Hsiao-Chu (Julia)
Hsia
夏
小筑
The Fourth Sense
2023
A part of the performance project "Three Patterns", curated by OTS Productions.
Funded by Maryland State Arts Council, T. Rowe Price Foundation.
The Bank, Baltimore, MD, USA
“The Fourth Sense” is an interactive performance with video projection, sound, installation, and scent oil to provide an immersive experience. Hsia played around the phrase “breaking the fourth wall” by inviting people to participate in the process, which is commonly used in the performance field when discussing the performer-audience relationship.
Scent oil was used to trigger senses more than visual and audio, it was added into small droppers as tools. People were invited to pick up a dropper inside the wood box to drip the oil on the transparent line of the installation. The action and aroma of the oil completed the whole performance experience.
The idea of the video and the sound as a part of the installation projecting on the wall reflected the word “concrete jungle” as a reference, where most modern people live, Hsia formed an ambiguous space that is neither a city nor a forest. Raindrops dripping on leaves but mixing window knocking sounds by someone somewhere at the end. Hsia served as an individual that could be a role in a fictional story or just the artist who made this piece, presenting it in front of people. She brightened up the moment but was rushed to leave. The performance ended but the smell remained in memories.
The costume of the role that seemed like the guardian integrated with the space with a yellowish-palette base and reflective elements decorated around. The design of the hairstyle aimed to give a hint of levitation. Some droppers that were used in the interactive section were even applied here as hair accessories to enhance the relationship between the performer, the audience, and the installation.
This performance is connected to the project “Three Patterns,” curated by OTS Productions, as the third and last part of the performance night, representing energy and rebirth after the first stage stating struggle and the second section calming emotions. “Three Patterns” is a project featuring artists from or related to Asian cultures to provide new perspectives of nature and humanity by blending the traditional and contemporary. It was mainly funded by Maryland State Arts Council, T. Rowe Price Foundation, and Baltimore Kawasaki Sister City Committee.