Being a bus commuter to UBC for the past two months, I have always had that moment of staring at a pixelated LCD screen half-consciously, while listening to a monotonous voice repeats every few minutes the same formatted announcement: “Next stop … Street.” The bus then stops as promised, empties out some lucky passengers, at the same time gets filled up with also half-awake commuters like me. But the worse part of this journey has yet to come, “Please move to the rear of the bus.” If this bus ride were a roller coaster, hearing that phrase would be an unexpected adrenaline rush. People without any choice, embrace even more the limited personal space they have left, and all start a new cycle of staring at the LCD screen.

The above lengthy description of a typical commuting process is now, through the scope of auto/tweetography (McNeill 2014) can be condensed as “Please move to the rear of the bus.”

As a part of the therapeutic culture (Furedi), the act of releasing that haunting announcement has become more accessible thanks to various online platforms such as PostSecret or Six Word Memoir. Due to the increasing popularity of such environment, I would like to mention once again the idea of the “non-places” (Auge 1995) from my first blog entry, to somehow illuminate my observation.

The concept of the “non-places” describes a certain sort of places that evokes a sense of thin or abstract identity (Kolb 2008); particularly places formed in relation to certain ends (transport, transit, commerce, leisure) (Auge 1995). In this case, I recognize a parallel between the “non-places” of Auge: the full bus ride, and a more contemporary online “non-places” of PostSecret and Six Word Memoir,… Both environments are in excess, which means they are filled with “an abundance of events” that is essential to the supermodern age. The latter platform prevails as it fits to the development of the Internet in the 21st century.

However, the “abundance of events” does not necessarily signal an abundance in how information/interactions, or specifically autobiographies are presented. For instance, the “thin or abstract identity” of commuters prevents them from interacting with each other. Whereas the rise of microblog encourages instant, short wordings rather than longer proses as discussed above.

As the Umbrella Movement in Hong Kong unravels, it is hard for me not to draw parallel between this event and the 1989 Tiananmen protests. Many aspects have been put forward for compare and contrast, but this process of characterizing would not be uniformly comprehended, if the associated contexts were not mentioned. The context in which both incidents occur, is an appropriate kairos (Miller & Shepherd) for life narratives in transit (Whitlock) to flourish. The contextual discrepancy between Beijing 1989 and Hong Kong 2014 is obviously wide, but I would concentrate on the aesthetic context of various symbolisms presented throughout; so as to emphasize the mobility of narratives attached to these symbols.

The symbol of the struggle in 1989 is the Goddess of Democracy. The statue built by students from the Central Academy of Fine Arts, is declared by its creators as: “the symbol of every student in the Square, of the hearts of millions of people…” (Han). However, it is interesting to note that the arts students tried to not model this sculpture after the American Statue of Liberty, as the public assumes through its visuals. They actually borrows inspiration from the Soviet Worker and Kolkhoz Woman by Vera Mukhinahan. As already being carefully designed with consideration of different set of arts (Western Roman classical art vs. propaganda socialist realism art), the Goddess of Democracy is even implemented with local identity. Specifically through her purely Asian facial complexion while wearing a stola – the traditional gourmet of Roman women; the image that is considered standard in Western classical art. The fluidity of aesthetics around the world within a singular work exposes a lot about contemporary China in 1989. For instance, it was the longing for global knowledge of university students (or the intellectuals as a whole) post-Cultural-Revolution era that led to the exigence of political/social reform. And eventually resulted in the “watershed” – June 4 incident: “the turning point that ended the idealism and experimentation of the 1980s.”

Stories have been told through some artistic aspects of this symbolic statue. Indeed, the Goddess of Democracy in transit moves across cultures and strata of aesthetics, to express the Chinese people’s ultimate spirit for freedom and justice. She also travels across physical boundaries to prove the interdependencies that foster global awareness, as well as a sense of understanding among people (Whitlock). Not to mention the inspiration being forwarded, once again, across the timeline to Hong Kong 2014.

            “…On the day when real democracy and freedom come to China, we must erect another Goddess of Democracy here in the Square, monumental, towering, and permanent. We have strong faith that that day will come at last. We have still another hope: Chinese people, arise! Erect the statue of the Goddess of Democracy in your millions of hearts! Long live the people! Long live freedom! Long live democracy!”

– Declaration of the creators.

Further reading on Hong Kong 2014’s symbol

Meanwhile, at UBC: