Project Title:
False Truth
Project Brief:
My project began by relocating the existing Labour North Office into a more historic building at The Palace of Arts in Newcastle. The Palace of Arts, with its new features, attempts to reclaim the Labour’s reputation in the northern region. Post 20th century saw growth of social media-driven culture, this poses the challenge of discerning between reality and false news. There are no media outlets free from slander, political bias and outright lies, each one pushing its own rhetoric. With this in mind, the Labour North team will partner up with Anti-Fake News Investigation Agency (AIA) and provide them with an operating space inside the new Labour Northern Headquarters.
Politics…are like beliefs, different parties, different goals, different mindsets, different audiences. We make artworks to showcase our beliefs. But we also make artworks to desecrate the beliefs we hate.
They unite people, also deceive people.
They make you believe that they fight for your liberty, but in reality they are fighting against your liberty.
People always want to peek inside the party, because of all the false news outside, going around.
People want to trust and be secure of the party’s aims.
My Site Combine design began after I created the ‘I’m only saying this sh*t, because that’s what people like to hear…’ poster. It was originally designed for the front cover of one of my earlier presentations. I showed the poster to my Labour-supporting friend, and he was offended and upset by the message. He questioned why I would create this artwork if my project is about supporting the Labour Party, clearly not recognising about the contradictions I am trying to tease out through my work. His reaction made me think that these political parties as a mind trap, which then led me to making the ‘trap’ frame of my Site Combine.
I then started to gather other site and project information to complete the foundation of the design concept. I suspended the exterior façades of the building over the frame as the new design will be the new Labour Northern Headquarters, which is a Labour Northern trap. On each building façades, except the front, I have comments written on it, which are either against or question the Labour Party, as to represent to opposite supporters’ reservations. But on the internal side of the façades, I had ‘Vote Labour’ written everywhere. This design move represents that whatever opposite opinions written on the outside, there is only one aim and purpose once people are inside the party, vote Labour. Kind of like brainwashing people, who are trapped in that mind-set through generational voting or otherwise.
The use of red on the Site Combine is based on Labour’s Red. However, the shades of red changes from darker at the top and lighter at the bottom, this represents the contagious is more vital to the head, like brainwashing.
There are many little figures on the Site Combine. The figures on the top are the biggest ones and they are also painted in the darker shade of red. They represent the people who are on top of the game - the ones in charge.
Then we have figures that are attached to the frame with pieces of string from the head, and they were painted in the medium shade of red but with thicker paint, which blur out their faces of the figures. They represent the people who are trapped in the ‘Vote Labour’ mindset, the people who are being manipulated and just follow what others are doing. This design also hence to another feature, the cross on the top of the frame. The cross idea was inspired by the design of marionette.
The figures which attach directly on to the frame beams are slightly smaller in scale compare to the people on the very top. They represent the people who are aware of the Labour’s manifesto, but are willing to stick to the party, no matter what. Then we also have the blue figures on the beams, these are the people, who are the spies from opposing parties.
The smaller figures on the design, hidden inside the base structure, are the nameless loyal members at the bottom of the party who are working tirelessly in the dark, uncovering the false claims made against the party. We do not have spies in other parties but that does not mean there are none in our own from elsewhere. Infiltration will not change what we are. We will withstand being vilified by our opponents. Stand behind labour.
I wanted the artwork to depict a physical manifestation of the emotional connection to the party. The student looks on at the sculpture in disappointment. Reflecting the party’s inability to deliver on their promises or delivery partially. The voter loses trust and decides to turn to another party, only to be let down once again. Then questioning their own stance and the party’s genuine objectives.
