作品構想來自於我的個人經驗—由剖腹產方式來到世上的試管嬰兒三胞胎。醫生用雙手決定長幼排序看似合理,但此人為決定的順序取代了自然產的序列,影響了我們在家庭相處中容易出現的性格特質(老大、老二及老么性格)。
為什麼排序這件事成會造成這樣的影響,背後的規範從何而來?我們找了幾個可能的來源,像是儒家思想的長幼有序,兄友弟恭、民間習俗裡的長子長孫的責任分配(像是喪禮中,需要長子、長孫來捧照片及香爐)、西方文化裡的封建制,也和權力的階級以及家族的結構有所關聯。那這些關於維持秩序、權力及責任的問題,是不是有別種方式能解決? 也因為探索這些疑問,讓我對於「人為排序介入自然序列裡的影響」產生莫大的好奇。

我們探究了自然界裡權力排序的表現,找到了一個運用鳴叫聲宣告社會地位的例子——冠羽畫眉。只有群體裡老大可以鳴唱出特定的旋律。因此藉由裝置結合排序及聲音,賦予所有個體鳴唱此旋律之權力。

此裝置共分為兩個部分,上方為最高位階旋律的出聲口,下半部像是DNA序列的部分則為感測聲音端。當偵測到冠羽畫眉的一般鳴叫聲時,會將它轉換為最高位階的旋律後播出。

Authority Sorter看似是將自然排序重新由人為排列,但其實是將所有的個體都分類到同一個階級,試圖藉此想像一個除去排序的社會,會更平等或是混亂?希望藉由這樣的提問,提供一個不同的觀點。

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The idea of this work derives from my personal experience — test-tube triplets who were delivered by Caesarean secession.
It seems reasonable that doctors decide our birth order, which affects our personality. However, this artificially decided sequence has replaced the order of spontaneous labor, which makes me curious about the ”influence of artificially decided order intervening in the natural sequence”.
We explore the performance of power structure in nature and find an example, that is Yuhina brunneiceps. The Yuhina brunneiceps, also known as Formosan yuhina, is a small songbird endemic to the island of Taiwan. Only the leader in their group can sing a specific melody. Therefore, the device is designed by combining ranking and sound, giving all individuals the power to sing the melody. The constructure of Authority Sorter can be divided into two parts. On the top of it is the sound output, and the repeated shapes looked like Nucleic acid sequence are the inputs. When the Yuhina brunneiceps’s sound is detected, Authority Sorter will transfer it to the highest ranking sound of their group and play it. This “Sorter” seems to change the natural ranking, but it actually puts all individuals into the same class. We hope to offer a different perspective by this work, and try to imagine whether a society without sorting will be more equal or chaotic.

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藍枻鈞, 《權力排序者Authority Sorter》,
互動裝置, 310x200x150cm , 2020
指導 何樵暐
總召 梁容輝