Fashion X Fusion = Three Contemporary Chinese Artists in Beijing

Finally, we are back in Beijing and, despite gloomy skies this week, it is GOOD to be home!

Today I am bemused, inspired and moved by three Chinese artists who transform traditional Chinese clothing through their own contemporary visions.

I saw the ethereal works of Chen Qing Qing (陈庆庆) in 2005 in the 798 Art District. She first trained in Chinese Traditional Medicine, and later, while a white collar worker, was inspired by the new artists emerging in China to begin her own odyssey. Her works combine grasses, dried flowers and sometimes seeds or pearls to form a perfect, airy piece of traditional Chinese clothing for view. One of her pieces is currently on display at the Opposite House, a funky modernist hotel in Sanlitun. (Address: 北京市朝阳区朝阳区三里屯路。 Tel. #: +86 10-64176688. Website: www.theoppositehouse.com)

Wang Lei (王雷)is a young artist whose solo exhibition at the Found Museum I stumbled upon this past weekend while riding my bike past the D/No. 1 Art Base in Hegezhuang Village (中国北京市朝阳区崔各庄乡何各庄村一号地艺术园/D区). Developed in the fall of 2007, this area houses a number of galleries building upon a collaboration of critics, curators, and dealers trying to bring together eastern and western art communities. Have lunch or dinner nearby at the excellent Orchard Restaurant, or take a glance at the nearby YingYang Center and its many classes and offerings.

At the Found Museum in the D/No. 1, Wang Lei blew my mind (and my gender expectations) with his painstakingly crafted imperial robes knitted from “yarn” meticulously formed from thin cuttings of book paper, twined and softened and “rolled” into skeins. Look at the museum website at http://www.foundmuseum.com/?p=754 to view more of his amazing works and to get directions to the D/No. 1 Art Base.

And then there’s Li Xiao Feng (李晓峰) whose “shard” costumes delight my senses. Riffing on traditional methods of making armor, he creates clothing from porcelain fragments from the Ming, Qing and Song dynasties. And they are even wearable!! The Arrested Motion blog has a great series of pictures showing the models wearing various pieces; see http://arrestedmotion.com/2009/06/art-focus-li-xiaofeng/. In Beijing, you can also see his works at the Opposite House (along with Chen Qing Qing’s) and occasionally at the Red Gate Gallery (Address: Dongbianmen Watchtower, Chongwenmen, 崇文门东便门角楼, Tel. 6525-1005, website: www.redgategallery.com).

The Red Gate Gallery is worth a visit just for its outstanding location alone! This gallery, established in 1991, is housed in one of Beijing’s few remaining arrow towers on the old city wall. Inside, in addition to gallery exhibits, is a small but good museum filled with old photographs and artifacts documenting Beijing’s ancient city wall. Next to the tower is a park following the remaining extant section of the city wall. If you walk west from the tower, you’ll eventually be south of Qianmen and Tiananmen Square and the Forbidden City north of them.

Earth (the natural fibers of Chen Qing Qing), Earth & Fire (the porcelain fragments of Li Xiao Feng) and Earth & Water (the paper "yarn" of Wang Lei), all transmuted into new forms of Chinese traditional fashion. Truly, a remarkable alchemy.

Natural Art: Li Yingjie's Original Ecological Paintings

New. Ancient. Known. Unknown. Mind-blowing. Serene.

How can one begin to describe an “original ecological painting”? Li Yingjie (李英杰)travels around the country divining the hidden art in boulders and rocks, unlocking Nature’s beauty in

the ecological "paintings" he unearths. As Phillipe de Gail, (former) ambassador of the Republic of Seychelles, describes in the forward to Li’s show at Tsinghua University’s Academy of Arts and Design in Jan. 2008,

“… out of thousands of tons of rocks and stones, Li Yingjie has extracted treasures of delicate sceneries and evocative landscapes made of impressionist color touches or surprisingly realistic drawing lines. He is like a water diviner in ancient times, but instead of using a forked hazel twig to find underground water, he relies on his vast geologic knowledge, and his extreme sensitivity and unusual talent to guess or feel the most precious pieces of ‘original ecological painting’ lay unearthed or just hidden to common eyes.”


Li is a modest man. A native of Chengde, he trained as an engineer, designer and was board chairman for a munitions works of the PLA logistics department as well as for many clothing industries in Beijing. He graduated from Tsinghua’s Academy of Art and Design in 1987 and, while a good party cadre with no avowed religion, he seems to follow a very Taoist path as he looks for beauty in nature and deems Nature to be the Artist and ultimate teacher.

His works are from the native stone of Hebei, sedimentary shale types showing delicate ferns and forests in their earthy tones; marble mirroring traditional Chinese brush paintings of mountain and water; and jade pieces highlighting forests of green trunks and hanging fronds. His eye for analyzing the raw stone for its hidden art is truly gifted.

