The Infinite Line | School of Creative Media

THE INFINITE LINE

Date :
2014.11.1 - 2014.11.14

Location :
Gallery 360, L8, Run Run Shaw Creative Media Centre

Time :
12:00pm - 6:00pm (Mon-Sun)

The programme is open to the public for free, which is part of the CityU’s 30th Anniversary’s Year of Global Literary Expression.

The programme will be showcased at Chronus Art Centre in Shanghai, China from 7 – 28 November, 2014.

The Infinite Line

In the tradition of the ‘workshop of potential literature’ or Oulipo, this interactive installation gives visitors the opportunity to recombine the poetic ensemble of Edwin Thumboo. Twenty seven seminal poems are redefined as poly-vocal readings, which de- and reconstruct his original oeuvre into renewed vectors of meaning.

Using a 360-degree 3D theatre, visitors engage with 27 life-size video recitals by Thumboo. Computational techniques allow for a matrix of individual lines of poetry to be re-assembled in a ‘live’ re-reading of key texts. The resulting assemblages offer new optics and an infinite number of interpretations of the poems and, the man. The Infinite Line proposes new modes of spectatorship in the performance of poetry.

Twenty seven poems include: At The Zoo, Caleb, David – 2, Evening, Expressing Ubin, Finger Of The Cape, Friend, For Peter Wee, Island, Kangaroo Island, Krishna, Little India, O lente lente currite, Renovation, Sunshine And Shadow, Ulysses By The Merlion, Wat Arun, Yeo Landscapes, Bamboos, Conjunction, Iskandar J in His Studio, John, May 1954, Father - 4, Autumn, Iowa City, Ayer Biru, and Catering For The People.

Edwin Nadason Thumboo (b. 22 November 1933, Singapore - ), Emeritus Professor at National University of Singapore’s Faculty of Arts and Social Sciences, is widely regarded as the unofficial poet laureate of Singapore. He is best known for writing on national issues. His poem,Ulysses by the Merlion, is a major work in Singapore literature. He was the first Singaporean to be conferred the SEA Write Award and the Cultural Medallion for Literature in 1979 and 1980 respectively. His other awards include the National Book Development Council prizes for poetry (1978, 1980, 1994), the ASEAN Cultural and Communication Award in Literature (1987), the Public Service Star (Bar) in 1991, and the Meritorious Service Medal in 2006.

Credits

A CityU/SCM/ACIM production

Conceived and directed by Sarah Kenderdine and Jeffrey Shaw

Featuring the poetry of Edwin Thumboo, read by the author

Application development by Leith Chan

3D cinematography by Digital Magic Limited

Visual post production by Paul Nichola

Poem translated by Bao Zhiming, Cao Luwen, Cheng Le, Cui Ying, Ho Chee Lick, Lee Ting Hui, KK Sin, Wong Yoon Wah, Zhu Chunshen

Developed specially for Gallery 360 and the iCinema, The University of the New South Wales AVIE system