【藝述心言】戀木 / 何濼聰 【Intimate Portrait】In the Mood for Wood / Ho Lok-chung, Dave
（2019年6月）有些人相信泛靈論，即萬物皆有靈魂，對動物、植物，乃至畫像和建築物均敬愛有加。有人或會說這是戀物情結，但其實每個人某程度上都會「寄情於物」，因為每一件物品都有它的痕跡與過去。在藝術家何濼聰眼中，木頭不僅不是「死物」，更有其個性。木是他的支柱，也是繆思，他對「她」珍而重之。
木紋歷歷在目，年輪錄下年鑒。樹，本身就是一本書，等待忠實的讀者去閱讀，又或是一位會了解它的藝術家。
J：JCCAC
H：何濼聰
J：你是否從小就接觸藝術？你怎麼看繪畫與雕塑？
H：我由中學時代就開始習畫，但直到大學畢業後才「半途出家」轉投雕塑。從前我以為藝術就只是畫畫，到後來才發現其實有很多不同的媒介，並了解到自己的思路較適合雕塑。
繪畫通常由零開始，是加法，一幅畫可以非常天馬行空；而雕塑剛好相反，是減法，無論你的作品有多抽象，也離不開物料本身。我愛物品拿在手創作時那實在的感覺，不用憑空想像。因此即便是繪畫，我也會去「拾荒」—— 蒐集一些看似沒用的東西 (found objects) 回來研究再下筆。
例如我在大學時期創作的一組作品《若是十年前—— 存在底片》，就用到我於早年在街上拾到的菲林底片創作。最初我對這些菲林不以為然，但後來拿出來看，覺得很有意思，於是到黑房把它們沖曬出來，然後做了一本「藝術家書」 (artist’s book)。從相片可見，那是兩個人很多年前在沙田新城市廣場平台上的合照。我找到了相片中的位置，並到那裡以同一個角度拍下「一樣」的照片。後來，我又以這些舊底片為基礎，畫了一系列作品，並以白色顏料模仿照片上的刮痕。
J：作為年青的全職藝術家，最大的難處是⋯⋯
H：雕塑家在香港生存最大的難處，除了錢，便是空間。因雕塑的製作與收藏需要很大的地方，很難找到適合的人共用工作室。幸運地，我認識了一班也是從事立體藝術創作的朋友，他們製作電影道具，想要合租工作室，便邀請我加入。那時候，我抱著玩樂的心態和他們一起創作，接著更正式成立了藝術組合——木碎好少年。
J：可以與我們分享木碎好少年的理念及點滴嗎？
H：剛開始時我們參與了K11 的「坐井觀天」展覽，因而獲得了一點金錢及人氣。其後我們舉辦工作坊，讓年青人「落手落腳」做木工，教他們一些基本的機械原理。現在電子遊戲充斥社會，大家也不會再玩玩具，科技發達之下，手工業式微。木碎好少年的理念是希望大家可以做多一點勞作，學多一門手藝。
J：你既要投放心力在自己的作品中，亦要參與木碎好少年的製作，在創作心態上，兩者有沒有甚麼不同？
H：我把兩者分得很清楚。木碎好少年是團隊協作，為了突出作品的特色，我們定下幾個原則。首先材料一定是木，其次是作品要有互動性，並帶有諷刺的意味或玩味。因此成品通常會比較輕鬆、「容易入口」。至於我的個人創作則側重於純雕塑，不會走裝置藝術的路線。創作會花更長的時間去沉澱及思考，命題也會比較沉重。
J：你的靈感來自哪裡？有沒有哪些題材特別關注？
H：我需要時間沉澱去獲取靈感，可能在製作的途中才靈機一觸。我認為創作並不一定要概念主導，反而有時候物料會引領我們完成作品。尤其是木雕塑家需要順著木頭去雕，木紋會告訴我們哪裡不能鑿。選擇木為雕塑媒材是因為每一種木材也是獨特的，擁有豐富的資訊，正好滿足我「打爛沙盤問到篤」，喜歡深究各種物料由來的性格。
我起初的作品題材多圍繞生活，後來漸漸轉移到對物件的情。物件連結了我的創作及思路，這可能就是大家說的戀物。物件的歷史及痕跡讓人眷戀，這也說明了為甚麼有那麼多人喜歡古董。例如我在英國讀碩士的時候，有一系列作品是以古董店買回來的東西倒模而成——其中一個是將小耶穌像倒模，製作成多支粉筆，讓大家跪著在地上的黑板以「聖嬰」寫字。
我希望我的作品能如傅丹那樣輕輕帶過沉重的話題，幽默而又神秘，就像小說起承轉合的脈絡中「轉」的部分 (the falling action)。
J：你最喜歡自己哪一件作品？為甚麼？
H：近來最喜歡的作品是剛剛完成了不久的《有機體》（在維園的「廢柴！不廢」展覽上展示），創作概念來自於葉子生長時如像手在緩緩移動的形態。
在「木十豆寸」展覽的作品《一半》也很特別，雕塑的木材是來自宮粉羊蹄甲。你知道嗎？香港的市花洋紫荊其實就是宮粉羊蹄甲與紅花羊蹄甲的混種，所以這木材就是洋紫荊的「一半」。我把木頭切開來，發現它有黑色的木紋。木紋呈黑色是因為這塊木頭接近樹根的位置，在潮濕的空氣下，真菌沿著木紋而生。它的學術名稱叫作「霉紋」（spalting），最常見於楓木，很多名貴結他也是用霉紋楓木製作而成的。
J：JCCAC 給你的感覺是⋯⋯
H：在進駐JCCAC 之前，我一直是與別人共用工作室的，但問題是，空間不夠用之外，亦會受人影響。現在有了自己的工作室，才感到自己像是個正式的藝術家，創作亦如魚得水。
未來我會繼續以木雕創作為主，並會探索結合陶瓷與木雕創作的可能性。
下載《JCCAC節目表》2019年6月號，按此
