欧洲主义的道路，最典型的表现就是侵华战争和第二次世界大战，日本整个战争推进的方式和它的殖民主义采用的完全是欧洲早期殖民的模式。 &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; 所以如果说亚洲存在亚洲主义的话，那么这个亚洲主义存在好几个侧面，它们相互之间是有张力的。但是有一点，我们可以去掉价值判断地说，至少是从19世纪末开始，在亚洲各个地区以不同的方式开始出现了把西方作为他者的文化符号转换成自我认同的主体符号的趋势，这是一个历史的趋势，所以“亚洲”在早年被西方命名的那段历史，并不能用来说明20世纪之后，亚洲人使用亚洲这个范畴的状况。 林昱 &nbsp; &nbsp;&nbsp; 那对于从二战之后一直到当代，亚洲这个观念的意义又发生了什么改变？ 孙歌&nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; 二战之后亚洲这个观念，特别是万隆会议，提出来的是亚非——亚洲和非洲，讲的是亚洲和非洲的民族独立运动。而那个时候亚洲认同的一个核心内容是以国家为单位的民族独立运动。在50年代亚洲兴起的过程中，亚洲的主要含义在于它是一个政治上的主体单位。由于亚洲地区除日本之外，绝大部分地区都有被殖民或者说间接被殖民的经验，所以在近代被歧视、充满了屈辱感的意义上，亚洲在50年代获得了一个短期内的高度一体化认知。亚洲并不像欧洲那样，能够大致地由一种宗教统合起来。亚洲至少有三大文明圈，主要的宗教还不止三个，它们相互之间是不能够简单统合的，但是在50年代以万隆会议为标志，亚洲出现过一个统合的时期，所以那个时候的亚洲概念很饱满，它覆盖了几乎是绝大部分亚洲地区。但是到了后来，在这个历史阶段过去之后，后发国家获得了独立、建立了主权国家之后，这个情况就发生了变化。 林昱 &nbsp; &nbsp;&nbsp; 这大概是什么时间点？ 孙歌&nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; 应该说是当冷战结构趋于解体，70年代亚洲就开始分化了，因为这个时候整个亚洲都在面对发展的问题，即实现现代化。所以就出现了亚洲和西方世界的各种对话、交流、合作。于是在70年代之后随着冷战结构的逐渐解体，新一轮的殖民以看不见的形式开始发生了。到柏林墙倒塌之后，亚洲面对着一个重新结盟的课题。所以比如说上合（上海合作）组织、金砖国家等一些联盟，实际上是亚洲在重组新的国际关系的标志。在这种情况下我们就会发现，亚洲已经不能够在地理上让自己作为一个独立的单位来强调它的认同。比如说东北亚的六方会谈，这是一个亚洲的重大事件，但是里边有两个亚洲之外的国家参与（美国和俄罗斯），而且没有人质疑。美国已经通过第二次世界大战完成了它在亚洲特别是在东亚的内在化，在这样的情况下，有些人就说那亚洲就不成立了。从地理空间上的意义上看，确实亚洲好像不能够摆脱千丝万缕的和其他地区的结合关系，50年代万隆会议标志的那种一体化现在确实解体了。 II 亚洲作为原理 林昱 &nbsp; &nbsp;&nbsp; 作为地理空间的亚洲的一体性不成立了。 孙歌&nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; 对。但是如果我们回到最初的话题上看，我们讲这个亚洲它不仅仅是一个地域概念，它同时是政治、历史和精神文化的结合体，它标志了人的精神活动、人文和社会活动的风土性格，在这个意义上，我认为今天到了把亚洲作为一种原理进行重新论证和重新组合的阶段。 林昱 &nbsp; &nbsp;&nbsp; 你曾经写过《亚洲意味着什么》，但“亚洲作为原理”仿佛是第一次提出。 孙歌&nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; 我觉得我是刚刚走到这一步，今天对亚洲的讨论我认为是还不到位的，如果亚洲没有自己的原理的话，那么它真的仅仅是依附于西方论述框架的田野材料而已。到目前为止，亚洲在西方和中国学界里基本上只是一个田野，但是我认为，现在我们应该生产亚洲原理了。这样做并不仅仅是为了亚洲人，我觉得这是一种对人类的历史责任。亚洲原理，它只是相对于欧洲原理、非洲原理和拉美原理的一个相对化的原理，讨论亚洲原理，并不是为了对抗西方、取代西方而进行的知识活动。 林昱 &nbsp; &nbsp;&nbsp; 在我们展开关于亚洲作为原理的话题之前，我想问一下，艺术或者文化，在亚洲或者亚洲观念中扮演的角色，它是否也用于塑造认同和身份？ 孙歌&nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; 艺术和文化是通过形式来给精神进行形塑的活动，因为我们人类的精神活动一定要有一种形状才能自我呈现，那么艺术是用一种直观的造型来表达精神的。我可以这么说，到目前为止就我所接触到的东亚艺术，比如说美术作品、戏剧、电影，它们的主流是西方化的，它的亚洲性是不够的。 林昱 &nbsp; &nbsp;&nbsp; 你是说它背后缺乏那种所谓亚洲主体那种意识，它不知不觉的在用西方的方法或者西方的目光吗？ 孙歌&nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; 对，它用的是西方的目光，你比如说最典型的是张艺谋，他作品中所有的中国化表现是为了迎合好莱坞的需要。当然其他的一些有抱负的艺术家并不像张艺谋这么浅薄，他们相对来说更会寻找亚洲元素，但是这些艺术家包括艺术策展人，他们的视野基本上是一个西方视野。比如说搞当代艺术的艺术家和策展人脑袋里有一个根深蒂固的概念就是现代性，如果不让他们谈现代性，他们基本上就没有办法工作。这个是到目前为止的一个趋势，这个趋势我也不认为应该否定，因为在某种意义上，它呈现了西方从政治经济乃至文化上向整个亚洲渗透的过程所带来的后果。但是实际上，在非主流的边缘地区，一些文化和艺术的活动里面有亚洲元素在慢慢生长。只是这个生长是非常需要营养的，我认为亚洲的知识分子现在好像还没有走到那一步，它需要一个过程。 林昱 &nbsp; &nbsp;&nbsp; 你所提到的这类文化活动，能举个例子吗？ 孙歌&nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; 比如说日本有一个剧作家叫樱井大造，他的帐篷剧是非常日本的，用了日本底层老百姓的那种生活感觉去进行表演，是很特别的一种艺术方式。樱井很有想象力，有能力欣赏他的帐篷剧的知识分子是很有限的，其实樱井在整个东亚地区是受到追捧的，年轻的小知识分子特别喜欢他的剧，追捧他的剧，是因为他的形式很新鲜，但是他里面包含的那样的一种亚洲元素是需要转换的。再比如说在韩国光州的版画活动，还有就是正在冲绳发生的一些艺术活动，比如摄影。那个地区现在还保存着有一点像萨满教的原始宗教。有一个摄影家就专门拍宫古岛（冲绳最大的离岛）每年二月份的神女祭祀。但是这种真正本土的、不是用西方的观念来诠释的文学和艺术活动，到目前为止，还很难被广泛流通和共享，这是一个基本的事实，不过这部分资源有很强的生命力，它们不会消亡。 林昱 &nbsp; &nbsp;&nbsp; 可能是因为当代艺术的认证和流通的机制，归根到底也这个机制背后的人，他们本身没有办法能够看得懂或者看得见这样的艺术。 孙歌&nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; 我想还需要一段时间，而且这应该不仅仅是亚洲人的工作，西方知识界，或者说整个西方世界在国际格局里它的功能、定位都在发生变动，西方的知识界，他们对亚洲的想象也会发生变动。我想无论是西方还是亚洲有抱负的知识分子，不会满足于只在我们的现实那么丰富的生活里去寻找所谓的现代性问题、后现代问题。有一天大家会进入更丰富的、更新鲜的经验。在这个意义上来说，艺术和文化能够承担非常重要的功能，只是到目前为止，它做得还确实不太够。 林昱 &nbsp; &nbsp;&nbsp; 也有一些西方人有一种认识，人们之所以会认为亚洲的身份和认同是通过文化来定义和塑造的，是因为人们缺乏当地的语言技能，所以只能模式化的想象其他的文化。我不知道您是怎么看的。 孙歌&nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; 我觉得这当然是要素之一，但是不是全部的。对于亚洲缺乏认知，在某种意义上是因为西方太自足了，一直到现在这个状况才刚刚开始发生变化，当西方人能够问出这样的问题，就表明他开始觉得这是一个问题了。其实一直到现在，大多数西欧和北美的知识分子对亚洲是缺少真正意义上的好奇心的，而缺少好奇心的原因绝对不是语言问题。 林昱 &nbsp; &nbsp;&nbsp; 是他们本身文化上的一种封闭吗？ 孙歌&nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; 这个现象和近代以来西方强势地去征服全球的政治、经济的历史趋势是合流的，文化不可能脱离政治和经济，独立具有自己的特征，所以在西方真正具有亚洲意识的文化人也一定是边缘的。 林昱 &nbsp; &nbsp;&nbsp; 非常少。 孙歌&nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; 但应该是有的。我接触的西欧和北美的知识分子跟我谈中国问题的时候，他先会拿出几个框架，比如说现代性的框架、后现代的框架、理性和个人权利的框架、科学主义的框架，还有就是进化论的框架。所有的这些框架，其实作为欧洲近代以来的文化结构，有很成熟的积累，西方知识分子在这样的一个文化系统里面被训练，把这一切视为正常的前提。但问题是当他们面对没有这个传统而只是片断地引进了这些元素的东方，他应该怎么办？我遇到的所有的西方知识分子几乎都在做一个努力，要把他看到的那些他不熟悉的经验，半信半疑地塞进这些框架，然后进行解释。 林昱 &nbsp; &nbsp;&nbsp; 你这样一说，亚洲作为原理的必要性其实就显示出来了。因为对于他们来说这也是一个非常大的一个挑战，一个非常有难度的工作。 孙歌&nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; 对。亚洲作为原理实际上不是一句空话。这件事意味着我们要从重新定义普遍性开始，我们要从这样一个视角开始：任何一种思想和精神活动都是风土性的。这就意味着你不可以把你的欧洲和北美的局部经验作为一个人类共享的全球经验来套到其他区域里面去，这样的做法从一开始就应该是被否定的。这是亚洲作为原理向人类提出的要求，现在如果我们在欧洲原理的视野里面去看亚洲的话，那么你一定会用一个所谓的普遍性想象去对待亚洲，所以你就会在亚洲里面寻找现代性，寻找科学和理性。不光是西方人。亚洲人也在做这件事。 林昱 &nbsp; &nbsp;&nbsp; 因为我们接受的教育和学术训练，我们在脑子里也已经变成他们了，但是我们的生活、身体那种感性经验，还是可以超出脑子的部分。 孙歌&nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; 所以从这样的教育背景出发，大家看到的亚洲各个社会正在发生的变动就很难解释，比如说怎么去解释今天中国社会的高度流动性。从亚洲原理出发去讨论各个社会的状况的时候，并不是为了给目前的各个社会的存在提供正当性的基础。因为这是一种知识工作，不是在肯定它或者是否定它，我们要做的是去解释它。我不是做艺术的，从思想史的角度看，这个问题非常迫切，这才迫使我现在来讨论亚洲原理，我认为亚洲原理如果用一个最简化的方式来说，就是一个以形而下的多样共存为基本特征和前提的普遍性。 林昱 &nbsp; &nbsp;&nbsp; 形而下也就是你所说的“风土”？ 孙歌&nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; 对。 III 亚洲艺术的前提 林昱 &nbsp; &nbsp;&nbsp; 从你作为学者的角度看，是否有一种可以被称为亚洲艺术的东西，如果是的话是什么构成的这种艺术的所谓亚洲性？ 孙歌&nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; 这个问题真的很大。首先我认为亚洲艺术不但是可以存在，而且是必须存在的。但是亚洲艺术一定是多样性的存在，所以当我们说到亚洲艺术的时候，前提是，它没有代表。西方艺术虽然我们也不能说它就一定有代表，其实西方当代艺术家也会说出很多流派来。亚洲艺术我认为也是一样，而且它还有一个和西方艺术不一样的地方，就是说它没有可以统合为亚洲艺术的“一”。 林昱 &nbsp; &nbsp;&nbsp; 它不具有独一的特质。 孙歌&nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; 对。经过了西方至少一、二百年来的强力打造，我们习惯于谈一个区域就必须找出一个代表来谈论它的“一”。现在，我们要用“多”来谈这个区域，大家还没有形成这个习惯，这是我们讨论亚洲艺术的前提。为什么需要这个前提，因为亚洲艺术是一个不能够被统合的艺术，所以它是多种多样的。中国哲学家陈嘉映提出了一个“个殊性”的说法，就是把个体和特殊性结合起来。每一个“个殊性”（individual peculiarity）的载体叫做“个殊者”（peculiar individual）。我认为亚洲艺术是由无数个个殊者构成的，但是我们要说的并不是一个拼盘，如果是拼盘，亚洲艺术就不存在了，是一盘散沙。在个殊者之间是要发生关系的，这个关系我们必须用亚洲原理解释，这个关系是什么意思，是说每一个个殊者和其他的个殊者绝对不可能一样，而且他和其他的个殊者重合的部分，也不是绝对相同的。在建立关系的时候，个殊者之间没有优劣之分。这个东西从欧洲原理里面是不可能产生的。所以当各种个殊者之间只能通过相互理解、通过自我开放，通过对自己的超越来达成建立关系的目标时，这个亚洲艺术就形成了。这就牵扯到我们要改变必须用欧洲的现代性和后现代作为媒介来进入亚洲艺术的欣赏习惯。我们现在的欣赏习惯是把自己的文化先翻译成英语，然后再拿这个英语进入其他的文化 。 林昱 &nbsp; &nbsp;&nbsp; 在亚洲这个观念当中是否有一些部分，是建立在西方世界及其理念的对立和冲突之上的。 孙歌&nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; 有，但是我认为这部分是不太重要的，因为对立于西方的方式。一直到目前为止仍然是需要的，但是只要你对立你就会受制于你对立的对象。所以这部分的知识生产只具有过渡性不太具有建设性。比如说后现代就是受制于现代性的，所以它不可能自由。亚洲受制于西方的这样一个历史事实是我们绕不过去的，真的要从这样一种受制于西方的状态里面进行自我解放的话，我认为批判是无效的，我们必须要做的是把西方相对化，而不是否定它。要把包括西方对亚洲渗透过程当中所产生的后果也包含在内，建立自己的认识和结构框架，这是最重要的。对西方的批判和对立不具有建构功能，亚洲的思想和文化建设现在最需要做的是进行结构性的建设。东方的知识分子目前为止比较熟练的方式，一个是批判西方，一个是修改西方，这两种工作都有意义，而且都跟西方内部有非常紧密的联动关系。但是我认为这两种工作都是过渡性的，我们要在这个基础上进行不受西方制约，也不把跟西方的对立冲突作为前提的自我建设，更自由地去想象，更自主地去建设。 林昱 &nbsp; &nbsp;&nbsp; 亚洲这样的一个观念，它是由竞争或对立驱动还是合作驱动？ 孙歌&nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; 这两部分都有。如果说经济一定是以竞争为主的，合作服从于竞争的需要，所以合作永远是临时的。政治就更是这样。但是说到文化，我觉得文化的问题恐怕很难用竞争和合作来进行把握，特别是精神产品的生产，其实我认为亚洲地区的精神产品的生产是互为媒介的。 林昱 &nbsp; &nbsp;&nbsp; 互为媒介是什么意思？ 孙歌&nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; 就是说我把对方作为媒介，从对方的工作和他的精神产品里面激发出我的想象，激发出我进行创作的动力。互为媒介的意思是我的工作并不全是他的工作，他的工作也不能解释我的工作，但是如果我们相互之间没有理解的话，那么我的工作可能不会是这个样子。比如说中国和日本之间的精神生产，到目前为止是以非常实体化的方式去想象，那个东西是低级阶段的一种思考方式，其实我们应该下一步到一个更有品质的领域，中日文化之间应该互为媒介，这既不是竞争也不是合作。 林昱 &nbsp; &nbsp;&nbsp; 今年是二战结束70周年。由于历史的原因，在韩国与日本，还有中国与日本之间，会有一个非常强的心理紧张的状态，至今仍然存在并没有消除。所以我想问你，文化本身或者艺术本身是不是具有一种可能性慢慢的通过一些方法让这样的紧张消除掉。 孙歌&nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; 这要从几个方面来说，从理想状态来看文化是跨境的，文化本来可以利用跨境的优势来消除由国家紧张所造成的不同社会之间的对立想象，其实这个对立只存在于想象之中。但是事实上看没有那么简单。到目前为止有一项工作我认为是欠缺的，就是文化工作者在进行思考和创作的时候，他使用的母语先规定了他的认同，而多数文化人对于自己的认同很少进行反思。因此他会觉得例如他是一个日本的画家，但是作为日本的艺术家是什么意思他没有追究过，所以如果文化要想跨越国别之间的意识紧张的话，文化人应该做的事情是首先对自己的认同这个前提进行反思。然后形成他自己的认同，这个认同会大于他的国别单位，我认为跨越不了个别单位的人是不可能创造真正的世界一流的精神产品的。但是这不意味着说你跨越了国别单位你就没有国别了，不是，我强调的是他一定自己的文化属性，他母语的那部分文化属性一定是整个创造里面的最基本的源泉和基础，只是他没有把他的国别放到绝对的前提上，从政治和思想的角度讲，还有一个你要履行社会责任，你的政治功能等等都是国别性的。我认为，认同有深有浅，文化认同如果能够深入到人类精神的深度，那么，它将会以国别方式具体呈现人类的精神，但同时又拒绝抽象的一般性表述。 林昱 &nbsp; &nbsp;&nbsp; 这让我想到了有一些流亡于海外的策展人和艺术家。