[‘CONNECT, BTS’ SERIES] ‘green, yellow and pink’ by ann veronica janssens — seoul
‘CONNECT, BTS’ was a global art initiative that took place between january — march 2020, spanning over 5 different countries and featuring 22 different artists. it explored the theme of connection showcased through various imaginations and unique interpretations. in an effort to unite the arts, and to strengthen the relationship between the artist and the audience, ‘CONNECT, BTS’ was an attempt at a new level of communication between ourselves and each other.
FROM JANUARY 28 — MARCH 20, 2020, as part of the ‘CONNECT, BTS’ project, the ‘green, yellow and pink’ exhibition took place at the DDP design exhibition hall in seoul. it was designed by belgian visual artist ann veronica janssens, a contemporary whose pieces explore conceptual, modernist and minimalist styles. throughout her works, janssens utilises light as both an instrument and a subject. her pieces focus particularly on visual and other sensory perceptions of reality and, therefore, how easily the senses can be manipulated, showing the fragility and instability of our current ideas of what reality is. consequently, the subjectivity of the audience and their experiences are ultimately what are most important to her works.
‘green, yellow and pink’ focuses on the visual perception of our surroundings. it features a completely immersive environment in which you are rendered almost blind in a field of artificial mist except for the colours that fill the space. the main colours used were green, yellow and pink, but when projected through the fog they blend into a myriad of different hues as you move through them. with the field of vision completely submerged in colour, it’s difficult to see where it ends. in a place void of the boundaries we’re so used to observing, you have this unique feeling of almost being suspended in space; limitless and floating, hyper-aware of your existence.
there was no particular motive as to why janssens chose green, yellow and pink. when it comes to colour palette decisions, she is quoted saying in an interview with studio international:
‘i was interested in working with colour that could be ungraspable, something you can’t really fix. i started to work with colour when I started to work with light projectors, and it opened up a lot of possibilities for me. i really came to enjoy it. as to choosing colours, it’s almost random — there’s an element of randomness that appears in my work.’
janssens achieved the desired visual effect she envisioned and managed to create a unique sensory experience for her audience. she said her goal was ‘to make invisibility physical’. ‘green, yellow and pink’ was the embodiment of the loss of visual perception, the world around you completely undecipherable except for the fleeting colours that surround you. it tells us that, just like the mist, reality is an undefined concept, completely subjective and boundless in its possibilities. random, just like its colour selection. we move through life almost completely blind to what the external world actually looks like, and what it entails.
while ‘green, yellow and pink’ divulges into the scientific and philosophical, also conveys the theme of the project it represents: connection. more often than not we approach boundaries in our relationships with others, usually on an emotional level. they can inhibit our ability to become closer with someone, for fear of overstepping or displaying a type of vulnerability that’s often very difficult to share. through this exhibition, janssens expels these boundaries, creating a realm that allows you to wander in the unknown freely, to explore without inhibitions. as the colours fall into each other, without beginnings or ends, we allow ourselves to feel and express without restrictions. their different wavelengths combine to create white light while we, as individuals, come together to realise a newfound, deeper and more dazzling connection than before. it serves as a ‘eureka!’ moment; a lightbulb of hope for our future relationships.
‘green, yellow and pink’: as well as making commentary on the fragility of sensory perception, showed us the beauty of connection through a loss of control. we, just like those colours, are an array of hues, not one the same but co-existing in this space of uncertainty. in our obscurity, connection is all we have, so that we are not alone while we try to blindly navigate exactly where we are for the sake of our sanity. in the modern world, as our societies become more individualistic, it’s easy to lose sight of that. but once you attempt to expel your own boundaries and allow yourself to be vulnerable and clueless, the opportunity to make more meaningful connections will reveal itself as you realise you are not lonely in your perpetual bewilderment.
references:
‘CONNECT, BTS’ — https://www.usbtsarmy.com/connect-bts/
BANGTANTV | ‘[CONNECT, BTS] Interview with Ann Veronica Janssens @ Seoul’ — https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=REXQVtUGKdc
‘Ann Veronica Janssens | kamel mennour’ — https://kamelmennour.com/artists/ann-veronica-janssens
‘Ann Veronica Janssens — interview: ‘I try to make visible the invisible, to work with the limits’’ — https://www.studiointernational.com/index.php/ann-veronica-janssens-interview-i-try-to-make-visible-the-invisible-hot-pink-turquoise-south-london-gallery
