ABOUT THE SPEAKER
Sanford Biggers - Conceptual artist
Sanford Biggers creates art that upends traditional narratives about topics ranging from hip hop to Buddhism to American history.

Why you should listen

An LA native working in NYC, Sanford Biggers creates artworks that integrate film, video, installation, sculpture, drawing, original music and performance. He intentionally complicates issues such as hip hop, Buddhism, politics, identity and art history in order to offer new perspectives and associations for established symbols. Through a multi-disciplinary formal process and a syncretic creative approach, he makes works that are as aesthetically pleasing as they are conceptual.

The significance of Biggers' work within contemporary society has been celebrated through solo exhibitions both nationally and internationally, most recently at the Brooklyn Museum, Sculpture Center and Mass MoCA. He has participated in prestigious residencies and fellowships including: Akademie Schloss Solitude, Stuttgart, Germany; Ujazdowski Castle, Warsaw, Poland; Headlands Center for the Arts, Sausalito, California; ARCUS Project Foundation, Ibaraki, Japan; and the Art in General/ Trafo Gallery Eastern European Exchange in Budapest, Hungary. He has been a fellow of the Creative Time Global Residency, the Socrates Sculpture Park Residency, the Lower Manhattan Cultural Council World Views AIR Program, the Eyebeam Atelier Teaching Residency, the Studio Museum AIR Program, the P.S. 1 International Studio Program and the Skowhegan School of Painting and Sculpture residency.

Biggers' installations, videos and performances have appeared in venues worldwide including Tate Britain and Tate Modern in London, the Whitney Museum and Studio Museum in Harlem, New York and the Yerba Bue a Center for the Arts in San Francisco, as well as institutions in China, Germany, Hungary, Japan, Poland and Russia. The artist's works have been included in notable exhibitions such as: Prospect 1 New Orleans Biennial, Illuminations at the Tate Modern, Performa 07 in NY, the Whitney Biennial and Freestyle at the Studio Museum in Harlem. His works are included in the collections of the Museum of Modern Art, Walker Art Center, Whitney Museum, Brooklyn Museum and Bronx Museum.

Biggers has won awards including: the American Academy in Berlin Prize, Greenfield Prize, New York City Art Teachers Association Artist-of-the-Year, Creative Time Travel Grant, Creative Capital Project Grant, New York Percent for the Arts Commission, Art Matters Grant, New York Foundation for the Arts Award, the Lambent Fellowship in the Arts, the Pennies From Heaven/ New York Community Trust Award, Tanne Foundation Award and Rema Hort Mann Foundation Award Grant.

Biggers is Assistant Professor at Columbia University's Visual Arts program and a board member of Sculpture Center, Soho House and the CUE Foundation. He has also taught at Virginia Commonwealth University’s Sculpture and Expanded Media program and was a visiting scholar at Harvard University's VES Department in 2009.

More profile about the speaker
Sanford Biggers | Speaker | TED.com
TED2016

Sanford Biggers: An artist's unflinching look at racial violence

桑福德·比格斯: 一个艺术家对种族暴力的无畏抗争

Filmed:
1,158,104 views

概念派艺术家,TED学者桑福德·比格斯运用绘画,雕塑,视频和表演去启发大家对于美国非裔的历史和创伤这个有挑战性的话题的思考。听他对他的两件引人注目的艺术作品和艺术背后的动机的详细描述。”只有通过对于历史和种族的更多深刻的对话我们个人和社会才会进化。“比格斯说。
- Conceptual artist
Sanford Biggers creates art that upends traditional narratives about topics ranging from hip hop to Buddhism to American history. Full bio

Double-click the English transcript below to play the video.

