Formed in 2009, Rental United is an artist group by Stephanie Sin, Damon Tong and Timothy Zauhou. It was initiated by three artists sharing a studio in Fo Tan, Hong Kong. With each individual style and form creating art, but together three artists collaborate to share their performance interacted works with various media by the collective name "Rental United".
Their works are time based, which means the works will expire in a sense or already expired. Although like most performance artists documenting the live actions in video and photograph, the sensation, that different audiences and the collective experiencing during the event happening, cannot be replicated. In other words, Die Young may refer to what we see in a showcase is just a re-presentation of the dead work, which is passing away each second.
Artists’ Statement
Die Young
A work created by an artist is both an historical record of its production and conception. When seen in an exhibition it is already a past creation. Even if we are watching the work being made, it is becomes 'past' as every second passes. In other words, once a work is complete, it is part of history. Die Young has no associations with death, but refers to something that has already passed away. We often see artists searching and developing new ideas and ways of making art to "evolve to a new stage". In a sense, it means becoming more mature – and, to realise something new, one must surrender something old to archive the new.
Since Rental United's debut in 2009, the use of our own bodies and identities has been the kernel of the group's art-making. We fit ourselves into a live crowd or audience, in a considered space and time. Our artwork exists in different forms and directions and an audience and people are crucial in reflecting the existence of Rental United’s own work and make sense of our identities.
An identity is seen when differentiated from other people. The meaning of self can only be revealed when 'self' is shared. This shared meaning of identity makes someone amongst others; thus making sense of one's identity and existence.
Our work is time-based and specially dedicated with a particular space and time, and can only happen once in real time. An eighteen year-old's birthday can happen only once in a life-time; what could be done to make it happen again? Performance is a key component, but not quite performance art - we tackle, at a customised time, in an (art) happening with the surroundings and people at an event. We evolve and strip away our known identity once it is expected.
We cannot replicate a previous work, as it would mean redoing something that has already passed away. Die Young is an opportunity to share our previous images, identities, and work through transformation in a new time and space. Old work and concepts are to be re-presented in different ways. Thus, the old work has passed away, dead, but to be reborn in another time and space in new forms. We are, however, unable to call it new work.
