The video blends two sets of voices:

The first is that of a mother and baby recorded in Beijing in 1986 that is from a series of audio tapes made to be sent abroad to the recently immigrated father. The second set of voices is from a conversation between a father and his adult daughter recorded in 2019 recounting his early days in the US 34 years prior.

Both these sets of voices describe a single time period within a family’s history. Fragmented, Mommy and Baby reach forward in time, while Daddy reaches back. This video embodies the intertice of these two vectors, stitching together the facets of the family’s experiences into a precarious singularity.

We are the Beginner (录音机) [3 minute Excerpt]

We are the Beginner (录音机)
Single-channel video
13:30 minutes
2021