Austrian artist Simon Wachsmuth measures every word he speaks of his research on the Chinese fishing nets. For him they are not simple vestiges of the global and maritime trading routes of yore that changed and shaped history but a powerful motif that continues to nurture in its very existence shreds of culture, history, and day-to-day living.
He is working on a hitherto untitled project for the inaugural show of Suzhou Documents, a new exhibition format that allows for long periods of research. The show that opens in August in Suzhou, China, will run till November, allowing artists the freedom of addendums. Following the journey of Admiral Zhang He in 1405 to India, and later the maritime Portuguese and Dutch routes, the two probable events in history that brought the unique contraption to our shores, Simon also juxtaposes with these watershed moments the famous garden in Sozhou called The Master Of The Fishing Net. “Gardens are a symbol of finesse of the Chinese people, built mainly by retired bureaucrats, men of letters with knowledge of calligraphy and poetry and the fisherman is a symbol of a simple happy life,” says Simon adding that along with unspooling history he is also searching for “something else”.
For the else he delves into any and every aspect that will add to his research, and the final installation that will have three films.
The fisherman toiling away on the solitary net in the calm waters off Vypeen, without a shadow of doubt, makes the most picturesque composition, he says, but the lives of the fisherman here, and those dependent on the nets, is far from “ simple and happy,” his research hints at. Citing the popular 1934 Chinese film Song of The Fisherman that tells the tale of indigent fishermen who had to change profession and turn street singers to make a living, Simon believes that multiple aspects of the subject will project hidden and layered stories behind this extant piece of heritage that brings the world to our shores.
Simon is being assisted in his project by cameraman Ralph Netzer who has partnered him in producing documentaries and feature films. “I am fascinated that the fishing nets here have quite a natural presence. It is not important to draw a clean lineage from the origin but of what remains today and how,” he says.