尽管他们能够自由地去到世界上最远的地方，精神上却呈现出一种比较虚无的状态。当一个人已经完全不相信国别或者其原生的文化，他其实是离开了一个地方但最后却哪也没到达的状态。 孙歌&nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; 这话说得很到位，是这样的，所以无根的艺术家是没有前途的。 林昱 &nbsp; &nbsp;&nbsp; 他可以作为现象来观察，但很难走到更有建设性的地方。 IV 当代艺术作为亚洲论述的生产平台 林昱 &nbsp; &nbsp;&nbsp; 最近在艺术领域，在香港、光州、上海、新加坡，还有中东的那几个石油国家在建立新的文化或艺术机构的时候，都宣布要建立自己在区域性地图上的位置。这些事情集合在一起，大概可以让人看到一类区域性的视野的形成。我想问一下，这个趋势对于我们的亚洲性或者是亚洲人的自我认同会产生怎样的作用。 孙歌&nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; 这个现象是挺让人振奋的，因为在55年万隆会议召开的时候只有政治家在谈亚洲。现在最大的变化是，虽然我们的政治家也在谈亚洲，但是对他们来说亚洲不是一个前提。可是对于艺术界文化界来说，这个代表了和国家不同层次的——姑且说是“社会”，虽然我对这个词的使用还是有犹豫的——由文化界来主导的关于亚洲的想象及其主体的打造，这是一个标志性的变化。而在这个变化里面，我认为艺术界走在了知识界的前面。做学术研究的人现在仍满足于把亚洲当成一个西方的田野，或者一个大拼盘。就中国来说，有些知识分子就用中国代表了亚洲，跟当年日本的想象差不多。所以当艺术界来邀请我谈论亚洲，就让我意识到，其实当代艺术已经变成了生产亚洲原理的一个重要的平台。而它也象征了，从万隆会议时期由政治家主导的、以国家为单位的亚洲独立运动，在今天转向为由文化人主导、对于原理的探求。 &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; 目前看显然亚洲各地的双年展，虽然说的是亚洲，但是展览呈现的基本上是一个大拼盘。很多地方谈亚洲就是在谈自己，我觉得谈自己这件事本身，不构成对于亚洲的篡改或者是取代。谈自己有的时候只是在谈自己，有时候则变成了谈亚洲，两者的区别在哪？就在于你能不能深入开掘你自己文化里面的原理性，当你开掘了之后能不能用开放的相对化方式完成自我超越。如果你能做到自我超越的话，这就是亚洲性的一个最重要的特征。你谈一个局部的文化，是可以用亚洲原理的态度，就是你这个文化可以具有亚洲性，你可以用原理的态度对待你的局部问题，否则它就仅仅是一个特殊状况。因此我觉得是不是只做一个区域这件事不那么重要，重要的是你怎么做，反过来我们可以看到，很多以亚洲为名，而且聚拢了大量亚洲不同地区作品的展览，里面的亚洲性是非常稀薄的。但是不管怎么样，亚洲受到关注这个现象我认为是很重要的。 林昱 &nbsp; &nbsp;&nbsp; 你曾经说过，关于第三世界内部，每个国家所理解的第三世界也是有着不一样的中心，我相信当我们在讨论亚洲的时候，我们也是面临不同的国家想要建立起自己为中心的世界或者亚洲的冲动，所以这样的情况下，既使是在亚洲内部的交往与认识也是有很多盲点的。对于每一个生活在具体现实或者文化中的人来说，的确就是要有一个操作层面的事情怎样克服视野中的盲点，然后去看见和理解亚洲内部其他地区的情况。 孙歌&nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; 我接着你的话往前推，我想我可以把它推成问题。就是说在什么情况下，我们会有去了解他者的冲动？比如说作为中国人，我们会有去了解中东的愿望，盲点的产生不是知识的问题，而是动力的问题，这个动力从何而来，我们可以看到，今天第三世界的大部分知识分子，特别是主流，他们的欧美知识储备是很齐备的，哪怕不会英语，他也会用翻译去读欧洲的经典，而且引经据典地去谈它，但是他对非洲是没有兴趣没有动力的，他认为那个地方不产生思想、不产生原理；那么这样的盲点，是迄今为止的由西方中心的知识和现实的那个权利格局造成的。而且只要国民国家形成，他就会复制这样的一种模式，所以你不能全说这个问题在西方。在亚洲的任何一个社会内部都是这样，它一定是以自我为中心，对那些强势的文化主动产生需求，这种情况有一部分是要由历史来解决的，我们靠艺术家的推动去强调说什么什么地方非常重要，那个没有用。所以我们必须要关注有效工作的边界。艺术家可以做一些工作，比如说针对今天中国社会的现实，把大家迫切想要解决的问题，但是找不到出路找不到头绪的那些问题，如果我们能把亚洲其他地区的资源转化成思考这些问题的媒介，自然就会引起关注。总而言之这个问题其实是一个大问题，是可以深入讨论的。 林昱 &nbsp; &nbsp;&nbsp; 我最近在观察中日韩三个东亚国家之间的艺术交往（不包括两国文化和外交部门主导的艺术项目），作为观察者我感到中国仿佛是一个最不在乎其他亚洲国家的国家，您是怎么看这个问题的？ 孙歌&nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; 我觉得你这个直觉是有一定道理的，这跟中国1949年建国以来，整个国家和社会的焦虑有关系，还记得1958年，当时国家的口号叫做超英赶美，所以从建国开始，因为我们的敌人来自西方，我们的现代化想象的那个原型也在西方，这个东西到国家建设完成，社会开始发展的阶段也就是所谓的文革之后改革开放时期，知识界继承的就是这么一套政治模式，它被转化成了文化模式，主导知识界的是一些留美和留欧的知识分子，他们的论述基本上是英语式的论述，如果他们要有所贡献的话，他们最大的贡献要么就是批判欧美，要么就是修改欧美，在这样的一个框架下，我们的文化领域里面的国际化想象，就是和西方接轨。尽管现在开始发展出亚洲想象来了，但这还是一个萌芽状态。不重视亚洲国家，不重周边的邻居，有一个历史的逻辑在里面。我刚才说的是这样的一个历史脉络，这个我们没有办法否定，可是肯定它也是有问题的。不能说存在就是合理的，现在到了开始改变它的时期了，我这几年被策展人不断拉去谈亚洲，开始让我感觉到，文化人走到前面，艺术界走在了前面。 本采访发生于2015年8月5日，中文版经采访人和受访人编辑审阅后，由聂本洲（Daniel Nieh）翻译为英文。英文版首发于《ArtReview Asia》杂志2015年秋季刊，中文版于2023年底经编辑更新后，授权Common Imprint于其位于柏林的活动空间用于非商业发布。 孙歌&nbsp; &nbsp; 1955年出生于中国吉林长春，日本东京都立大学法学部政治学博士、北京第二外国语学院特聘教授、中国社科院文学研究所研究员。孙歌的研究兴趣包括东亚议题、中国和日本政治思想史的比较研究、中国现代文学、日本现代思想史。主要著作有《亚洲意味着什么：文化间的日本》（2001）、《主题弥散的空间》（2002）、《竹内好的悖论》（2005）、《我们为什么要谈东亚》（2011）、《思想史中的日本与中国》（2017）、《历史与人：重新思考普遍性问题》（2018）、《寻找亚洲：创造另一种认识世界的方式》（2019）、《从那霸到上海：在临界状态中生活》（2020）等。 林昱（Aimee Lin）&nbsp; &nbsp; 现居上海的策展人、作者和艺评人，复旦大学比较文学硕士。曾是《艺术界》杂志创始副主编（2010-2012）、《ArtReview Asia》联合创始人和主编（2013-2019）、北京长征空间总监（2019-2021）。除了写作和艺术评论，林昱同时是一名独立策展人，曾在北京、上海、柏林、伦敦和纽约等地策划艺术家个展、群展和其他种类的艺术项目，她目前也是纽约视觉艺术学院大中华区代表，并因此往返于中国与纽约。Email: aimeelinyu@gmail.com Sun Ge: Asia as Principle Interviewed and edited by Aimee Lin I. What does Asia mean? AIMEE LIN &nbsp; &nbsp; What does Asia mean? Does it possess meaning beyond its geographical connotations? SUN GE &nbsp; Of course. Asia is more than a spatial concept, which is to say, it is more than a geographical concept, and it is also more than a political-historical-geographical concept. In academia, there is now a field called political historical geography in which various political, cultural and historical questions are discussed in the context of where they happened. Asia is indeed a compound concept of politics, history and geography, but in addition to that, I believe it has an important alternative function, one that is often overlooked: its spiritual fūdo&nbsp;character. &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; AIMEE LIN &nbsp; &nbsp;&nbsp;What is fūdo? SUN GE &nbsp; Fūdo refers to the natural geographical characteristics possessed by a given region or geographical space. The combination of these characteristics with the particular spiritual life of people via social activities is called fūdo. [Fūdo, or Fengtu, is a term used by Japanese philosopher Tetsuro Watsuji (1889–1960) in Fūdo: ningen-gakuteki kōsatsu (1935), translated in English as Climate and Culture (1961). The term signifies ‘wind and earth… the natural environment of a given land’.] So the concept of Asia is at the very least a particular natural geographical space that bears the weight of political, historical and spiritual culture produced by human activity within it. The various spiritual products of society and the humanities are discussed within the context of a particular space. AIMEE LIN &nbsp; &nbsp; ‘Asia’ was originally a name that outsiders used for a specific geographical space. Does Asia, or the concept of Asia, mean something to the people who live within this space? SUN GE &nbsp; Prior to modern times, ‘Asia’ did not have any connotations of subjective identification, but in the twentieth century that changed. From the Crusades, when the term referred only to Asia Minor (Anatolia), until the turn of the twentieth century, as Europe gradually subjected the world to colonialism, the Asia discourse of the West was consistently one in which Asia served as Europe’s ‘other’. During the powerful classical period of the Islamic world, this ‘other’ was a formidable foe. In modern times, this ‘other’ has become a source of comparison – evidence against the predominance of European culture. Until the end of the Second World War, European ideology did not acknowledge that Asia could be an equal counterpart with which mutual understanding was possible. Even then, such a relationship was merely a possibility. And to this day, this possibility remains relatively marginal in Europe.&nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; As for Asia, it was not until the end of the Second World War that a relatively widespread trend emerged in which the meaning of ‘Asia’ was reversed in order to connote a subjectively identified political symbol. At that point, one could no longer say that Asia was merely a concept created by the West. This change in the symbol was marked by the Bandung Conference of 1955 [the meeting of African and Asian states that anticipated the formation of the Non-Aligned Movement of countries]. Of course, that was just one phase of its evolution. In terms of major historical trends, the general development of the Asia discourse began in the twentieth century as ‘Asia’ was transformed into a symbol of self-identification in some societies in the Asia region. Japan was the first place where this self-identification occurred. The growth of Asianism in Japan reached its peak with Japan’s victory in the 1904–5 Japanese–Russian War. The Japanese saw this war as a war between races: a victory of the yellow race over the white race. In his speech on the ‘Three Principles of the People’ [1905], [Chinese revolutionary] Sun Yat-sen recounted how, on his boat trip on the Suez Canal, an Arab asked him if he was Japanese. At that time, Arabs rarely expressed their sense of solidarity with East Asia, but the Japanese–Russian War had contributed to Arabian identification with Asia as part of the yellow race. The unfortunate thing is that Japanese Asianism accompanied war, and their methods of war were imitations of European colonial methods. So Japan’s path was not one of genuine Asianism; it was a path of Europeanism. This