Ruiqi Zhang
张瑞麒

He (b.1994, Liaoyang, China) is a multi-media artist. He holds an MFA in Kinetic Imaging from VCUarts and a BFA in Visual Communication Design from LAFA. Ruiqi’s practice work presses on sensitivity to digital technology when engaged in different dimensions of related issues such as online identity, media discourse, and post-internet modernity.

email: info@zhang-ruiqi.com 
ins: ruiqi_zhang_
CV
links 
Ruiqi Zhang
张瑞麒

He (b.1994, Liaoyang, China) is a multi-media artist. He holds an MFA in Kinetic Imaging from
VCUarts and a BFA in Visual Communication Design from LAFA. Ruiqi’s practice work presses on sensitivity to digital technology when engaged in different dimensions of related issues such as online identity, media discourse, and post-internet modernity.

email: info@zhang-ruiqi.com
ins: ruiqi_zhang_
links
CV

Monument Emitter
3D rendered video, 06:16, 2023

“When they trumpeted the meliorative power of beauty, they were stating the belief in its capacity to shape human thought and behavior“ (William H. Wilson, 1989). This work reveals the entrenched narratives surrounding monuments and sanitized community consciousness and also prompts how we should understand our historical heritage and the revisionist future. The empty plinths/models were converted into particle emitters in 3D application while associating lawn sprinklers and water droplets, which expand the scope of these revered objects. It offers a meditation space to reconsider the existence of monuments as catalysts for sustainable discourse and engagement.

vimeo

The Burning Tower
4k video, 17:32, 2020

The Burning Tower" (2020)
is a desktop film that provides a concise review of the advancements in 5G communication technology and the evolution of the Internet. It delves into the intricate relationship between conspiracy theories, rumors, and the infrastructure of the network. This film is structured into four interconnected segments and features soundscapes created by sound artists Matt Dowdy & Liza Pittard. These segments continuously strive to rationalize the seemingly irrational act of burning communication towers.

The inspiration for the storyline was drawn from real-world news reports, attempting to envision a plausible scenario behind the burning of a 5G cell tower. This film follows the perspectives of a virtual 3D male and the narration of a female anchor. It explores themes about the pioneering hypertext project, the 5G protocol, and the pathways of submarine optical cables.

vimeo

Manifesto: Art Downgrade
single channel video, 04:22, 2019

Manifesto: Art Downgrade
is a composite concept that combines art and economics, from the research of image production related to the popularity of low-cost smartphones and the slowdown of economic growth in China. Mass production by China's online rural community and developed network infrastructure have created greater market wealth and contribute to emerging Internet cultures. This work advocates evaluate alternative perspectives and decentralization of urban narrative in contemporary art creation. By splicing green screen materials from the Internet and selfie clips made by mobile phones, the manifesto aims to evoke the creative impulse and imagination of ordinary people, to express their voice by using the integration of open-source media, mobile technology, and daily labor in creation.

vimeo

Galaxy Equivalent Parallel Objects
digital video, 25:32, 2019

Galaxy Equivalent Parallel Objects is a fictional autobiographical film about the artist's artistic concepts, childhood anecdotes, and online identity construction strategies. This work explores the contemporary narrative influenced by mobile technology, that restored the viewing experience of people browsing short-video social media through continuous visual and audio stimulation and ever-changing content editing. Self-portraits from different social media filters, found footage from Kwai, consumer product advertisements, vintage animation loops, and dictated family history are collaged in the film, to challenge people’s ability to read complex information.

Inspired by the article Movies and Objects—Is There an Object-Oriented Film Theory? (电影与物——是否存在一种以物为导向的电影理论?) , this widescreen film exams the decentralized creation method and the unconscious montage. By offering the ostensible intellectual questions and irrelevant answers, the dialogue raises questions about how we build connections among disordered footages, and how short-video social media algorithms imperceptibly shaped our way of watching.

vimeo