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M+ Sigg Collection, Hong Kong. By donation, © Xu Bing
Xu Bing 徐冰
Landscript for Himalayan Project 喜馬拉雅計劃〈文字寫生〉素描
2000
This work uses Chinese inscriptions to depict the magnificence of the Himalaya mountains. In the centre of the canvas are the characters for ‘black mountain’ (‘hei shan’) in charred ink, which are repeated several times to mimic the rugged sturdiness of the seven mountains. On both sides of the range, Xu Bing uses light ink and a dry brush effect to express fog (‘wu’), rain (‘yu’), cloud (‘yun’), and snow (‘xue’) in the distance. Sometimes he adds his own observations, like ‘the fog is thick’ and ‘the fog moves quickly’, as if to narrate the process of sketching. The use of words as visual elements encourages different layers of appreciation for the piece. It highlights the fact that many Chinese words are pictograms that take after the objects they represent.
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