Europeanism was most typically exemplified by the Second World War and Japan’s invasion of East and Southeast Asia. Japan’s colonialism, along with its methods of advancing the war, was completely in the mould of early European colonialism. &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; Therefore, if it can be said that Asianism exists in Asia, then this Asianism has many faces, and tension exists between them. But we can say without value judgement that in the late nineteenth century a trend emerged in which several different parts of Asia, in many different forms, began to cast off the cultural symbols of the Western ‘other’ and adopt subjective symbols of self-identification. It was a historical trend, and so the earlier period of history in which ‘Asia’ was named by the West cannot be used to explain the use of the nomenclature of Asia by Asian people after the turn of the twentieth century. AIMEE LIN &nbsp;Then what changes have occurred in the meaning of this idea of Asia since the end of the Second World War? SUN GE &nbsp; After the Second World War, this idea of Asia was used at the Bandung Conference in the context of Afro-Asia – ie, Africa and Asia – and the national independence movements of the two continents. At that point, a core aspect of Asian identity was the national independence movements at the state level. During the process of Asia’s rise during the 1950s, the principle significance of Asia as a political unit was political subjectivity. Other than Japan, the vast majority of Asian regions had experienced either direct or indirect colonisation. In this context of being discriminated against and feeling humiliated, Asia experienced a sharp surge in solidarity in the 1950s. Asia is not like Europe in that it cannot be roughly integrated on the basis of a single religion. There are at least three major civilisations in Asia, and more than three main religions that cannot be easily integrated. However, the Bandung Conference symbolised a period of integration during the 1950s in which the concept of Asia was spread vigorously through virtually the entire region. As these states gained independence and sovereignty, so the situation changed. AIMEE LIN&nbsp; &nbsp; Roughly when did that happen? SUN GE &nbsp; I would say it happened as the Cold War structure began to disintegrate. Asia began to split up during the 1970s, because at the time the entire continent was facing a developmental problem: how to achieve modernisation. The result was all sorts of dialogue, exchange and cooperation between Asia and the West. Thus, after the 1970s, a new round of colonialism began, but this time in an invisible form. After the fall of the Berlin Wall in the early 1990s, Asia was faced with the question of forming new alliances. So new coalitions, like the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation or the BRICS countries, are in fact symbols of Asia’s reorganisation of international relations. In these circumstances we discover that Asia is already incapable of acting, in terms of geography, as an independent unit in order to emphasise its identity. For example, the Six Party Talks in Northeast Asia are a major thing for Asia, but nobody raises an eyebrow at the participation of two non-Asian states (Russia and the United States). By means of the Second World War, the United States had already completed its internalisation in Asia, and especially in East Asia. These circumstances have led some people to say that Asia has not been established as a reality. From a geographical perspective, Asia does indeed seem unable to cast off the countless claims of other regions. The solidarity of the 1950s symbolised by the Bandung Conference has indeed disintegrated. II. Asia as Principle AIMEE LIN &nbsp; So the integration of Asia as a geographical space was not achieved. SUN GE &nbsp; That’s right. But if we recall our initial discussion, we said that Asia is more than a geographical concept. It is also an amalgamation of political, historical and spiritual culture. It symbolises people’s spiritual activities, and the fūdocharacter of social and artistic activities. In this sense, I believe that today we have reached a stage in with we can reorganise and rephrase the discussion by treating Asia as a set of principles. AIMEE LIN&nbsp; &nbsp; You have previously written about the question ‘how does Asia mean?’ But it sounds quite new when you mention ‘Asia as principle’. SUN GE &nbsp; I reached this step quite recently. In my opinion, the present Asia discourse is still off the mark. If Asia does not have its own principles, then it truly is no more than field material within the framework of Western discourse. To date, that is how Asia has been treated in Western and Chinese scholarship, but I believe that we should now produce Asian principles. However, producing Asian principles is not only for the benefit of Asian people. I think it is a historical responsibility for the benefit of humankind. Asian principles are simply principles that are relative to European, African and Latin American principles. The discussion of them is not an intellectual activity intended to resist or replace the West. AIMEE LIN&nbsp; &nbsp; Before we start discussing Asia as principle, I want to ask you: do art or culture play a role of shaping the identity of Asia or the idea of Asia? SUN GE &nbsp; Art and culture give form to spiritual energy. The spiritual activities of humans must have form before they can present themselves to us. Art utilises the form of direct observation to communicate this spiritual information. I can say that, to date, the art I have been exposed to, such as the fine arts, theatre and film from East Asia, are Westernised in the mainstream. Their Asian-ness is insufficient. AIMEE LIN&nbsp; Are you saying that the reasoning behind it lacks that awareness of so-called Asian subjectivity, and it unconsciously uses Western methods or Western perspectives? SUN GE &nbsp; Yes, it uses Western perspectives. The most typical example is Zhang Yimou: all of the expressions of Chinese-ness in his films are intended to cater to the requirements of Hollywood. Of course, there are other ambitious artists who are not as superficial as Zhang Yimou. They are more inclined to seek an Asian element, but these artists, including art curators, have an essentially Western field of vision. For example, one deeply rooted idea in the minds of contemporary artists and curators is modernity. If you do not let them talk about modernity, they basically cannot function. This is a trend that exists today, and I do not believe that it should be negated, because in a certain sense it expresses the consequences of Western infiltration of all of Asia, from politics and economics to culture. But in fact, there are fringe cultural and artistic activities in which comparatively Asian elements are developing. This development requires nourishment, but I believe that Asian intellectuals seem to have not yet reached this point. It requires a process. AIMEE LIN&nbsp; Can you give an example of the cultural activities you mentioned? SUN GE &nbsp; One example is the Japanese playwright Sakurai Daizo. His Tent Theatre is extremely Japanese. The performances draw on the lives of ordinary, lower-class Japanese people. It is a very special artform. Sakurai is very imaginative, but the number of intellectuals who can appreciate his Tent Theatre is limited. Yet Sakurai has received acclaim throughout East Asia. Young intellectuals are especially fond of his plays because his methods are very fresh. But the Asian element that he contains must evolve. Another example is the printmaking activities in the Korean city of Gwangju. There are also some artistic activities in Okinawa, such as photography. That area retains