SCA-1 is an art satellite, it has been launched on February 3, 2024.

This satellite is produced by the Xu Bing Studio and Beijing Wanhu Chuangshi Co. Before SCA-1, among the thousands of satellites flying above us today, there are scientific satellites, meteorological, communication, and military ones, but an "art satellite" has been missing.

Xu Bing set the concept of this satellite as follows: "By inviting artists to participate in the Space Art Residency Program, we will share the rights and interests of using this satellite and create our own works.  It is an attempt to build a dialogue between space technology and contemporary art, extending our thinking to a broader space in exploring this highly 'futuristic' field.

Xu Bing Art Satellite Creative Residency Project public email: sca@xubingstudio.cn

Media: Mixed media, Video installation 

Time length: 2'8'' now (work still in progress) 

Exhibition: Red Brick Art Museum, Beijing, 2021-2022. Xie Zilong Photography Museum, Changsha, 2022

By utilizing ground-transmitted images and a self-directed satellite camera, Xu Bing integrates man-made pictures with those captured from an orbit, creating a captivating animation that blurs the boundaries between Earth and space. Imagine the “standard person'' traversing outer space, carrying a bundle in tow while words spill out of their baggage. As the satellite orbits around the earth 15 times each day, the language depicted in the animated spills changes in sychronization with the satellite’s position above certain geographical locations. This work represents far-reaching concepts that shape the existence of humanity such as language, human civilization, and linear time—reminding us to look back at our blue earth in the context of zero-gravity conditions in space, to cherish the only home we know: this one single small blue dot. As the audience witnesses this video within the confines of a gallery, the artwork unfolds simultaneously and ceaselessly in outer space.

2019—2021

Medium: Video

Duration: 43 seconds