The Gateway - Research Paper Example

Art Research Paper Introduction The “Gateway” (1997) by Millie Chen is the pair of symbolic entry points, which mark the boundaries and the environs of the Chinatown in Toronto; Chinatown is the name of the neighborhood, which is primarily occupied by Asians. The “Gateway” is founded on the traditional look of the Chinese notation for a gateway, and the poles supporting the inscriptions form a part of the calligraphic presentation of the word. The upper section of the sculpture shows the metamorphosing and the intertwining of the different revered legendary figures, which are formed on fiberglass. The different figures include Long, which is related to the Dragon; Feng Huang, which is related to the Phoenix; the Qilin, which connotes the Unicorn and Sun Hou Zi, referring to the Monkey King.1 The linguistic collection of terms has a similar interpretation in Japanese, Korean and traditional Vietnamese; it is a reflection of traditional as well as modern exchange of cultural formulations, forms and values. The symbolic “gateways” are references to the transition process for the Asian community into the new community, and is also a reflection of the social tradition of Spadina Avenue, where the situation used to refer to the displacement of a given culture replaced another, following the arrival of immigrant populations into the city. This paper is a review of Millie Chen’s “Gateway”, documenting its attributes, the information needed to understand the art work, the artist, the style used and the historical dimensions employed.2 Discussion The “Gateway” is a part of the Colonnade Pole, which is located along at the right side of Spadina Avenue I in Toronto. Starting 1997, the Gateway was identified as the landmark intersection of Chinatown at the Dundas and Spadian Streets – by the Toronto Transit Commission.3 One pair of the poles covered by the name “gateway” lie to the northern side of the intersection, and the other pair lies to its south. The dimensions of the two pairs of sculptures are six meters in height, 3 meters in length and 0.5 meters in breadth. The materials used for the construction of the different sculptures include steel, fiberglass, polyurethane foam and Endura. The sculpture by Millie Chen is composed of different casts made from fiber glass, showing four legendary creature, which are revered under Chinese and Asian mythology. The four figure forms curved out include a dragon, a phoenix, a Unicorn and a Monkey King, together with the 20 poles used as markers in spelling out the Chinese inscriptions for the name Gateway.4 From the physical outlook of the red sculptures – mounted on the two poles – the creatures are shaped in calligraphically manner, to form the word “gateway”, like it would be written using the characters of the Chinese language. The artist uses the bull eyes, the spikes on the bodies, horns on the heads and the twisted trunks to form the shapes of the Chinese letters referring to the name gateway. The four creatures incorporated into the shape of the sculpture metamorphose from one to the other, and the metamorphosis is used as a symbolic representation of the cultural change that took place following the immigration of the Asian group into the locality.5 The change is reflective of the changes in the ethnic composition of the Spadina Avenue area, which had taken place over, since the start of the inflow of the immigrant groups into the area. The metamorphosis represents the changing cultural outlook as well as the replacement of certain cultural forms and formulations, which have been replaced by newer ones – some foreign and others hybrid – to form the contemporary cultural outlook of the area.6 The gigantic nature of the sculptures can also be construed as making reference to the influential nature of the Asian groups, within the area, at the time that the artwork was created. For example, this underlying significance can be proved from the documented cultural composition of the area, where it is noted as predominantly Asian, irrespective of being part of a wider area that identifies with a different social and cultural base.7 Taking note of the fact that the characters incorporated into the sculpture have the same meaning in different languages: Japanese, Chinese, Korean and pre-colonial Vietnamese, the artwork also serves as a symbolic representation of the different groups. The representation of the different groups fits into the context of Spadina Avenue, mainly because it denotes the contribution of the different groups to the cultural forms and the formulations that may be witnessed at the area, following the infiltration of the immigrant groups into the area. Fast-forwarding the traditional sharing of the language and the characters incorporated into the sculpture into the modern times, the artwork can be viewed as a reference to the shared inflow of the different groups into the particular area. For example, at present, the area is known to be a neighborhood, which is predominantly inhabited by Asian groups, mainly the Chinese and a lesser representation of the other Asian groups referred before. The inflow of the different groups, mainly the Chinese immigrants can be used as prove of the multicultural nature of the locality, which is notable from the splash of red on buildings, restaurants and other areas at Spadina.8 Flowing from the explicit understanding of the artwork, a scholar is introduced to nature of the artist, as well as the wider Chinese immigrant group that moved into the area, to make