its original religion, which resembles shamanism. There is a photographer who photographs a sacrificial ritual that takes place every February in the Miyako Islands [the largest archipelago in Okinawa Prefecture]. But this kind of genuinely indigenous artistic or literary activity that does not utilise Western concepts and hermeneutics is to date very difficult to circulate and share widely. This is a basic fact, but this wellspring possesses powerful vitality. It will not disappear. AIMEE LIN&nbsp; Perhaps the explanation lies in the mechanisms of acknowledgment and circulation in contemporary art. After all, the people within these mechanisms have no ability to see and understand this kind of art. SUN GE &nbsp; I think this is a matter that requires a bit more time, and moreover, it is not just a matter for Asian people to resolve. The status and function of the Western intelligentsia, or one could even say the entire Western world, changes. The Western intelligentsia’s conception of Asia is also changing. I think that ambitious intellectuals, whether they are Asian or Western, will not be satisfied solely with questions of so-called modernity and postmodernity when the reality of our lives is so diverse and abundant. The day will come when everybody’s experience will be fresher and more abundant. In this sense, art and culture can play an extremely important role, but to this point, they have really not done much. AIMEE LIN&nbsp; There are some Westerners who believe that the language barrier is the reason that Western people define Asian identity through culture. They can only mechanically imagine other cultures. What do you think of this opinion? SUN GE&nbsp; &nbsp;&nbsp; I think it is definitely one factor, but it does not tell the whole story. The lack of understanding of Asia in the West is in a certain sense due to the excessive autonomy of the West, which has only just begun to change. When Westerners begin asking this kind of question, it demonstrates that they have begun to recognise the problem. Yet to this day, the majority of Western European and North American intellectuals lack genuine curiosity about Asia, and the reason for this is certainly not the language barrier. AIMEE LIN&nbsp; Is it a kind of insularity in their own cultures? SUN GE &nbsp; &nbsp; That goes together with the historical trends in politics and economics of recent times: the West going forth to conquer the whole world from an advantageous position. Culture cannot be separated from politics and economics, even though they each have their own characteristics. Cultural people in the West with a genuine awareness of Asia are definitely on the fringes. AIMEE LIN&nbsp; There are very few. SUN GE &nbsp; &nbsp;But I believe there are some. When I discuss the China question with Western European and North American intellectuals, they first trot out a few frameworks, such as modernity, postmodernity, rationality, individual rights, scientism and evolution. All of these frameworks in fact constitute the quite mature cultural structure of modern Europe, and Western intellectuals have been instructed within this cultural system to see them as normal. But the question is, what do they do when they are faced with the East, which does not share these traditions but only imports parts of those elements (from those frameworks)? It seems that every Western intellectual I encounter always tries hard to take whatever unfamiliar experience he or she witnesses and hesitantly cram it into these frameworks, and use them to interpret it. AIMEE LIN&nbsp; When you put it that way, the necessity of Asia as principle becomes apparent, because to them as well this is a huge challenge, a very difficult task. SUN GE &nbsp; &nbsp; Yes. ‘Asia as principle’ is not an empty phrase. It means that we must redefine what is universal. We must start from this perspective: any intellectual or spiritual activity is endemic, ie, governed by fūdo. This means that you cannot take your European or North American partial experience to other regions and treat it as a global experience shared by all humankind. This kind of approach should be negated right from the start. This is the demand that Asia as principle makes of humanity. At present, if you view Asia from the perspective of European principles, then you will use an allegedly universal imagination to view Asia. So you will search for modernity in Asia, and search for scientific rationality. It is not just Westerners who do this. Asian people also do this. AIMEE LIN&nbsp; That is because in our minds we have already become like them due to our education and academic training. But our lives, and our physical and sensory experiences, go beyond that mental aspect. SUN GE &nbsp; &nbsp;Everybody with this kind of educational background has trouble interpreting the change that is occurring in the various Asian societies. For example, how should we interpret the present high degree of mobility, or more specifically, the massive phenomenon of migrant labour in Chinese society? The point is not to give a basis of legitimacy to the existence of every society. This is a kind of intellectual work, so it is not about affirming or negating. What we want to do is to understand. I do not make art, but from the perspective of intellectual history, this issue is extremely pressing. This is what compels us to discuss Asian principles. I think Asian principles in their most simplified form are a universalism based on the premise of the coexistence of a diverse plurality of physical phenomena. AIMEE LIN&nbsp; When you say physical phenomena, is that the fūdo you mentioned? SUN GE &nbsp; &nbsp;That’s right. III. The Prerequisite for Asian Art AIMEE LIN&nbsp; From your perspective as a scholar, is there such a thing that can be called Asian art, and if so, what constitutes the so-called Asian-ness of this art? SUN GE &nbsp; &nbsp;This is truly a big question. First of all, I think the existence of Asian art is not only possible but necessary. However, the existence of Asian art is definitely a diverse existence. So when we talk about Asian art, the prerequisite is that it does not have representatives. We cannot say that Western art has definite representatives – in fact it is very easy to name several different schools of Western contemporary art. I believe that Asian art is the same. But there is also a way in which it differs from Western art, in that there is no ‘primariness’ that encompasses Asian art. AIMEE LIN&nbsp; It has no unifying characteristic. SUN GE &nbsp; &nbsp;That’s right. Over at least the last one or two centuries of forceful moulding by the West, we have become accustomed when discussing a given field to identify a representative and talk about their primariness. What we should do now is discuss the plurality of a field, but people have not yet formed this habit. This is the prerequisite for discussing Asian art. The reason we need this prerequisite is because Asian art cannot be unified. It is varied and plural. The Chinese philosopher Chen Jiaying has proposed the terminology of ‘the particular’, which emphasises the combination of the individual and the characteristic. I think Asian art comprises countless particulars, but what we want to talk about is not a buffet. If it is a buffet, then Asian art does not exist, because it is too dispersed. There are relations between the particulars, and we must use Asian principles to interpret these relations. What is the meaning of these relations? Well, the various particulars are absolutely not the same, and the ways in which they coincide with each other are also not uniform. In establishing these relations between particulars, there is no good and bad. This idea does not comport with European principles. Asian art takes form when we have the