Li Liao’s performative video installation Unaware 2020 was produced by the artist in his hometown Wuhan during the early months of 2020, when the city was locked down in response to the outbreak of Covid-19. As though utterly unaware of the gravity of the situation around him, Li travels through deserted plazas, parks, boulevards, and downtown areas while balancing a long wooden stick on the palm of one hand. The camera’s intense focus on the trick—and in particular a plastic bag dangling from the tip of the stick—creates a pocket of comedy amid the terror of the pandemic. In capturing the eerie quietness of what should have been a bustling city through a seemingly random and absurd act, Li has generated a unique visual record of an ongoing global crisis while also questioning notions of normality in our daily lives.