Pieces in his gallery , located in the basement of one of his properties the A-C Embassy Hotel 奥加饭店 (located across the street from the Australian Embassy), are matted and framed to best echo the natural scene depicted. Gallery visits can be arranged during the hours of 9-11:30, 12:30-5:30, Monday-Friday. Call ahead to make arrangements.

Contact Information: A-C Embassy Hotel, #26 Dongzhimenwai Dajie. Yuan Sheng En Gallery. Tel. 010-6415 3388, etc. 3006 for the gallery.

东直门外大街26号， 奥加饭店， 原生恩艺术馆。 Tel. 010－6415 3388，转 3006.

Camping on the Great Wall

Tucked away at the foot of the Jinshanling （金山岭） portion of the Great Wall in Hebei Province, about 2 hours away from Beijing, is a wonderful courtyard run by I Will Not Complain (IWNC), an organization with more than 20 years' experience working with businesses and organizations to inspire breakthrough results through workshops, team building and other activities. (See their website at www.iwnc.net)

With dorm-style rooms (11 beds each for men and women), facilities including showers, and food prepared by Master Kang, it is quiet and clean and ideal for large groups. Most appealing, and which our group utilized, is their ability to provide sleeping bags, pads and slip sheets for sleeping up on the Wall itself. (Photo: Entry to the IWNC Great Wall Courtyard)

Our group of 59 (33 adults and 26 kids) evenly divided between the call of the Wall and the convenience of the dorms. A sumptuous BBQ (followed by marshmallow roasting) preceded
stories and the hike up to the Wall. Despite a light rain during the day, skies had cleared (enough) to feel the pull of the Wall's magic. Our group bedded down in a Tower; camped under the stars; and hunkered down in tents or under the eaves of a small ancillary Wall building, later discovered to be the small shop/home of the photographer Zhou Wenping, whom we met in the morning. Despite a cloud moving in and providing mistiness, we slept... well, at least most of us. Car engines at 4 a.m. heralded the beginning of serious photographers making their way to position themselves on the Wall for dawn photos. Unfortunately, this early morning would not be clear, but was filled with mysterious, ghostly images of the Wall caught in the grips of mist. Still, what a magical time! I highly recommend the experience AND IWNC.

(Great Wall at Jinshanling, Hebei Province)

Biking in Shunyi: to Roma Lake from WAB

On a beautiful Sunday filled with warm breezes, blue sky, and wonderful scenery, my daughter and I headed out for a long bike ride exploring areas north of the Western Academy of Beijing in Shunyi. We crossed a footbridge across the Wenyu River 温榆河 and saw fishermen and passed through a fairy tale scene of spring flowers-complete with princess!- on our way to Roma Lake 罗河. We returned after a lovely deck lunch of Middle Eastern food at Zata'ar at Lakeview Plaza (next to Dragon Bay Villas).

Here's how to follow our route for a picturesque 2-hour ride.

From the Western Academy of Beijing／WAB （京西学小), turn left onto Lai Guang Ying Rd. (来广营路) and at the next light, turn right onto Guan Tang Road (观堂路 ). Go past Cathay View／Guan Tang and at the T-intersection, turn right onto XiangJiang Bei Road (香江北路 ). At the next left, turn left, go through the gate, and pass through Ma Quan Ying (马泉营 ) village. You will go through another gate as you approach another T-intersection at Shun Bai Rd. （顺百路）。 Turn right onto this road, and take the next left, which passes under the new highway link to the airport. You will pass by fields of grapes (on your right) and garden center/trees & grass (on your left) until you come to another T-intersection at Shun Huang Rd. ( 顺黄路 ) . Here you will see opposite you a dirt&gravel road. Cross the street and take this road to the river. Here's what that last intersection looks like:

You'll ride along the bumpy road until you reach the river.
There will be a riding stable there, and you will turn left,
passing this fishing hole with pretty landing on your left:




Immediately you will find a path on your right which leads in a reverse-L around a low brick complex. On the other side of the buildings, the path leads you down to the footbridge crossing the river.


Climb the hill, and you are now on what I call the "river road"; I can't recall its Chinese name. If you turn right you will end up at Jingshun Road ( 京顺路 ), but you want to turn left and follow the road all the way to a busy T-intersection where you will meet Hou Sha Rd (火沙路 ). There you will turn right and head north to the Luo Ma Circle （ 罗马环岛）. In the southwest corner of the circle is a beautiful tree-lined field of flowers, complete with fairy princess getting ready for her wedding!

