Guangzhen Zhou’s Statement

“Encounter-Shanghai Contemporary Ceramic Experimental Art Exhibition” opened in Shanghai, which is exciting as a Shanghai-borne artist. Due to the lockdown, I can't travel, and I can’t “encounter” any of you, and I can't see the artworks in person, it's a pity! My original plan was to bring one of my new artworks to Shanghai for participating in this exhibition, that is, my recent artwork on the theme of the pandemic situation, titled "Automatic Automobile”. Since I can't go back to Shanghai, I had two of my old pieces from the 1990s brought to the show instead.

On the windshield of the automatic trunk there is a large mask covering whole glass window, just like if one was driving on the highway and suddenly a plastic bag hit the front of the car. The trunk is a rectangular Earth, and also is an iron cage - or "the earth in the cage". When the development of science and technology has reached the intelligent era, the COVID-19 virus pandemic has made the world step on the brake. Human beings are like a runaway vehicle rushing to the unknown.

With the rapid development of human science and technology and productivity, human rudeness is like an unmanned truck rushing to the future of the unknown. Even as people celebrate the omnipotent intelligent era and the birth of automatic automobiles, we are accompanied by more various kinds of pollution, such as floods, wildfires, earthquakes, tsunamis, droughts, and other natural disasters. We are forced to change our way of life because of the pandemic today, and we don't know where the end is.

The spread of the pandemic could affect every corner of the world. When the alarm bell rings, the subject of how to correct evil, learn respect the nature, and live in peace, is worthy of our deep thinking proposition, and is the well-being of future generations.

Guangzhen Zhou, Silicon Valley, California, November 2020

“相遇·上海当代陶瓷实验艺术展”在家乡上海开幕，激动人心。作为一个老上海，因疫情阻碍无法旅行，无法与大家相遇、相聚，无法在现场观赏艺术品，甚为遗憾！原计划将我最近创作的一件关于疫情流行主题的作品“无人驾驶汽车”带回上海展览。可以无法成行，最后只能用自己1990年代的老作品顶替。

“无人驾驶汽车”汽车驾驶室挡风玻璃上覆盖着一只大口罩，如同我们在驾车时遇到迎面扑来的一片塑料袋。后面的集装箱是长方形的地球，同时又是一只铁笼-或称为“铁笼里的地球”。当科技发展达到智能时代，一场病毒大流行让全世界踩下急刹车。人类如同一辆失控的汽车冲向未知的前方......

人类科技和生产力的迅猛发展，人类的粗暴如同一辆无人驾驶的大卡车迅猛冲向未知的前方。当人们在欢庆无所不能的智能时代，欢庆无人驾驶汽车诞生的时刻，伴随着我们的是更多的各种污染，水灾、山火、地震、海啸、干旱等各种自然灾害。我们因疫情被迫改变自己的生活方式，我们不知道哪里是尽头。

疫情蔓延可能影响到全球每一角落。警钟敲响之际，人类如何改邪归正，学习对大自然的敬仰，和平共处，才是值得我们深思命题，才是子孙后代的福祉。

周光真，2020年11月于加州硅谷

周光真于加州硅谷