An antidote to trumpian hate
Visiting MASS MoCA’s campus of repurposed industrial mill buildings in North Adams, MA, is always a delight with its Sol LeWitt wall drawings, James Turrell light installations, Louise Bourgeois marble sculptures, Anselm Kiefer leaden beds and Laurie Anderson’s multimedia explorations, along with new large-scale exhibitions of lesser-known artists.
I just recently visited one of its performing arts spaces to preview a work-in-progress of a new theatrical collaboration between two renowned interdisciplinary artists, Eiko Otake and Wen Hui. Using movement, text and video, they explored the suppressed histories of war on a personal and societal level.
Otake grew up in post-war Japan and Wen in China during the Cultural Revolution. In What Is War, the artists uncover intimate stories never discussed by parents and grandparents as well as suppressed national histories.
Both are esteemed artists with long careers. Otake performed for decades with her husband as part of Eiko and Koma, before going solo in the last decade. Wen is widely recognized for her community-based projects as part of Living Dance Studio in Beijing.
The partnership began in 2020 when Otake visited Wen in China during which time they created video diaries of their process. When Covid curtailed the residency, they continued to share work over Zoom, investigating cultural differences and similarities. This material resulted in a documentary, No Rule Is Our Rule (2023), screened internationally at festivals and universities.
In the MASS MoCA showing I attended of What Is War, their movement styles are quite different. Otake is at times feral, arms akimbo, slicing through space while Wen is more restrained, and lower to the ground. Their duets are tender, supporting, uplifting and comforting.
Throughout, they share and then cede the space to each other. The two artists (at times naked) fill the stage with dignity, gravitas and humility, weaving intricately sculptured movement, poignant commentary and striking documentary video.
Particularly potent is a section utilizing footage of them visiting Nanjing’s museum dedicated to the women forced to work at military brothels by occupying Japanese troops during the Second Sino-Japanese War (1937-1945). Images of those forced into sexual slavery are displayed as the two artists separately perform emotionally riveting movement.
Language adds another lush layer of complexity to the theatrical tapestry as the artists deftly alternate from Japanese and Mandarin into English as they excavate family and cultural memories. An astonishing moment occurs when each speaks while drawing calligraphy on each other’s bodies. No translation is provided, but none is necessary as the images captivate the viewer.
Experiencing this work, even in its nascent stage without final production elements, was cathartic. Two fearless women claiming their agency sharing embodied truths. Nothing could be timelier and more resonant—a necessary antidote to Trumpian racist anti-immigrant frenzy and hate-mongering.
The full production of What Is War will be presented at Walker Art Center in Minneapolis and UCLA in April.
