The Imagination of Words: Living Words
by Sherry 2023
Lingis (1994) posits that language, whether stemming from the East or West, originates from natural utterances—the sounds of animals and any entities capable of vocalisation. Human codes, in this context, engage not only with human decoders but also resonate with the natural expressions of praise, complaint, and disharmony (1994).
Within the framework of Eastern culture, archaeologist Zhang Guangzhi asserts that the written medium seamlessly integrates with the information it encapsulates, positing that once humans invented writing, the script itself became an integral tool for communicating with the divine and the terrestrial (1983). In the nascent stages of Chinese logographic characters, their primary function was divination for predicting future events. Chinese archaeologist Tang Jigen at the Yin Ruins revealed a fascinating practice where individuals would drill holes in turtle shells or ox bones. Following this, through heating and smoking, conspicuous cracks would appear. Subsequently, the interpretation of these cracks, based on their obtuse or acute angles, would determine the auspicious or inauspicious nature of events. These patterns, emerging from the interactions between humans and nature, were infused with magical and religious significance (Abram, 1996). This early practice laid the foundation for oracle bone script, exemplifying the rich visual associations and imagination of ancient humans when interpreting the world and the unknown. And also signifies audacious speculation in the realm of science. Even in contemporary times, China's academic mainstream asserting that China's logographic system holds more aesthetic and appreciative value than Western phonetic scripts. Some Western linguists also agree that the Chinese written sign involves “part sight and sound and meaning”, whereas the Chinese written sign, “is a complex gestalt involving all the senses at once” (McLuhan 1980: 291).
Drawing parallels, just as Westerners often hold a fascination for the mysterious aspects of Eastern cultures, Easterners also intrigued by the traditional Western civilisation before modernisation. If logographic characters resemble an animated painting, then Western languages may be likened to a melodic song with vivid imagery. (Abram, 1996) Many Easterners may dismiss Western scripts as lacking aesthetic allure; however, the appreciation derived from phonetic scripts is not rooted in visual experience. It diverges from the flourishing development seen in ancient Chinese calligraphy. Instead, it leans towards an auditory indulgence, paving the way for the flourishing classical music genres evident in numerous concert halls and opera theatres seamlessly integrated into daily life in Western cities. (Abram, 1996) Some philosophers posit that the most fundamental forms of words had taken shape from expletives uttered in startled response to powerful natural events, or from the frightened, stuttering mimesis of such events—like the crack and rumble of thunder across the sky. (Vico, 1668–1744). The origins of words are deeply rooted in our sensory reception of the sounds in the natural environment, linking mountains, rivers, valleys, forests, and sunlight. For instance, English words like "rush" and "wash" subtly retain echoes of the sounds found in the natural world (Abram, 1996). Hence, it is inaccurate to claim that Western languages lack aesthetic value; on the contrary, they accentuate human auditory experiences and their connection to nature. People tend to rely on puns, utilising words with similar pronunciation to “believe”. For example, pairing seemingly unrelated items like “bee” and “leaf”, phonetically resembling “believe” but lacking explicit semantic connections, becomes a creative means of expressing belief (Adam, 1996).
In contemporary art creation, the use of text by artists from the East and the West can also reflect two tendencies: visual and auditory. For example, in the early works of Chinese artist Xu Bing (1955), who used words as a main element in his art creation, there is a series of works that explore the relationship between words and nature. In his Landscripts from the Himalayan Journal, (1999)(Appendix 1, fig. 1), he uses characters instead of brushstrokes, drawing "石" with the word for stone (石) and "草" with the word for grass (草), use words to read nature and use nature to read words. Exploring the Relationship Between Nature, Human Thought, and Human Society: ". . . facing a real mountain, I wrote ‘mountain’ . . . where there was river water I wrote the character for ‘water’. The clouds shifted, the mountain colors changed, the wind blew and the grasses moved, the life around me appeared and disappeared; with a feeling of excitement, I recorded it all!" (Xu, 2013). Xu's installation work Living Word, (2001) (Appendix, fig. 2) further elucidates the evolutionary process from birds in the natural world as animals to the contemporary definition of the word "鸟" (bird) in Chinese dictionaries. The piece illustrates the transformation from simplified Chinese characters in print since the Mao Zedong era to traditional characters, regular script, clerical script, and small seal script. It traces back to the ancient pictograph "鸟" (bird), evolving into the form of birds in the natural world. They gradually ascend, flying in flocks towards the window, also directing our gaze from within the concrete buildings to the natural scenery outside the window. On the other hand, McCahon (1919)’s works require the viewer to read the words in a personalised manner, projecting it into the world. For example, the artwork The Lark’s Song, (1969) (Appendix, fig. 5) features a poem written in Maori. Even though neither the artist nor the viewer may understand the textual content, people can grasp the pronunciation of Maori. The artist reminds the audience that the information carried by the text is not a hindrance to appreciating the artwork, stating, "Please don’t give yourself the pain of worrying out a translation of the words but try for the sound of the painting" (Hunt,J.D., Lomas, D. And et al., 2010:340). The artist employs words more closely connected to nature in indigenous cultures. Through reading the words, listening to its sounds, the artist transcends the limitations of language and engages in a dialogue with the larks of nature.
