Calling Artists: Afterlife

The Chinese Culture Center requests submissions for Afterlife, an exhibition of artists’ works relating to Chinese views on death and memorializing. Works should reflect Chinese traditions of death rites and rituals and address the concept of life after death, as the artist interprets it. Afterlife will highlight ancestor veneration, offerings, and tomb sweeping, which are customs of the Ching Ming festival held each April. The display will focus especially on works illustrating transitions and commenting on spirituality. In addition, submissions incorporating digital or virtual arts are encouraged, and will reflect the idea of alternate realities existing simultaneously.

Selected artworks will be exhibited at cccGallery.org. The CCC online gallery is a venue with global access, reflecting vibrant, diverse and complex views on Chinese culture through the innovative new genre of virtual communities. Exceptional artwork will be selected for a physical exhibition at a CCC community partner, in addition to the online display.

HOW TO SUBMIT WORK:
1. Visit www.cccgallery.org to join as a member (cost is free)
2. Enter contact information, biography and artist statement
3. Upload images and tag each with the word: Afterlife
(Images must be no less than 400 x 600 pixels, 72 dpi)
4. For expedited review, send an e-mail with “Afterlife Submission” as the subject to:
melissa@c-c-c.org

To view group images:
http://www.cccgallery.org/photo/photo/listTagged?tag=afterlife

主題：來生（After Life）

人非生命之主，人為生命的牧者。

　　—馬丁‧海德格爾

Man is not the lord of beings. Man is the shepherd of Being.－ Martin Heidegger

「清明節」是中國傳統祭祖掃墓的日子。自魏晉時代以來，被定在陰曆三月三日的「清明」最初指的是節氣，我國傳統曆法把一年分成二十四個節氣，用來反映氣候變化和指導農業生產；根據《淮南子》記載，「清明」是冬至過後的一百零六日，「春分」之後、「穀雨」之前，約三月前後。此時正值春天，空氣清新、花木向榮，因而叫做「清明」。


中國人在清明節這天回到先人墓前表達崇敬。對中國人來說「死亡」並不是生命的結束，更多的是「來生」的意義。在祭祖所焚燒的物件中，包括紙衣、紙屋、紙錢等幾乎與生前食、衣、住、行所需相同；在追思先人的儀式中，也顯示追思者對現實生活的暫時脫逃、對「來生」的期待。當代中國文化的「現實」處境，正值全球化、東西文化交融、多重價值觀的重整建構中。中國的清明傳統，若以當代的定義也可呼應德國存在主義哲學家海德格爾所說的：「人非生命之主，人為生命的牧者。」　


舊金山中華文化中心將在2009年三月以「來生」（After Life）為題策劃網路展，號召全球有心人（不限華裔）只要對中國的清明文化或來生概念提出獨到的詮釋、以藝術作品作為表現者，皆歡迎至http://www.cccgallery.org/網路大顯身手。
-Gwen Kuo