goal of establishing relations between the particulars through mutual understanding, through self-liberation and through the individual’s transcendence. This is related to the need for us to change our practice of appreciating Asian art on the basis of European modernity and postmodernity. Our current custom of appreciation is to first translate our culture into English, and then use it to enter other cultures. AIMEE LIN&nbsp; Are there some aspects of this idea of Asia that contradict or oppose the Western world and its theories? SUN GE &nbsp; &nbsp;Yes, but I think that point is not so important. Opposing the methods of the West has been necessary thus far, but as soon as you oppose something, you become subject to the limitations of your opposition. AIMEE LIN&nbsp; You are ‘countered’. SUN GE &nbsp; &nbsp;Yes, which means that this part of the production of knowledge is transitionary, and not particularly constructive. For example, postmodernity is restricted by modernity, so it cannot be free. Asia is restricted by the West: an unavoidable historical fact. If you want to work towards genuine self-liberation from this state of being restricted by the West, I think criticism is ineffective. You must relativise the West, not negate it. The crucial thing is to build our own framework of understanding and organisation that includes the effects of the Western infiltration of Asia. Negating and opposing the West has no constructive function. The establishment of Asian thought and culture requires structural construction. At present, two relatively familiar methods of Eastern intellectuals are those of critiquing the West and reforming the West. These two modes are both significant, and they are both closely linked to the West itself. But I believe that they are transitionary. They form the foundation on which we must engage in our own construction, unrestricted by the West and not predicated on opposition to the West. We must imagine more freely and build more autonomously. AIMEE LIN&nbsp; Is this idea of Asia driven by competition and opposition, or by cooperation? SUN GE &nbsp; &nbsp;A little bit of each. If we’re talking about the economy, then it is definitely competition, and cooperation, which serves the needs of competition, is always provisional. Politics is similar. But I think competition and cooperation are a difficult terminology to use to understand the realm of culture, and particularly the creation of spiritual products. In fact, I think the creation of spiritual products in Asia is intermediary. AIMEE LIN&nbsp; What do you mean by intermediary? SUN GE &nbsp; &nbsp;I mean that I treat my counterpart as a medium, and draw on their work and their spiritual production to fuel my own imagination and creative motivation. Intermediary means that my work is not entirely their work, and their work cannot interpret my work, but if we did not understand each other, then my work would not be the way it is. For example, the spiritual production between China and Japan has to date been imagined in an extremely material form, which is a low-level way of thinking. The truth is that we should take the next step, into a field of greater quality. The relationship between China and Japan should be intermediary, or reciprocal, which is neither competition nor cooperation. AIMEE LIN&nbsp; This year is the 70th anniversary of the end of the Second World War. Historical factors have created an extremely powerful state of psychological tension between, for example, South Korea and Japan, and China and Japan as well, which has still not dissipated. Can art or culture, through certain means, dissipate this tension? SUN GE &nbsp; &nbsp;There are several ways to look at this. Ideally, culture will transcend borders, and in this way it can dispel the imagined opposition between different societies created by national tension – for in fact this opposition exists only in the imagination. But the truth is not that simple. When cultural workers do their thinking and creating, it is their mother tongue that determines their identity. The vast majority of cultural people rarely reflect on this self-identification. If culture is to transcend the tense mentality between nations, then cultural people must first reflect on the very presupposition of their self-identification, and then form an identity for themselves that is greater than their national unit. I believe that people who cannot transcend this specific unit cannot create truly world-class spiritual products. This is not to say that if you transcend your national unit then you have no nationality. No, what I want to emphasise is that of one’s fixed cultural characteristics, one’s mother tongue, is certainly a fundamental source of one’s creative practice, but one need not treat one’s nationality as an absolute presupposition. I believe that there are various levels of depths in cultural identity. If a cultural identity reaches the depth of human spirit, it will reflect it [human spirit] by means of nationality, while resisting an abstract, general expression. AIMEE LIN&nbsp; I am reminded of certain artists and curators who live abroad. They can freely travel to the most distant parts of the world, but their spirituality seems somewhat lacking. Once a person completely ceases to believe in nationality or their original culture, they may be able to depart a place, but they ultimately never arrive at a new place. SUN GE &nbsp; &nbsp;Yes, I think that is very accurate. Artists with no roots have no prospects. IV. Contemporary Art as the Production Platform of Asia Discourses AIMEE LIN&nbsp; Recently, new cultural and art organisations or institutions have been established in Hong Kong, Gwangju, Shanghai, Singapore and the oil-exporting states in the Middle East. They all proclaim the intention of establishing their position on a regional scale. Together, they appear to present the formation of a regional field of vision. What effect does this trend have on our Asian-ness or our self-identification as Asian people? SUN GE &nbsp; &nbsp;This is a very encouraging phenomenon, because when the Bandung Conference was convened in 1955, the only people talking about Asia were politicians. Today, the biggest change is that our politicians are still talking about Asia, but Asia is no longer a presupposition for them. But to people in the worlds of art and culture, this trend you mention is a symbolic change that represents the imagination of Asia and the formation of its subjectivity, guided by the cultural world at different levels of society – although I use that word reluctantly. Some people who do academic research are still content to treat Asia as either a field for the West or a big buffet. As for China, it is treated by some intellectuals as a representative of Asia, just like Japan was previously. So when the artworld invites me to talk about Asia, I recognise that contemporary art has already become an important platform for the production of Asian principles. It also symbolises the transition from the politics-driven period of the Bandung Conference, where the subject was Asian independence movements at the state level, to a culture-driven period in which we search for principles. &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; The various biennials in the region may take place in Asia, but the content of the exhibitions are basically a big buffet of their own region. In a lot of places, when they say Asia, they are really talking about themselves. Sometimes they switch to talking about Asia, so what is the difference between the two? It lies in whether or not you are able to deeply explore the principles of your own culture, and if you are, whether or not you are able to use open, principled, relativised methods to transcend yourself. The