Heritage, materiality and media (report from a Chinese village)

Connolly, Stephen

Heritage, materiality and media (report from a Chinese village)

Connolly, Stephen (2026) Heritage, materiality and media (report from a Chinese village). In: 6th Mobile Studies Congress 2026, 21 - 22 Aug 2026, IIT Hyderabad, Hyderabad, India. (Unpublished)

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7071:127327
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Heritage, Materiality and Media (report from a Chinese Village) (93kB)
Creative Commons Attribution Non-commercial No Derivatives 4.0.

7071:127328

Heritage, Materiality and Media (report from a Chinese Village) (4MB)
Creative Commons Attribution Non-commercial No Derivatives 4.0.

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Creators:

Connolly, Stephen

Description/Abstract:

This is a work-in-progress practice-based presentation concerning point cloud representation in moving image project entitled 7th Month Return (Connolly 2025). Given the object of an ordinary Chinese Village, this ‘mobile scanning’ project, achieved using a smartphone, explores in mimesis ideas of central to Daoism and Deleuzian “assemblages” (Wang 2012, Deleuze & Guattari 2005).

Scholars have noted the spatial and temporal correspondences between western process orientated thought and Daoism. (Hui 2021, Bogue et al., 2014, Wang 2012). Following this tradition, this project begins with ‘dirty scans’ – point clouds of an urban village in Fujian, China, visited in the narrative of 7th Month Return by hungry ghosts or wandering spirits - 游魂 – of local folklore. (Wu 2019) The depiction of point-cloud imagery – 3D coordinates in XYZ space with RGB values - articulate a synchronic vision of space and proximity in moving image and links to the cultural practices of villagers in the 7th Month. The ‘mobile scans’ generative of the mimesis are contingent and provisional practice of point cloud media acquisition, a product of an encounter and movement through spaces rather than an accurate survey of the space.

This exploration on the intersection of digital media and folklore has implications for practices of virtual heritage beyond the claims for digital verisimilitude and twinning. (Champion 2021) A positioning of theories, media, and art objects in relation to each other allows for creative reframings of heritage, foregrounding context and situated in the contemporary.

Item Type:

Conference or Workshop Item

Date:

21 August 2026

Event Location:

IIT Hyderabad, Hyderabad, India

Schools:

School of Film, Media & Performing Arts

Depositing User:

Dr Stephen Connolly

Date Deposited:

27 Aug 2026 11:03

Last Modified:

27 Aug 2026 11:03

URI:

https://research.uca.ac.uk/id/eprint/7071

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