00:12
As a conceptual概念上的 artist艺术家,
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作为一位概念派艺术家,
00:14
I'm constantly经常 looking for creative创作的 ways方法
to spark火花 challenging具有挑战性的 conversations对话.
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我经常寻求创新的方式
通过绘画、雕塑、视频和表演
00:18
I do this though虽然 painting绘画, sculpture雕塑,
video视频 and performance性能.
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去启发大家思考
一些有挑战性的话题。
00:22
But regardless而不管 of the format格式,
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但是抛开形式不谈,
00:23
two of my favorite喜爱 materials物料
are history历史 and dialogue对话.
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我最喜欢的材料是历史和对话。
00:27
In 2007, I created创建 "Lotus莲花,"
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在2007年,我创造了“莲花”,
00:30
a seven-and-a-half-foot七和半英尺 diameter直径,
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一个直径约2.3米
00:32
600-pound-磅 glass玻璃 depiction描写
of a lotus莲花 blossom开花.
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重达600磅的
莲花花瓣玻璃刻绘作品。
00:35
In Buddhism佛教, the lotus莲花 is a symbol符号
for transcendence超越
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在佛教中,莲花是超然的象征
00:39
and for purity纯度 of mind心神 and spirit精神.
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是纯净的意念和精神的象征。
00:41
But a closer接近 look at this lotus莲花
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但是仔细看这个莲花,
00:44
reveals揭示 each petal花瓣
to be the cross-section横截面 of a slave奴隶 ship.
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每一个花瓣都是
贩卖奴隶的船只的横截面。
00:47
This iconic标志性的 diagram was taken采取
from a British英国的 slaving役使 manual手册
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我所临摹的图像来自于
英国的奴役手册,
00:51
and later后来 used by abolitionists废奴主义者 to show显示
the atrocities暴行 of slavery奴隶制度.
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它后来被废奴主义者
用来展示奴隶制的残忍。
00:56
In America美国, we don't like
to talk about slavery奴隶制度,
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在美国我们不愿意
讨论奴隶制,
00:58
nor也不 do we look at it as a global全球 industry行业.
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我们也不把奴隶制
当成全球的产业。
01:01
But by using运用 this Buddhist佛教徒 symbol符号,
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用这个佛学象征
01:03
I hope希望 to universalize划一 and transcend超越
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我希望可以让大家
意识到非裔美国人的历史,
01:05
the history历史 and trauma外伤 of black黑色 America美国
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治愈他们的的创伤,
01:08
and encourage鼓励 discussions讨论
about our shared共享 past过去.
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并且鼓励有关我们共同的过去的讨论。
01:12
To create创建 "Lotus莲花,"
we carved over 6,000 figures人物.
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为了创作“莲花”
我们雕刻了6000多个人物。
01:16
And this later后来 led to a commission佣金
by the City of New York纽约
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之后美国纽约议会
01:19
to create创建 a 28-foot-脚丫子 version in steel
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在青年鹰学院
01:21
as a permanent常驻 installation安装
at the Eagle Academy学院 for Young年轻 Men男人,
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制造了一个直径8.5米的钢铁版本。
01:24
a school学校 for black黑色 and latino拉丁美洲人 students学生们,
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青年鹰学院是一所
为非裔和拉丁裔学生服务的学校。
01:27
the two groups most affected受影响
by this history历史.
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这两类人是受历史影响最大的,
01:30
The same相同 two groups are very affected受影响
by a more recent最近 phenomenon现象,
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同样是他们近来
又到了巨大的影响。
01:33
but let me digress离题.
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我后面会继续讲这个话题。
01:35
I've been collecting搜集
wooden African非洲人 figures人物
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我一直在全球的
纪念品商店和跳蚤市场
01:38
from tourist游客 shops商店 and flea跳蚤 markets市场
around the world世界.
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收集木质非洲人物雕塑。
01:40
The authenticity真伪 and origin起源
of them is completely全然 debatable值得商榷,
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他们的来源和真实性
是很值得怀疑的,
01:43
but people believe these
to be imbued充满 with power功率,
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但是人们相信雕塑里蕴含能量
01:46
or even magic魔法.
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甚至魔法。
01:47
Only recently最近 have I figured想通 out
how to use this in my own拥有 work.
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直到最近我才找到
它们用在我的作品中的办法。
01:51
(Gun shots镜头)
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(枪声)
02:05
Since以来 2012, the world世界 has witnessed目击
the killings杀人 of Trayvon塔拉万 Martin马丁,
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2012年开始
世界见证了塔拉万·马丁、
02:09
Michael迈克尔 Brown棕色, Eric埃里克 Garner谷仓,
Sandra桑德拉 Bland布兰德, Tamir塔米尔 Rice白饭
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迈克尔·布朗、埃里克·加纳
桑德拉·布兰德、塔米尔·莱斯
02:13
and literally按照字面 countless无数 other
unarmed徒手 black黑色 citizens公民
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等一系列手无寸铁的
非裔公民
02:16
at the hands of the police警察,
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被警察射杀,
02:17
who frequently经常 walk步行 away
with no punishment惩罚 at all.