ability to transcend the self is one of the most important characteristics of Asian-ness. When you discuss a local culture, you can take the approach of Asian principles. This culture of yours can possess Asian-ness, and you can use the approach of Asian principles to address your local issues, which are otherwise merely a particular situation. So I don’t think the question of being a particular region is that important. The crucial thing is how you do it. Conversely, we see many events with ‘Asia’ in their title that assemble large quantities of Asian things to exhibit, but the Asian-ness of these events is in fact quite shallow. But regardless, I think it is an important phenomenon that Asia is now obtaining attention. AIMEE LIN&nbsp; On the subject of the Third World, you once said that each state’s understanding of the centre of the Third World is different. When we discuss Asia, we face the impulse of different states to establish a world or an Asia in which they are at the centre. In these circumstances, there are many blind spots in how states within Asia relate to and acknowledge each other. Each of us inhabits a specific reality and culture, and we require an operational solution to overcoming these blind spots in our fields of vision. If we can do that, then we can see and understand the regional situations within Asia. SUN GE &nbsp; &nbsp;To elaborate on that point, I would say that the problem can be identified. In what circumstances should we seek to understand ‘the other’? For example, though I am a Chinese person, I have the desire to understand the Middle East. The blind spot is a problem of motivation, not a problem of knowledge. Where does this motivation come from? We can see that most intellectuals in the Third World today, particularly in the mainstream, have quite complete repositories of European and American knowledge. Even if they do not speak English, they read the European classics in translation, and quote them authoritatively in discussions. But they have no interest in Africa, no motivation. They think it is a place that does not produce ideas or principles. This kind of blind spot is the result of the prevailing Western-centric power structure of knowledge and reality. Moreover, whenever a new nation-state is formed, it reproduces this paradigm. So you cannot locate this problem solely in the West. All of the societies of Asia are like this. They put themselves at the centre and actively respond to the demands of the dominant culture. To an extent, this situation will be resolved by history. This is not something that we can rely on artists to guide us through by emphasising certain ideas – that is useless. We must pay attention to the limitation of the effectiveness. Artists can do some work, for example urging people to resolve certain problems in Chinese society. But the solutions to these problems are not easy to identify. Accessing the resources of other regions of Asia can be very helpful if they can be transformed into the intermediary of reflection, and will naturally lead to new ideas. AIMEE LIN&nbsp; I have recently been observing artistic exchanges between China, Japan and South Korea (not including art programmes sponsored by government cultural or diplomatic initiatives). As an observer, I sense that China is the state that least cares about other Asian states. How do you view this issue? SUN GE &nbsp; &nbsp;I think there is some truth to your observation, which is related to the anxiety that has afflicted the entire state since it was established in 1949. In 1958, the national slogan was chao ying gan mei: ‘Surpass England and Catch Up with the United States’. This was because our enemies came from the West, which was also the source of our modernised imagination. Once the state had been established and society began to develop, that is to say, during the reform period that followed the Cultural Revolution, the political modes inherited by the intellectual class were transformed into cultural modes. So you see our leading intellectuals are those who studied in Europe and the United States. Their discourse is essentially an English-based discourse. Their only contribution is either to critique or to reform Europe and the United States. Given this framework, our imagination of international relations in the cultural field essentially runs on a Western track. As a consequence of these circumstances, the present effort to develop an Asian imagination is a nascent one. This fact influences the fine-arts world as well as other fields that overlap with the intellectual world. There is a certain historical logic to our neglect of other Asian states, of our neighbours, but that is not a justification. Now, things are beginning to change. In recent years, curators are always dragging me out to talk about Asia, which has led me to recognise what I just mentioned: cultural people have moved to the front. The artworld has moved to the front. Interviewed on 5 August 2015, the Chinese text was proved and edited by Sun Ge and Aimee Lin and translated into English by Daniel Nieh. The English text was first published in the Autumn 2015 issue of ArtReview Asia and re-edited in 2023. Use of the text is for non-profit purposes only. SUN GE&nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; Born in 1955 in Changchun, Jilin, China, Sun Ge studied Chinese literature at Jilin University and is a professor at the Institute of Literature in the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences. Interested in the issue of East Asia from early on, she has conducted comparative research on the literatures and philosophies of China and Japan across the boundaries of academic disciplines and departments. Her fields of interest include modern Chinese literature, the history of modern Japanese thought and comparative cultural studies. Her major works include How Does Asia Mean? (2001), Space of Pervasive Subjectivities: The Dilemma of Discursive Asia (2002), The Paradox of Takeuchi Yoshimi (2005), The Literary Position: Masao Maruyama’s Dilemma (2009), Why Shall We Talk About East Asia: Politics and History in Situation (2011), Japan and China in History of Thought (2017), History and Humanity: Reflection on Universalism (2018), In Search of Asia: Another Way of Knowing the World(2019), From Naha to Shanghai: Living in Critical State (2020). AIMEE LIN&nbsp; &nbsp; Curator, writer and critic based in Shanghai. Master of Comparative Literature from Fudan University, Shanghai. Formerly founding editor of LEAP(2010-2012), co-founder and the Editor of ArtReview Asia (2013-2019), and Director of Long March Space, Beijing (2019-2021). Parallel to her practice in writing and art criticism, Lin is an independent curator and has been organising solo and group exhibitions and multi-disciplinary programs in Beijing, Shanghai, Berlin, London, and New York. Lin currently works as the Greater China Representative of the School of Visual Arts, for which she travels between China and New York. Email: aimeelinyu@gmail.com https://commonimprint.com/texts-Asia-as-Method Thu, 08 Feb 2024 12:13:04 +0000 commonimprint https://commonimprint.com/texts-Asia-as-Method <img width="2000" height="1411" width_o="2000" height_o="1411" data-src="https://freight.cargo.site/t/original/i/91d3d07ec6db2798aad0cf225497d3e2ce1d2680a408e1a9c509eaa55b3681c8/May_Image_a_small.jpg" data-mid="204165750" border="0" alt="Photo &copy; May Nattanicha Lekkla" data-caption="Photo © May Nattanicha Lekkla" src="https://freight.cargo.site/w/1000/i/91d3d07ec6db2798aad0cf225497d3e2ce1d2680a408e1a9c509eaa55b3681c8/May_Image_a_small.jpg" /> <img