(2019 June) Some people believe in animism, that every matter in the universe has a soul, and so all things – be it animals, plants, paintings, and buildings – should be treated with love and respect. Others might label this fetishism, but everyone expresses sentiments through objects, albeit to varying extents. Every object has stories to tell and secrets to keep. To wood sculptor, Ho Lok-chung, Dave, wood is far from dead – each piece has its own character. Wood is his pillar and his muse. And to wood he endears and cherishes.
Tree rings record the chronology of a tree’s life, and each distinct wood pattern a chapter with its unique story. A tree is a book awaiting readers, or a soul mate in the form of an artist, to read between the “lines” and delve into its pages.
J: JCCAC
H: Ho Lok-chung, Dave
J: Were you introduced to art since an early age? What are your views on painting and sculpture?
H: I began painting during my secondary school years and only turned to sculpture after graduating from university. When I started studying arts, I thought painting was the only art form. It was not until later did I discover the rich array of disciplines and that my mindset is more suited for sculpture.
Painting is an art of addition – painters start with a blank canvas but what they put on it is entirely up to them – the sky is the limit. Sculpture, on the contrary, is a practice of subtraction. A sculptural piece, however abstract, is always governed by its material. I like that solid feeling with the weight of a raw material in my hands, which spares me from conjuring a piece from thin air. Even for my paintings, I would forage for found objects (objet trouvé) – things discarded by others – for transformation with my brush strokes.
For example, a series of artwork I created during university, Maybe a Decade Before – Existent Film, is based on a roll of undeveloped film I found on the street by chance. I had no plans whatsoever when I discovered the film some years afore, then one day I took the negatives out and thought it might be interesting to make a work out of them. So I headed to the darkroom to get them developed and put the resulting prints into an “artist’s book” (an artwork that utilises the form of the book). The prints are that of two people posing on the podium of the Shatin New Town Plaza. Then I located the same spot and snapped an “identical” set of photos. I also drew a series of paintings based on these old negatives, using white paint to imitate the scratch marks.