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并且警察经常无罪开释。
02:20
In consideration考虑 of these victims受害者
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想到这些受害者
02:22
and the several一些 times that even I,
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和很多次我自己的经历,
02:24
a law-abiding安分, Ivy常春藤 League联盟 professor教授,
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作为一位守法的春藤盟校的教授
02:27
have been targeted针对 and harassed骚扰
at gunpoint枪口下 by the police警察.
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我也曾经被警察袭击
被枪口直接指着。
02:30
I created创建 this body身体 of work
simply只是 entitled标题 "BAMBAM."
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想到这些 我创作了这个艺术
并且简单的命名为“嘣”。
02:36
It was important重要 to erase抹去
the identity身分 of each of these figures人物,
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为了让他们看起来一样
并且容易被忽视
02:39
to make them all look the same相同
and easier更轻松 to disregard漠视.
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抹去这些雕塑的身份
是非常重要的。
02:43
To do this, I dip them in a thick,
brown棕色 wax
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我先把它们放在
浓稠的棕色液体蜡之中,
02:45
before taking服用 them to a shooting射击 range范围
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然后带到了射击场
02:47
where I re-sculpted重新雕刻 them using运用 bullets子弹.
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在那里我用子弹进行重新雕塑。
02:51
And it was fun开玩笑,
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使用大型枪支
02:52
playing播放 with big guns枪炮 and
high-speed高速 video视频 cameras相机.
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配合高速摄影机是非常有趣的。
02:55
But my reverence尊敬 for these figures人物
kept不停 me from actually其实 pulling the trigger触发,
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但是我对于这些雕塑的尊敬
让我无法扣动扳机
02:58
somehow不知何故 feeling感觉 as if I would
be shooting射击 myself.
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突然我感觉我好像在
对我自己射击。
03:01
Finally最后, my cameraman摄影师, Raul劳尔,
fired解雇 the shots镜头.
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最后我的摄像师,劳尔
替我开了枪。
03:06
I then took the fragments片段 of these
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我取回打碎的雕塑
03:08
and created创建 molds模具,
and cast them first in wax,
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并制造模具,
在外表裹上一层蜡,
03:12
and finally最后 in bronze青铜
like the image图片 you see here,
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最后镀上铜色
就像你们看到的这样。
03:15
which哪一个 bears the marks分数
of its violent暴力 creation创建
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每一个雕塑都有着
暴力制造的印记
03:18
like battle战斗 wounds伤口 or scars伤疤.
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就像战场上的伤痕。
03:20
When I showed显示 this work recently最近 in Miami迈阿密,
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当我最近在迈阿密展出我的作品时,
03:22
a woman女人 told me she felt
every一切 gun shot射击 to her soul灵魂.
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一位女性告诉我她感到
每一枪都打在她的灵魂上。
03:25
But she also felt that these artworks艺术品
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同时她觉得这些艺术品
03:28
memorialized纪念 the victims受害者 of these killings杀人
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纪念了这些死去的受害者
03:30
as well as other victims受害者 of
racial种族 violence暴力 throughout始终 US history历史.
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也纪念了整个美国历史上
因为种族犯罪而牺牲的所有人
03:33
But "Lotus莲花" and "BAMBAM" are larger
than just US history历史.
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但是“莲花”和“嘣”的意义
已经超越了美国历史。
03:36
While showing展示 in Berlin柏林 last year,
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去年在柏林展出时,
03:38
a philosophy哲学 student学生 asked me
what prompted提示 these recent最近 killings杀人.
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一位哲学学生问我
是什么引发了最近的杀戮。
03:42
I showed显示 him a photo照片
of a lynching私刑 postcard明信片
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我向他展示了一张20世纪早期
的一张画着处以私刑
03:44
from the early 1900s
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的明信片。
03:46
and reminded提醒 him that these killings杀人
have been going on for over 500 years年份.
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我告诉他这些杀戮已经持续了超过500年历史。
03:51
But it's only through通过 questions问题 like his
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但是只有通过像他所问的问题
03:53
and more thoughtful周到 dialogue对话
about history历史 and race种族
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和对于历史和种族的更多深刻的对话
03:56
can we evolve发展 as individuals个人 and society社会.
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我们个人和社会才会进化。
03:59
I hope希望 my artwork艺术品 creates创建 a safe安全 space空间
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我希望我的艺术品
可以为这样坦诚的交流
04:02
for this type类型 of honest诚实 exchange交换
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提供一个安全的环境
04:05
and an opportunity机会 for people
to engage从事 one another另一个
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也为那些投身于
真实且必要的对话之中的人
04:07
in real真实 and necessary必要 conversation会话.
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提供一个机会。
04:10
Thank you.
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谢谢。
04:11
(Applause掌声)
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(掌声)
Translated by Gu Yu
Reviewed by Gloriya Haralanova

