Theory analyzation & Practice
Lakoff and John Conceptual Metaphor Theory & Gilles Fauconnier Conceptual Integration Theory
Lakoff and Johnson come up with conceptual metaphor theory, they claim that outside of the conventional conceptual metaphor system, imaginative and creative metaphors can create new meaning, expanding our understanding of our experiences. By artists’ practice, people recognize the variables in the art practice and their ability to map in the spatial models. In short, the mapping process is from source domains to target domains. The visual metaphors generated by artists’ behaviour become a series of cross-mapping expressions, and these cross-mapping expressions lead to new standards. Audience intuition and experience mess up with the metaphor in the artworks, then the audience will have their new understanding of the artworks.
Based on Lakoff and Johnson’s conceptual metaphor theory, Gilles Fauconnier and Mark Turner camp up with Conceptual Integration Theory[1]. They built a model which contains four spaces to demonstrate human’s cognitive process. The model can also fit into how people process metaphor. There are two input spaces, a generic space that contains what the two inputs have in common, and a blended space that contains elements from each input space. The elements in space input I1 and I2 may map each other. The blended space also contains additional elements that can include new elements retrieved from long-term memory which is named emergent structure. Emergent structure is the core part of the theory, which can help us analyse the complexity of visual metaphor.
[1] Mark Turner and Gilles Raymond Fauconnier, "Principles Of Conceptual Integration", in Discourse And Cognition: Bridging The Gap (Stanford: CSLI Publications, 1998), pp. 269-283.
In the graph above, there are four spaces. The points represent the elements in the space. The dotted lines represent the relationship between elements in different spaces. In input space I1 and I2, there are some elements that can be mapped with each other; therefore, the solid line represents the relationship between two input spaces. The square in the blended space represents emergent structure.
Connection with practice
There are two essential behaviour interventions in my artwork, which are ‘handwriting’ and ‘melting’. The coming visual metaphors led by two behaviours represent ‘input I1 space’ and ‘input I2 space’ respectively. In Input I1, 108 times Sutra contains elements like people’s desire/self-consciousness/hope. In Input I2, food-grade glutinous rice paper which I write Sutra on, slowly drift away and gradually melt in the ocean. This visual image contains elements like pray/disappear/exile. Same elements as hope and something about spirit map with each other and all be mapped into the Generic space. All the elements then map into the blended space. Parts of elements go into the emergent structure, combine with the audience’s common sense and cognitive style, to create new meaning. The rise and disappearance of self-awareness and desire reflect born and death. By melting ‘Prajnaparamita Sutra’ to realise the exile and return of consciousness and desire. The concepts of formation and disruption map with each other, enlightening the public with life，death and reincarnation.
We can see from the completed process, people’s cognitive style under the oriental culture context and the pandemic situation at the moment may notice three points. Firstly, handwriting Sutra has the same meaning as drifting away objects into the ocean, which is to pray for life. After finishing writing, 108 kinds of worries and wishes will come true. Secondly, the ocean is also a place where life and death happen. The origin of life is from microbiology from the ocean. Also, as a human, we all birth from amniotic fluid. At the same time, the ocean is also a place where life finally demise. Thirdly, many eastern people have been praying for our family, medical workers, and the country by drifting objects which carry their spirit and hope away in the sea.
Then the elaboration part combines elements from Input space and activated related knowledge into the Blended space and generates emergent structure. All the hard work requires lots of time and energy, and the hard work suddenly disappears and also conveys a view to us: Nothing is forever. The metaphor behind the behaviour is very similar to Tibetan Buddhism. Dul-tson-kyil-khor (Mandala sand paintings) [1]are completed by monks using sand or rock powder through a complex creative process that takes several months. Then, they clean and erase the paintings; scattered sands are blown into a river or streams. Until now, we can get the concept from the visual metaphor: The impermanent and eternal view of life and death in Buddhism allows us to treat death more calmly. By doing this performance, I hope my work can comfort and calm those people with the disease, those who lose their loved ones, and the battered countries, not only China but also many countries are still suffering now.
The work 18H,108 TIMES begins with the basic cognition which the public all familiar with under the oriental context, combining comprehension of Buddhism, through designing two behaviours to create visual metaphor. The elaboration process at the imagination stage will bring cultural, customary, religious meanings to the audience. Then at the emotion stage, elaboration will provide a better persuasive effect. It also provides a good opportunity to spread Buddhism concepts to those audiences who lack related cognition. It is still an open performance artwork.
[1] "Sand Mandala: Tibetan Buddhist Ritual", Youtube, 2016 <https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WBrYUlOYK0U> [Accessed 8 April 2020].