Streams and Mountains, from the series "Sacrifice" by Lee Chun-Yi (Li Junyi) 李君æ¯?2005

One from a set of twenty-four album leaves; ink on paper; with signature in clerical script (lishu) reading "Li Junyi 05"

Streams and Mountains, from the series "Sacrifice"

Listen to curator's interpretation

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Curatorial notes

Curator: How fascinating to see this gridded landscape, like nature viewed through a digital filter! Editor: Indeed. What strikes me is that it feels like a coded or compressed version of a memory. Curator: This is "Streams and Mountains" by Lee Chun-Yi, from the series “Sacrifice." I see it as a poignant commentary on our detachment from the natural world. Editor: The pixelated effect and archway framing gives it a sense of the sacred. It’s almost like a holy image. Curator: Perhaps the grid is a signifier for the rigid systems through which we try to control nature? The red dot at the top, like a drop of blood... Editor: Or maybe a distant sun, fading into the sky. Either way, the way it transforms a landscape into a collection of data really stays with you. Curator: Absolutely. It's a stark reminder of the beauty we risk losing. Editor: Yes, and how we frame and archive it in our minds—or fail to.