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ABOUT THE SPEAKER
Sanford Biggers - Conceptual artist
Sanford Biggers creates art that upends traditional narratives about topics ranging from hip hop to Buddhism to American history.

Why you should listen

An LA native working in NYC, Sanford Biggers creates artworks that integrate film, video, installation, sculpture, drawing, original music and performance. He intentionally complicates issues such as hip hop, Buddhism, politics, identity and art history in order to offer new perspectives and associations for established symbols. Through a multi-disciplinary formal process and a syncretic creative approach, he makes works that are as aesthetically pleasing as they are conceptual.

The significance of Biggers' work within contemporary society has been celebrated through solo exhibitions both nationally and internationally, most recently at the Brooklyn Museum, Sculpture Center and Mass MoCA. He has participated in prestigious residencies and fellowships including: Akademie Schloss Solitude, Stuttgart, Germany; Ujazdowski Castle, Warsaw, Poland; Headlands Center for the Arts, Sausalito, California; ARCUS Project Foundation, Ibaraki, Japan; and the Art in General/ Trafo Gallery Eastern European Exchange in Budapest, Hungary. He has been a fellow of the Creative Time Global Residency, the Socrates Sculpture Park Residency, the Lower Manhattan Cultural Council World Views AIR Program, the Eyebeam Atelier Teaching Residency, the Studio Museum AIR Program, the P.S. 1 International Studio Program and the Skowhegan School of Painting and Sculpture residency.

Biggers' installations, videos and performances have appeared in venues worldwide including Tate Britain and Tate Modern in London, the Whitney Museum and Studio Museum in Harlem, New York and the Yerba Bue a Center for the Arts in San Francisco, as well as institutions in China, Germany, Hungary, Japan, Poland and Russia. The artist's works have been included in notable exhibitions such as: Prospect 1 New Orleans Biennial, Illuminations at the Tate Modern, Performa 07 in NY, the Whitney Biennial and Freestyle at the Studio Museum in Harlem. His works are included in the collections of the Museum of Modern Art, Walker Art Center, Whitney Museum, Brooklyn Museum and Bronx Museum.

Biggers has won awards including: the American Academy in Berlin Prize, Greenfield Prize, New York City Art Teachers Association Artist-of-the-Year, Creative Time Travel Grant, Creative Capital Project Grant, New York Percent for the Arts Commission, Art Matters Grant, New York Foundation for the Arts Award, the Lambent Fellowship in the Arts, the Pennies From Heaven/ New York Community Trust Award, Tanne Foundation Award and Rema Hort Mann Foundation Award Grant.

Biggers is Assistant Professor at Columbia University's Visual Arts program and a board member of Sculpture Center, Soho House and the CUE Foundation. He has also taught at Virginia Commonwealth University’s Sculpture and Expanded Media program and was a visiting scholar at Harvard University's VES Department in 2009.

More profile about the speaker
Sanford Biggers | Speaker | TED.com