Artist Statement
Inspired by the work of John Lehman, I created three pieces of art that follow the course of Chen Qiufan’s story, “Balin,” specifically pages 10, 14, and 33. I utilized Adobe Photoshop, sourcing some images from Unsplash, a resource dedicated to proprietary stock photography, as well as Adobe brushes and shape tools. The overarching theme of the triptych revolves around the concept of control, as illustrated further in this statement. I chose specific quotes from each of the pages that encapsulate the themes and messages from the story, mainly surrounding ideas of manipulation, free will, chaos, and finally, understanding.
The initial image I created was inspired by the author's writing, specifically his quotes, “Balin was no different from the puppets constructed from hide, cellophane, fabric, or wood” and “we invented more complex and also crueler multiplayer games." This piece, the most collage-like of the three, mirrors a sort of innocence that was depicted in the beginning of the story, when the children were playing the games with Balin. The dark, foreboding waves in the background exude a warning of sorts, that the puppetry and “[cruel] multiplayer games” come with consequences. I chose to enlarge those words on the page, as well as the quote: “I thought my victory was certain” by selecting them and making them larger than the rest of the text. This brings key points to the viewer's mind: the idea that the control inflicted onto Balin is a game, and that there are victors and there are the vanquished. It’s up to the viewer to decide who falls into which category. Finally, the focal point of this piece is the dragonfly– an emblem that appears throughout the story. I chose to have it controlled by a puppeteer, with strings attached to multiple different points.
The second piece is significantly darker, evoking a sense of chaos and danger, akin to suffocation. This image is meant to illustrate the middle section of the story, where Balin is abused for his ability to imitate others, controlled by humans to a point where his free will was arguably taken away entirely. I used a cloud brush (the same one I used in each piece) to paint a vignette of sports on top of the text. Out of all the images, this one shows the least amount of the text, a purposeful choice meant to reflect how pieces of Balin were taken away from himself. The lack of text reflects Balin’s lack of control. Additionally, I wanted a burning effect, yet I didn’t use any images of fire in this piece. The red, fire-like texture that saturates the bottom of the page is a slightly manipulated image of the vela supernova remnant, the last evolutionary stages of an exploded star in space. I considered this to be an apt symbol to represent Balin’s mind at this point in the story: a vast world of chaos and disorder. This also alludes to themes brought up in the third and final piece, inspired by a quote describing Balin as “[encompassing] the universe.” I added cracks to the page to reference the world Balin was pushed into in VR, where the ground split open. Finally, I continued the dragonfly motif, as he is still being controlled by humans, acting as puppeteers.
The third and final image is one that I had conjured in my mind when I first read the story. It exemplifies the ending of the story, when Balin is finally given control over his life. From a personal note, I believe the writing by Chen Qiufan in the final pages of the story is some of the most beautiful writing I’ve ever read, and my art was inspired entirely by the eloquent and captivating words on the page. This includes the following quotes: “One moment he is smaller than an atom, the next he encompasses the universe,” “behind him, the waves coalesce into an endless web on which all the fruits of creation may be found, each playing its own rhythm,” and “in Balin’s eyes, the soul is immanent in all Creation, and there is no difference between a dragonfly and a man.” I wanted the image to be an explosion of sorts, but not the dark, violent kind represented in my previous piece. Rather, an explosion of understanding, euphoria, and “ecstacy.” This piece was created entirely with brushes, the shape tool, and adjustment layers, relying on creation rather than manipulation of imported images, which reflect the epiphanies that Peng, the narrator, experiences regarding Balin at the end of the story. The bright, hopeful colors and manipulated text were purposeful choices that impacted the overall theme of the piece. I also wanted to incorporate neuroscientific elements, choosing brush strokes that resembled axons and dendrites of neurons, reaching out to communicate to one another. Neuroscience was an important aspect of the story, and I thought it was fitting to show that element in the final piece.
This triptych was an embodiment of the emotional meanings behind Balin, from the perspective of the one being controlled. I chose to create it using Adobe Photoshop, using John Lehman’s artwork as inspiration, with a modern twist. Chen Qiufan writes about virtual reality and modern research equipment, so I considered digital art a valid way of putting his words into art form.