width="2000" height="1411" width_o="2000" height_o="1411" data-src="https://freight.cargo.site/t/original/i/272a807c424553a1774d18541ff6c09f22a04bbe7637f8e3bbd78dc71233340b/May_Image_b_small.jpg" data-mid="204165753" border="0" src="https://freight.cargo.site/w/1000/i/272a807c424553a1774d18541ff6c09f22a04bbe7637f8e3bbd78dc71233340b/May_Image_b_small.jpg" /> Asia as Method และการสนับสนุนสิทธิความหลากหลาย ทางเพศในบริบทเอเชีย ณัฎฐณิชา เหล็กกล้า Asia as Method and Advocating for Gender and Sexual Diversity Rights in an Asian Context. May Nattanicha Lekkla เราเจอคุณแซม คิม (Sam Kim) Director ของ Common Imprint ที่งาน Symposium ของ Bangkok Art Book Fair ในงานนั้นเราได้รับเชิญให้เป็นหนึ่งใน Speaker หัวข้อ Shifting Points of Reference : Thinking of Asia as Methods ในงานเราพูดในประเด็น Asia as Methods และการเมืองเรื่องเพศ คุณแซม คิม สนใจในประเด็นดังกล่าว จึงชวนให้เราแชร์บางประเด็นที่เราได้พูดในงาน Symposium ลงในเว็บไซต์ของ Common Imprint เรายินดีเป็นอย่างยิ่งที่จะได้พูดคุยกับนักอ่านของ Common Imprint &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; Asia as Method ของ กวน ซิง เฉิน ต้องการท้าทายอำนาจนำทางองค์ความรู้ของแนวคิดทฤษฎีแบบ Eurocentric หรืออำนาจนำทางแนวคิดที่มาจาก Global North อันประกอบด้วยยุโรป และอเมริกาเหนือ เฉินมองว่าการล่าอาณานิคมของประเทศตะวันตกในยุคล่าอาณานิคม ยาวมาถึงยุคสงครามเย็น ได้สถาปนาอำนาจนำด้านความคิด ทฤษฎีที่มาจาก Global North ซึ่งกดทับองค์ความรู้และแนวคิดในบริบทท้องถิ่น ของ Global South ซึ่งหมายรวมถึงเอเชีย &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; เราได้นำเอาแนวคิดของกวนซิงเฉิน ซึ่งโดยภาพรวมคือการท้าทายแนวคิดของระบบอาณานิคม มาตั้งคำถามต่อในประเด็นเรื่องเพศว่า มีองค์ความรู้หรืออำนาจเรื่องเพศที่ตกค้างจากระบบอาณานิคมยังไงบ้างที่ยังทำงานกับความคิดของคนอยู่ มีอำนาจนำทางความคิดของ Eurocentric ซึ่งอาจจะกดทับความหลากหลายของบริบทและเสียงที่แตกต่างของคนในเอเชียยังไงบ้าง นอกจากนี้แม้กระทั่งองค์ความรู้ภายในเอเชียหรือภายในท้องถิ่นเองมีลักษณะแบบอาณานิคมที่มุ่งครอบงำเสียงที่แตกต่างอยู่หรือไม่ และองค์ความรู้และความเชื่อท้องถิ่นของเอเชีย มีอะไรบ้างที่สนับสนุนสิทธิในเรื่องเพศได้ เราจะสามารถนำแนวคิดเรื่อง Asia inter-reference point มาใช้ในการวิเคราะห์การเมืองเรื่องเพศในบริบทเอเชียยังไง นี่กลายเป็นคำถามของเรา &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; ในการเมืองเรื่องเพศมรดกที่สำคัญที่สุดของลัทธิอาณานิคม คือ มรดกแนวคิด Sodomy Law หรือมาตรา 377 A ที่เจ้าอาณานิคมอังกฤษใช้กับประเทศอาณานิคมทั้งหมดของอังกฤษ กฎหมาย Sodomy Law หรือมาตรา 377 A คือกฎหมายที่ว่าด้วยลงโทษ 'การมีเพศสัมพันธ์ทางทวารหนัก' โดยมีโทษจําคุกตลอดชีวิตจนถึงขั้นประหารชีวิตต่อคนในอาณานิคมจักรววรดิอังกฤษ คิดค้นกฎหมายโดยของลอร์ดโธมัส บาบิงตัน มาเก๊าเลย์ (Lord Thomas Babington Macaulay) คิดค้นขึ้นเพื่อ 'ปลูกฝังศีลธรรมของยุโรปให้มวลชนที่ดื้อรั้น' อันเป็นจุดเริ่มต้นของกระบวนการบังคับใช้ศีลธรรมแบบวิคตอเรียนขึ้นทั่วจักรวรรดิ มาตรา 377 ใช้ครั้งแรกในอาณานิคมอินเดียในปี 1860 และใช้ในประเทศเอเชียใต้ที่เป็นอาณานิคมทั้งหมด ในเอเชียตะวันออกเฉียงใต้เอง มาตรา 377 ครอบคลุมประเทศพม่า ซึ่งเป็นส่วนหนึ่งของบริติชอินเดียในขณะนั้น และใช้ในมาเลเซีย บรูไน และสิงค์โปร์ ซึ่งในปัจจุบันมาตรา 377 ยังถูกใช้ในหลายประเทศ และบางประเทศที่เป็นอาณานิคมยังขยายขอบเขตกฎหมายให้ครอบคลุมความสัมพันธ์แบบหญิงรักหญิง และเจ้าอาณานิคมยังขยายขอบเขตกฎหมายในการห้ามแต่งกายข้ามเพศ กฎหมายที่มาพร้อมการปลูกฝังศีลธรรมแบบวิคตอเรียนไม่เพียงแต่ลงโทษกลุ่มคนรักเพศเดียวกัน แต่เป็นการปลูกฝังระบบคิดเรื่องเพศแบบ Binary และระบบคิดเรื่องเพศตามบรรทัดฐานรักต่างเพศ &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; เราต้องทำความเข้าใจก่อนว่าก่อนการมาถึงของอิทธิพลตะวันตก แต่ละท้องถิ่นล้วนมีวิธีคิดเรื่องเพศเป็นของตัวเอง ที่อาจจะไม่เหมือนกับตะวันตกแต่ถูกทำให้เป็นอื่นและเป็นอาชญากรรม เช่น ในอินเดียก่อนการมาถึงของเจ้าอาณานิคมอังกฤษ กลุ่ม Transgender women ในอินเดีย ซึ่งถูกเรียกว่าฮิจรา (Hijra) ก็มีฐานะทางสังคมที่อยู่ในสภาวะเป็นเพศศักดิ์สิทธิ์ที่สามารถให้โชคแก่คนอื่นๆ รวมถึงสามารถสาปแช่งได้ เป็นเพศที่ได้รับการยอมรับถึงการมีอยู่ แต่การมาถึงของตะวันตกก็ทำให้ฮิจรา (Hijra) เป็นสิ่งผิดกฎหมายในช่วงอาณานิคม เป็นอาชญากรรม เป็นความเป็นอื่น เป็นต้น &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; ในเอเชียตะวันออกเฉียงใต้ ประเทศที่ตกเป็นอาณานิคมของประเทศตะวันตกอื่นที่ไม่ใช่อังกฤษ อย่างฟิลิปปินส์ที่ตกเป็นเมืองขึ้นของสเปนก็เช่นเดียวกัน ฟิลิปปินส์เรียก Transgender women ว่า Bakla ซึ่งก็คล้ายกับอินเดีย คือก่อนเข้ามาของตะวันตก Bakla ก็ได้รับการยอมรับจากสังคมท้องถิ่น แต่การเข้ามาของสเปนก็ทำให้ Bakla เป็นความผิดเช่นกัน นี่เป็นการสะท้อนว่าสังคมเอเชียมีระบบคิดเรื่องเพศมากกว่าสองเพศอยู่แล้วตั้งแต่ดั้งเดิม และบริบทประวัติศาสตร์ตรงนี้เราก็สามารถใช้ในการอ้างอิงเพื่อสนับสนุนแนวคิดความหลากหลายทางเพศได้ ในแบบที่ไม่ได้มาจากแนวคิดบริบทตะวันตก รวมทั้งแสดงให้เห็นถึงมรดกอาณานิคมตะวันตกที่กดทับเรา &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; แม้ว่าการวิเคราะห์ของมโนทัศน์ที่ดำรงอยู่ก่อนการได้รับอิทธิพลจากตะวันตก เป็นเครื่องมือที่สำคัญของแนวคิดแบบ Asia as method แต่สิ่งที่ต้องระมัดระวัง คือ การจัดตำแหน่งตะวันตกให้กลายเป็นจุดตรงกันข้ามกับตะวันออกหรือเอเชีย เพราะมันคือการทำให้สูตรการจัดแบ่งตะวันตกกับตะวันออกแบบ Binary มีความหนักแน่นขึ้น ยิ่งตอกย้ำแนวคิดแบบ Binary เช่นเดิม กวน ซิง เฉิน เสนอว่าแทนที่จะผลิตซ้ำวาทกรรมตะวันตกในฐานะความเป็นอื่น ( the west as the other) ในแบบเดียวกับที่ตะวันตกทำกับเรา กลยุทธ์ทางวาทกรรมทางเลือกหนึ่งก็คือ การจัดวางตะวันตกเป็นชิ้นเล็กชิ้นน้อย ที่แทรกเข้าไปในการก่อรูปสังคมท้องถิ่น ในบริบทนี้การก่อรูปท้องถิ่นของความเป็นสมัยใหม่นำองค์ประกอบที่สำคัญของตะวันตกมา แต่ไม่ถูกครอบคลุมหรือห่อหุ้มทั้งหมดด้วยตะวันตก เมื่อเรายอมรับว่าตะวันตกเป็นชิ้นส่วนภายในท้องถิ่น เราจะไม่พิจารณาว่าตะวันตกเป็นสิ่งตรงกันข้ามอีกต่อไป แต่เป็นทรัพยากรทางวัฒนธรรมท่ามกลางสิ่งอื่นๆ เมื่อทำตามแนวคิดนี้ เราก็จะไม่ถูกผูกมัดให้เป็นปรปักษ์กัน หรือไม่ถูกครอบงำโดยความคิดใดความคิดหนึ่ง &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; เมื่อเราไม่ได้มองตะวันตกในฐานะสิ่งตรงข้ามเพียงอย่างเดียว เราจะเห็นความซับซ้อนของอำนาจแบบอาณานิคมอีกมาก เราจะเห็นภาวะอาณานิคมอีกหลายแบบ เราจะเห็นการทำงานของอำนาจในเรื่องเพศ รวมถึงอำนาจต่างๆ ที่บางครั้งชนชั้นนำในท้องถิ่นเองก็หยิบเอาแนวคิดบางอย่างของตะวันตกมาใช้เพื่ออำนาจของตนเอง หรือใช้การต่อต้านตะวันตกมาเพื่อคงอำนาจของตนเอง เช่นเดียวกับประชาชนในท้องถิ่นที่ทั้งหยิบยืมแนวคิดตะวันตกมาใช้ต่อรองกับเจ้าท้องถิ่นหรือต่อรองกับตะวันตกเอง หรือใช้การต่อต้านแนวคิดตะวันตกในการต่อสู้ทางอำนาจ &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; สำหรับประเด็น Asia interreference แน่ละว่าการเชื่อมต่อด้วย local history ที่ทำให้เราตระหนักถึงคุณค่าของแนวคิดแบบดั้งเดิมบางประการก่อนเข้ามาของตะวันตกจะเป็นวิธีการหนึ่งที่สำคัญ แต่เราก็ต้องไม่ Romanticize ว่าการกลับไปหาแนวคิดแบบดั้งเดิมของเอเชีย กลับไปหา local history มันจะเป็นคำตอบของสิทธิความหลากหลายทางเพศ เพราะแนวคิดในอดีตไม่ได้เท่ากับสิทธิความหลากหลายทางเพศที่สมบูรณ์แบบ แต่เพียงแค่นำมาพัฒนาต่อยอดได้ในบางแง่มุม และควรจะถูกวิจารณ์เพื่อพัฒนาต่อยอด ประเด็นสำคัญไม่ใช่แค่การเชื่อมต่อทางองค์ความรู้ แต่ยังหมายถึงการถูกกดทับในบริบทที่ใกล้เคียงกันของชาวเอเชีย เช่น การถูกกดทับจากมรดกอาณานิคม หรือการถูกกดทับจากประเทศในเอเชียด้วยกัน หรือกดทับจากอำนาจภายในชุมชนของตนเอง เพราะฉะนั้นการเชื่อมต่อองค์ความรู้อาจจะไม่ใช่ประเด็นสำคัญหนึ่งเดียว แต่มันยังรวมถึงการวิพากษ์วิจารณ์อำนาจนำทั้งอำนาจนำของตะวันตก และอำนาจที่ผลิตในบริบทเอเชีย เราต้องวิพากษ์วิจารณ์ซึ่งกันและกันด้วยณัฎฐณิชา เหล็กกล้า&nbsp;นักวิจัยอิสระชาวไทย&nbsp;สนใจการเมืองเรื่องเพศ&nbsp;แนวคิดเกี่ยวกับ&nbsp;decolonization&nbsp;รวมทั้งเควียร์ในบริบทและมุมมองแบบเอเชียEmail: nattanicha.lemay@gmail.com Instagram: nat.le65 I met Sam Kim, Director of Common Imprint, at the Symposium of the Bangkok Art Book Fair. I was invited to be one of the speakers for the session titled 'Shifting Points of Reference: Thinking of Asia as Methods.' During the event, I discussed 'Asia as Methods' and the politics of gender and sexuality. Sam Kim expressed interest in these topics and invited me to share some highlights from my talk at the Symposium on the Common Imprint website. I'm thrilled to have the opportunity to engage with Common Imprint readers. &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; Kuan-Hsing Chen's concept of "Asia as Method" aims to challenge the hegemonic knowledge structures of Eurocentric theoretical ideologies and the guiding influence of the Global North, encompassing