J: As a young full-time artist, the biggest challenge is⋯⋯
H: As a sculptor in Hong Kong, the biggest challenge, apart from money, would be space. The production and storage of sculptural work take up a lot of space and it is difficult to find a suitable artist to share a studio with. As luck would have it, I met a group of 3-D and film props artists who were looking to share their studio. They counted me in and soon we were creating together, though I was in for fun initially. The art collective, Chipgoodguy Studio, was duly born.
J: Can you tell us the vision of Chipgoodguy Studio and tidbits about the group?
H: We started off by taking part in an exhibition at K11, “A World in a Well”. With our little new-found money and fame, we held a woodworking workshop for young people, offering hands-on experience alongside basic mechanical theories. With gaming taking over their lives, people have long abandoned toys, and technology
advances at the expense of traditional craftsmanship. Our vision at Chipgoodguy is to encourage the making and learning of arts and crafts.
J: Splitting your time and efforts between individual works and collective projects, do you approach the two with different mindsets?
H: I keep the two entirely separate. Chipgoodguy is all about collaboration. We have rules laid down to ensure our works exude a distinct style: the material has to be wood, the work interactive and the tone ironic or playful; and the finished works are usually light-hearted for “easy consumption”. On the other hand, my personal pursuit is more inclined to pure sculptures and I never tread the path of installation art. Plenty of time is given to collecting my thoughts and reflection, and the subject matter is invariably heavy.
J: Where do you find your inspiration? Are there any topics you take a special interest in?
H: Inspiration is nurtured through time and may come to me in a thunderbolt moment while I am in the middle of creating something. I do not necessarily follow a concept-led approach; sometimes it is the material itself that leads you to the finish line. It is especially true for a wood sculptor, whose every move is guided by the natural wood patterns. I choose to work with wood because each type of wood is unique and is embedded with a wealth of information. I have a desire to get to the bottom of things and delve into the character of each material. Only wood can satisfy my curiosity.
My early works centre on the everyday life. Later, they were about my sentiments for objects. Objects are the link that connects my creative work with my train of thought. I guess that is what people call “fetishism”. People are drawn to the history and marks borne by an object. It explains our enduring love for antiques. It reminds me of a series of artworks I did for my master’s degree in the UK, using objects found in antique shops. One of which was a baby Jesus figurine – I made a mould with it and produced a bunch of “Holy Child” chalks. The audience were invited to kneel down and write on a blackboard placed on the floor, with these chalks.
I hope my work exhibits the effortless ease similar to Danh Vo’s approach, who brings light touches to heavy subjects and lace them with humour and mystery, which I would describe as the falling action of the story plot, i.e. the part after the climax and before the very end.
J: Which is your favourite work and why?
H: My current favourite is Organism, which was completed not too long ago (exhibited at the “Junk! Woodworking” exhibition in Victoria Park earlier this year). The idea came from my observation of plants, likening the growth of a leaf to the sluggish moving of a human arm.
I find another work Moiety, my contribution to “A Bauhinia in JCCAC” exhibition, rather special, too. I used the wood of bauhinia variegate for this piece. You know what? The bauhinia flower is the emblem of Hong Kong and a hybrid of bauhinia variegate and bauhinia purpurea. That means my choice of wood is one half of the bauhinia flower! I noticed some black lines when I cut open the wood. This piece of wood was taken from near the roots, which had been exposed to humid conditions favourable to fungal infection. This wood colouration in trees is known as spalting and is commonly found in maple. Spalted maple wood is much sought by craftsmen to make guitars that fetch handsome prices.
J: Your impression of JCCAC is⋯⋯
H: I had previously always shared studios with others, where there was never enough space and always too much disturbance. I only feel like a proper artist now that I have my own studio at JCCAC, taking to it like a duck to water. I will continue to focus on wood sculptures but also plan to explore the possibilities of adding ceramics into the equation.
Please click here to download JCCAC PROGRAMMES (2019 June issue)
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