If you think of entering the circle at the 6 o'clock position, you'll head to the 9 o'clock position, or west, and quickly see a lake on your left. This is Roma Lake (罗湖 ) -- ride around it and enjoy the people and scenes. On Sunday people were strolling, fishing, eating in the many restaurants and just plain enjoying a beautiful day. At left, many restaurants overlook the Roma Lake.

We made a small change in our return. After heading south again from the Luo Ma Circle, instead of going to the river road, we made a left at the first light and ended up on the road which ISB and Dragon Bay Villas, Yosemite, etc. are on. (Which explains our lunch at Zata'ar!) From there we headed south to meet up with the river road and retraced our steps; we could have easily continued to Jing Shun Rd. 京顺路 and headed south from there.

Beautiful Boracay

Sorry, folks, but travel and family commitments explain the lack of new blogs. However, life goes on and so do blogs!

At the beginning of April our family flew to the paradise known as Boracay in the Philippines, known in various sources as one of the best tropical beaches in the world. (See http://www.besttropicalislandsintheworld.com/boracay/boracay-geography if you don't believe me.) In the western Visayas island group, it’s a slim slice of island with gorgeous beaches, fertile coral reefs and a laid-back lifestyle. Want luxurious quiet? It has it. Want funky beach living? That too. Local life? Tourist traps? Multi-cultural cuisine? Check, check, check.

The necessary connections to get there are many; a flight to Manila, another smaller domestic flight to Catalan Airport, a short walk or ride to the boat terminal, a smaller ferry ride across the water, a tuk-tuk ride to your domicile and Viola! - Sunset over the ocean with cool drinks in hand and a warm breeze on your skin.

My husband and kids took a 3-day PADI scuba course for basic deep water scuba diving; I snorkeled and explored the island. Together we ate well and took sunset catamaran cruises. The pictures here and posted in the slideshow speak for themselves. Ahhhhhhhhhh...... Paradise.

(Bulobag Beach, the main kitesurfing and windsurfing beach)

(sunset catamaran cruises - a perfect way to end the day)


(off the beaten track, discovering the island on foot)

Ai Wei Wei and his New York Photos

Ai Wei Wei is a contemporary artist, architect and, it appears, critic in China. He worked with the firm Herzog & de Meuron to design the Olympic Stadium known as the Bird’s Nest only to later to protest his government’s handling of the Olympics by boycotting it. Recently he was in the news again as he and others stepped up a volunteer campaign to pester officials with phone calls and seek a full reckoning about the schools which easily collapsed in the Sichuan earthquake, killing hundreds of students. According to the Reuters article of March 21, Ai and volunteers already have the names of some 2,000 children killed, and Ai maintains, "We want to have all their names, because only then can we remind everyone that these were people, not numbers.“ (See his blog at blog.sina.com.cn/aiweiwei).

Why is this man so outspoken in a society in which ducking responsibility seems to be ingrained? At the Caochangdi Three Shadows photography center (founded by husband-wife team Rong Rong and Inri and designed by Ai Weiwei), a display of more than 200 photos culled from more than 10,000 literally provide a snapshot of Ai Weiwei’s life as a young man in New York City during the years 1983-1993. While perhaps a bit more background is needed to accompany the photos, indicating Ai’s failing of a key Parson’s School course which led to his dropping out of school to take on various jobs to survive, including those of a street portrait artist, an extra at the NY Metropolitan Theater, a freelance photographer, and even a producer of the soap opera “Beijingers Abroad,” the photos still give glimpses of innumerable influences on this complex personality. We grin at the goofiness and friendship of the creative pool in which he and other Chinese artists like filmmaker Chen Kaige and composer Tan Dan created by being together; we cringe at the police brutality captured in street protests; we smile at Al Sharpton and Bill Clinton strutting their political stuff and at the drag queens strutting their stuff; and we sigh at so many other scenes and say, “My, isn’t that just like I remember life?” How many lifetimes and experiences he squeezed into those years!

The Three Shadows Photography Art Centre is located in Caochangdi, more or less in the NE corner of the intersection of the 5th Ring Road and the Airport Expressway. It not only shows photography exhibits of contemporary artists, but it also has an unparalleled library of materials on contemporary photography and visual art. It also offers lectures, seminars and workshops on photography. With Spring upon us, its cute café will also be appealing. Please view its website at www.threeshadows.cn or call (86 10) 6432 2663 for more information on exhibits, hours, and directions. I heartily recommend a visit!

Note: While there, I also picked up a "Redbox Art Guide/Beijing" fold-out pocket guide to illustrate the various art districts in Beijing. (If you've ever seen a Luxe pocket guide, this is similar, but totally art-based.) See their website at www.RedBoxStudio.cn for more information on this and other city guides for Hong Kong and Shanghai.

A Guilin Family Adventure