Space Oddity 69/19/45

About

“Ground Control to Major Tom
Take your protein pills and put your helmet on Ground Control to Major Tom
Commencing countdown, engines on
Check ignition and may God‘s love be with you”

‘Space Oddity’ - David Bowie, 1972

Space Oddity addresses Vu’s experiences and concerns of spaces in times past, present and future. The works are driven by curiosity and seeks to establish a post-human narrative starting with the year 1969: the year of the Moon landing and mankind’s journey to the next frontier – Space. The same technology responsible for breaching that frontier, in recent time, has led to a divide of society. There is an undeniable correlation between political instability and the rise of right-wing populism worldwide, and technology. Moreover, Futurist Raymond Kurzweil’s prediction of technological singularity is set around 2045, at which point Artificial Intelligence will have surpassed human intelligence. These three intervals in time, 69/19/45 form the focal point of the works.

Carefully constructed metal canvases plastered with silkscreened imagery of idiosyncratic geometry encapsulated by plexiglass and site-specific installations mirror the dichotomy of the natural world and the synthetic both in terms of material and the perceived visual sensation of the viewer.

The inspiration and presentation of his works derive primarily from personal memories of growing up in Vietnam during the US conflict. What is more, the atrocities of the events of 9/11 have affected Vu on a personal level. His works depict the epic conflict between man and machine, nature and technology which he believes is the decisive tension in our modern era.
On the anniversary of 9/11 and 50 years, since man set foot on the moon, Space Oddity gives testimony to the state of the world at present and provides a cautionary vision of that which is to come.