From this perspective, it seems that Western phonetic scripts and Eastern logographic characters are gradually diverging in visual and auditory dimensions, moving towards two completely different directions. In fact, there is a certain interesting connection between them, and they may even magically intersect and overlap. Before the formation of words in the Western languages, where did those individual letters come from? Some believe they originated from images in nature. For instance, the letter Q comes from the Hebrew word qoph (monkey), a monkey with a long tail dangling around. M comes from a series of waves . In east, the pronunciation of the Chinese character "乌" comes from the natural sound of crows, represented by the onomatopoeic "wu." Perhaps, the images and sounds in language and writing have never been truly separate from nature; they might even reflect and map onto each other. Just like, in Scottish Gaelic, the writing of “its(它)" is highly similar to the way “它,(it)” is written in ancient Chinese. In ancient Chinese, "它" was written as “ i ” because it resembled a slithering snake, gradually coming to represent all non-human entities. In Gaelic, the writing for "it" is "i." Although Gaelic uses an alphabet, at this point, a "dot" with a "curved line" form an image resembling the "snake" from ancient Chinese (Appendix, 4). At this moment, characters developed from sound and images in civilisations from the East and the West meet, as they jointly refer to the same concept. Rather than considering them as accidental encounters, it is more accurate to say that sound and image have never truly separated. In different words, some people are more sensitive to sound, making sound the gateway for their development of "civilisation." For others, image sensitivity leads to the development of civilisation through words. However, as individuals, when we attempt to connect with nature through both phonetic and logographic writing systems, we do not enter a world consisting solely of sound or image. On the contrary, when we look at Xu Bing's "Living Words," our brains may automatically fill in an image of flowers, trees, and flocks of birds accompanied by a gentle breeze and bird songs. Similarly, when we read McCahon's Lark’s Song, (1969) (Appendix, fig. 3) we might envision the lively scene of larks cheering and frolicking in the jungle under the sunlight. Regardless of the entry point, they bring us into a natural landscape that combines visual and auditory elements, connecting our senses within the body, eventually forming unique emotional and spiritual worlds in each person's mind. Contemporary art repeatedly uses words to connect with the universe, animals, and landscapes, continuously reminding us that they are living language is a way to dialogue with the world rather than explain the world (Adam, 1996).
Figure 4: Xiaoyu Xiong, i, 2023, Code generated, Print work.
Bibliography
Abram, D., (1996) The spell of the Sensuous. A Division of Random House. Inc. New York.
Chang, K.C., (1983), Art, Myth, And Ritual: The Path To Political Thority In Ancient China. US: Harvard University Press.
Hunt, D.J., Lomas, D., and Corris, M., Art, (2010) Word and Image: Two Thousand Years of Visual/Textual Interaction, Reaction Book Ltd.
Lingis, A., (1994), Foreign Bodies. London: Routledge.
Lingis, A., (1994), The Community of Those Who Have Nothing in Common. US: Indiana University Press.
Marienberg, S., (2017), Symbolic Articulation : Image, Word, and Body Between Action and Schema, (De Gruyter.
McLeod, W., (2020), Gaelic in Scotland: Policies, Movements, Ideologies. Edinburgh: Edinburgh University Press.
Tsao, H., and Roger T. A., (2011), Xu Bing and Contemporary Chinese Art : Cultural and Philosophical Reflections. NY: State University of New York Press.
Xu S., (2020), Shuowen Jiezi, 说文解字 (Discussing Writing and Explaining Characters), Zhonghua Book Company.
Appendix 1: List of Illustrations
Figure 1: Xu Bing, Landscripts from the Himalayan Journal, 1999, Ink on paper. Location: Kiasma Museum of Contemporary Art, Finland. Resource: https://www.xubing.com/en/work/details/232?year=1999&type=year#232
Figure 2: Xu Bing, Living Word, 2001, Cut and painted acrylic, Location: Arthur M. Sackler Gallery, Smithsonian Institution, Washington D.C., U.S.A. Resource: https://www.xubing.com/en/work/details/186?classid=10&type=class
Figure 3: Colin McCahon, The Lark’s Song, 1969, synthetic polymer paint (PV Ac) on two hardboard doors, 1630 x 1980 mm, Location: Auckland Art Gallery Toi o Tāmaki, Resource: https://www.aucklandartgallery.com/explore-art-and-ideas/artwork/5808/the-larks-song?q=%2Fexplore-art-and-ideas%2Fartwork%2F5808%2Fthe-larks-song