For most of China’s 1.4 billion people, regular COVID-19 testing has become part of their daily routine. Siyuan Zhuji is trying to turn them into works of art.
Since March, the 33-year-old multidisciplinary artist from Jiangsu has been taking nucleic acid tests of himself with a small camera in his mouth.
A video clip of him shows teeth, a tongue and an approaching cotton swab. In some shots, healthcare workers wearing PPE can be seen performing examinations through the teeth.
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“This is how we live now. During this period, we need to have regular nuclear tests,” Zhuji told Reuters in an interview at the studio.
“It’s a way of life peculiar to our time.”
Zhuji said the idea for the video came about when he started looking at the mouth vulnerability as an entry point for viruses, as well as repeated testing to find it.
He has recorded about 40 tests and says he will continue to shoot video with his thumb-sized camera as long as regular tests are needed.
He eventually aims to simultaneously display videos on big screens in a grid, a snapshot of pandemic life in China. He calls his work “Hesuan Jiance,” which translates to “COVID test.”
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“This work can express this era. This is what I want to express. It is to document everyone’s current life,” said Zhuji.
The new coronavirus emerged in the Chinese city of Wuhan in late 2019, and for nearly two years China was relatively virus-free. But an Omicron variant has caused a sustained outbreak across the country, and authorities have battled a barrage of tests.
Many places require a negative COVID test to use public transportation or enter places where people gather, such as schools, workplaces, stores, banks and parks.
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China’s pursuit of “COVID Zero” means Zhuji may be filming tests for some time.
“We will continue shooting these videos until the pandemic is over,” he said. “If you die to the end, keep shooting until you die”