it an Asian dominated locality. The artistic outlook of the artist’s work points to the factors that led to the uncontrolled inflow of the Chinese into Toronto.9 These factors include the increasing creation of and the concentration of high-tech employment at the area, which attracted foreign investors as well as the highly learned immigrant groups that came in from China, among the other, less represented Asian countries. This information, pointing to the nature of the artist can be verified using the success stories that were common throughout the High-Tech market and capital of Canada.10 One example is that of Kwok Yuen Ho of ATI Technologies Inc., who grew into an industry mover in the production and in the designing of computer graphic chipsets. This industry mover had moved into the area as a business-class immigrant, and his success in the industry made his company the third largest nationally.11 From the interpretation of the artistic nature of the sculpture, the audience is introduced to the iconic place of her arts, in the global collection of art. This is notable from the role offered to her sculpture at the entrance of Chinatown, which is recognized and acknowledged by the administration of the Toronto region. The iconic nature of the sculpture, as the landmarks making the boundaries of Chinatown also point to the influential nature of the art in the sphere of global art.12 Among the regions where the artworks of the artist are presented include Canada, the US, China, Mexico, France, the Netherlands, Germany, Japan and Northern Ireland. Among the awards received by the art – which evidence her iconic role in the world of art – include her entitlement to the Chalmers fellowship grants and awards, prior to the production of “Demon Girl Duet”. The Demon girl duet is a record founded on the journeys of two rivers: Niagara of Canada and Yangtze of China. Her works have secured her a place in different public collections; her performance milestones include the production of a variety of permanent art commissions for the public. Further, her literary works have been published in Canada, the UK, China and the US.13 Through the wide variety of her art works and literal works, her theme of creativity is evidenced as one based on offering sensorial experiences that trigger the ideological and the perceptual assumptions of her audience.14 The theme of her artworks is representative of the real-world importance and the role of art, which is that of meeting the human needs of the moment, while at the same opening up platforms for social inquiry. Through her artworks, she has communicated the multicultural perspective of different societies, for example by using Chinese artworks to mark the boundaries of the Chinatown of Toronto. Further, her artworks act like a platform for introducing the visitors of the areas with her sculptures and other iconic artworks, of the deep cultural experiences that they can experience while inside the reference cultures and communities.15 The huge inflow of the Chinese people into the area – which is evidenced by the inscription of Chinese symbols and Chinese traditional mythology – points to the Historical situation surrounding the mass immigration.16 The crisis at China is documented by Arlene Chan, who points out that tax policies and production capacity were unfriendly to the people of China, that the news of a new found land were embraced.17 Among the opportunities that pushed the Chinese people to move in uncontrollable numbers into the area, was the realization that gold, among other valuables could be collected easily, at areas like the Fraser River of Columbia.18 The crisis facing the Chinese, during the years of the massive immigration point to the mass immigration into the area, which contributed to the emergence of a locality inhabited – mainly – by the Chinese, which attracted the creation of the Gateway.19 Conclusion The “gateway” (1997) is a set of symbolic sculptures, which mark the borders of Chinatown, which is a neighborhood inhabited – primarily – by Asians. The “gateway” is a symbolic representation of the metamorphosis of the Asian cultures represented in the area, with the cultural sets of the area. The artwork is also representative of the historical sharing between the Chinese and other Asian groups, including the Japanese and the traditional Vietnam, mainly due to the shared meaning of the word spelled-out. The gateway is located at the geographical boundary of Chinatown, at the intersection of Spadian and Dundas streets. Through the artwork, the audience is introduced to the sophisticated artistic works of the author, which points to the inflow of educated Chinese in the latter years. From the iconic role played by the artwork, the viewer is introduced to the instrumental role of the artist in the modeling of global art, and the work points out to the root causes of the immigration into the area, including the Chinese crisis of the 1800s. Bibliography Addiss, Stephen, and Mary, Erickson. Art History and Education. Illinois: University of Illinois press, 1993. Chan, Arlene. The Chinese in Toronto from 1878. Toronto: Dundum Press, 2011. Stecker, Robert. Artworks: Definition, Meaning, Value. University Park, PA: Pennsylvania State University, 1996. UB. “Millie Chen”. Visual Studies, University at Buffalo. 2014. Web. Accessed on: January 30, 2014. http://visualstudies.buffalo.edu/people/full-time-faculty/millie-chen/ Warketin, John. Creating Memory. Toronto, ON: York University Publishing and Printing Operations, 2010. 90. Read More