Europe and North America. Kuan-Hsing Chen perceives that the prolonged colonial expansion of Western nations during the colonial and Cold War eras has established hegemonic dominance in intellectual thoughts and theories from the Global North, subsequently subjugating the local knowledge and perspectives of the Global South, inclusive of Asia. &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; I have taken the concept of Guan Xing Chen, which it challenges the concept of colonial systems, to pose questions regarding gender and sexuality: how is there any knowledge or power of gender and sexuality left over from the colonial system that still works with people's minds? How does Eurocentric's thinking power suppress the diversity of Asian contexts and voices? Moreover, do even indigenous knowledge systems within Asia exhibit colonial characteristics aimed at suppressing divergent voices and concepts? Additionally, what aspects of Asian knowledge and beliefs can support gender and sexuality rights? How can we use the concept of Asia inter-reference point to analyze gender and sexuality politics in the Asian context? &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; The most significant legacy of colonialism in terms of gender and sexuality politics is the section 377A or what is known as sodomy Law, which the British colonial administration imposed on all its colonies. The section 377A is a law that defines certain sexual acts as crimes such as anal sex. This law, conceived by Lord Thomas Babington Macaulay, was designed to "implant European morals" serving as the starting point for the widespread imposition of Victorian morality throughout the colonies. In practice, sodomy laws have rarely been enforced against heterosexual couples, and have mostly been used to target same-sex relationships between man and man. Section 377 was first introduced in colonial India in 1860 and applied to all British colonies in Southeast Asia. Section 377 covered countries like Myanmar, which was part of British India at the time, and was also enforced in Malaysia, Brunei, and Singapore. Today, Section 377 is still in use in many countries, and some post-colonial nations have expanded its scope to include same-sex relationships between woman and woman. In addition, the colony's laws governing sexuality also included a ban on cross-dressing. The legislation, which came with the imposition of Victorian morality, not only penalizes same-sex relationships but also instill and reinforces binary gender norms and heteronormativity. &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; It is imperative to comprehend that prior to the Western colonial, each region had its own distinct perspectives on sexuality, divergent from Western norms, which were subsequently stigmatized and criminalized. For instance, in pre-colonial India, the social status of Transgender women, known as Hijras, held a recognized societal position allowing them to bestow blessings upon others and were acknowledged as a gender outside the binary. However, the advent of Western colonialism classified Hijras as illegal entities, criminalizing their existence. &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; Similarly, in other Southeast Asian countries, such as the Philippines, which became a Spanish colony, the societal status of Transgender women, referred to as Bakla. Bakla were accepted within their local societies, yet the arrival of Spanish influence rendered them similarly criminalized. This illustrates that Asian societies historically acknowledged more than just a binary understanding of gender and sexuality. This historical context can be referenced to support gender and sexuality rights ideologies distinct from Western paradigms, thereby showcasing the cultural legacy of Western colonialism that suppressed these local notions. &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; Even though the analysis of pre-Western-influenced ideologies stands as a pivotal tool within the framework of Asia as a method, what requires caution is positioning the West as diametrically opposed to the East or Asia. This action accentuates the binary formulation of Western and Eastern paradigms, further reinforcing the binary concept. Kuan-Hsing Chen suggests an alternative rhetorical strategy instead of reproducing Western discourse as 'the other,' similarly to how the West treats us. &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; One such strategic involves fragmenting the Western perspective into smaller fragments, inserting them into the formation of local societies. In doing so, the shaping of localities in contemporary terms introduces significant components of the West but not encapsulated entirely by it. Accepting the West as an inherent part of the local elements dissuades us from perceiving it as entirely antithetical. Instead, it becomes a cultural resource amidst other elements. By following this approach, we avoid being confined or dominated by any singular ideology. &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; When we refrain from solely regarding the West as the polar opposite, we gain a clearer understanding of the intricacies of colonial power. In some historical contexts, local elites in Asia may selectively adopt certain Western ideas to bolster their dominance or reject Western ideologies to preserve their authority, as well as locals borrowing Western concepts for negotiation with local and Western authorities or resisting Western ideologies in their quests for power. &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; For the Asia interreference issue, connecting through local history that helps us appreciate the value of certain traditional Asian ideas before the onset of Western colonialism is indeed a significant approach. However, we must refrain from romanticizing the return to traditional Asian thinking or local history as the solution to gender and sexuality diversity rights. Ideas from the past do not equate to comprehensive gender diversity rights but may serve as a basis for further development in certain aspects. Both Western and Asian-originated ideas from the past should be subject to criticism for progressive development. The key issue lies not only in the connectivity of knowledge within Asian contexts but also in the suppressed within similar contexts in Asia such as suppressed from colonial legacies. Including being suppressed knowledge and power by countries in Asia and local authorities. Therefore, we must criticize assess both Western hegemonic power and the power produced within Asian contexts. May Nattanicha Lekkla Thai independent researchers who interested in the politics of gender and sexuality, decolonization, and queer perspectives from an Asia lens. Email: nattanicha.lemay@gmail.com Instagram: nat.le65 https://commonimprint.com/Donation-List Tue, 19 Sep 2023 10:15:34 +0000 commonimprint https://commonimprint.com/Donation-List Thank the many publishers, designers, artists, curators and collectives who donated exceptionally beautiful books to the Reading Room. Allegro Print(SG), www.allegro-print.comAtelier HOKO(SG), www.shop.atelierhoko.comBird Pit(KR), IG: @bird_pit Currency Design(SG), www.currencydesign.infoDongming Tian(CN)Gloria Glitzer(DE), www.gloriaglitzer.deHaeju Kim(KR), Singapore Art Museum, www.singaporeartmuseum.sgJason Wee(SG), www.jasonwee.comLao Gou(CN) Maria Jooyoung(KR/FR): @mariajooyoung&nbsp;Moonsick Gang(KR), www.moonsickgang.comPatsachon Toyingpaiboon(TH), www.patsachon.comRobert Zhao Renhui(SG), www.criticalzoologists.orgRobineggpie(KR), www.robineggpie.comShin Shin(KR), www.shin-shin.krTemporary Press(SG), www.temporarypress.comThe Floor Plan(KR), www.thefloorplan.networkroom(KR), www.workroom.krYitong Feng(CN), www.yitongfeng.com