Xu bings tianshu book from the sky is a large installation featuring precisely laid out rows of books and hanging scrolls with written chinese texts. Xu bing born 1955 stands out as a leading figure in the international art world. Xu bing said that he chose the bird to suggest escaping the confines of human written definition. The books contain four thousand invented characters that cannot be decoded, raising fundamental questions about the chinese identity and its relationship to the written word. Cultural and philosophical reflections, edited by hsingyuan tsao and roger t. A book from the sky is the piece that made the artist famous. It is an expression of xu bings longstanding vision of a universal language.
Phillips xu bing book from the sky, 1987 1991 china. Despite its fame, its numerous exhibitions all over the world, and uncountable scholarly publications, book of the sky remains enigmatic about its precise meaning or purpose. When asked on his work in an interview with tian wei, the host of. Words represent symbols and this is what gives it meaning. No matter who scours xu bing s book for meaning, they will only discover a semblance of it. From the analects of confucius to quotations from chairman. Xu bing s a book from the sky 1988 chinese printmaker xu bing is a teacher at beijings prestigious central academy of fine arts and a respected practitioner of the official social realist style. Book from the sky, a monumental installation by celebrated chinese artist xu bing, b. At first glance, and to anyone who cannot read chinese script, the pages appear simply as an elegant example of traditional chinese calligraphy, evoking the richness and sophistication of chinas long literary history. Xu bing made the book from the sky during 19871991 and is currently at the metropolitan museum of art potential themes. Abigail sease modern art tentler december 4, 20 anxiety of the unknown in art. Chinese printmaker xu bing is a teacher at beijings prestigious central academy.
The book, which consists of four volumes totaling 604 pages, was printed in a single print run of 126 copies between 1987 and 1991, and was first publicly exhibited in october 1988, in beijings china art gallery. Born in sichuan province, xu bing studied printmaking at the central academy of fine arts in beijing. Sep 29, 2017 book of the sky became an instant classic and xu bing one of the first pioneers of chinese contemporary art crossing over to a western audience and reaching starstatus in the west. Xu bing s iconic installation book from the sky is arguably the artists most famous work. The idea for this installation came from a chinese saying monkeys grasp the moon which alludes to an old folk tale about a group of monkeys. A book from the sky is the title of a book produced by chinese artist xu bing in the style of fine editions from the song and ming dynasties, but filled entirely with. Jul 01, 1999 xu bing s installation, a book from the sky, consists of hundreds of pages of text using 4000 meaningless characters constructed from the elements of real chinese characters. Book from the sky, a monumental installation by celebrated chinese artist xu bing. The british museum has a set of four handprinted books that come in a walnut box, which are known by the name book from the sky, which also applies to the art installations xu bing has created using printed volumes like these. Book from the sky and book from the ground presents the artists method and motivation in his own words an accessible yet academic insight into this innovative internationally renowned chinese artist the written word is the most basic element of human culture.
Because the text says nothing the work is open to meaning. Even so, this work challenges our very approach to language because of the unique nature of the text written on the paper. The book from the sky is one of the most intriguing chinese art installations of the century and the nifty work of none other than the celebrated. Oct 21, 2020 xu bing book from the sky certainly seemed to have fallen from the heavens.
During the same period, xu personally carved in reverse the pearwood type from which he eventually handprinted his tianshu. At its core, book from the sky is a contradictionits text cannot be read, rendering the book meaningless. It was shown as an installation at the national art museum of china in 1989, covering the entirety of a large hall together with a piece in the form of a scroll entitled an analysed reflection of the world. Known for works that consistently disrupt our understanding of what we seefrom book from the sky, an installation of books and scrolls with printed fake chinese characters, to phoenix, giant phoenix sculptures made of salvaged materials xu persistently explores the relationship between vision and meaning. From point to point can be purchased from various bookstores and websites. Seriousness, playfulness, and a religious reading of tianshu. Xu bing deliberately combined powerful cultural icons with emotionally laden issues, and left the interpretation open to the audience and xu bing himself wasnt certain what the works ultimate meaning will be, and he seems to accept that defining meaning can be the prerogative of both artist and audience. Jun 19, 2016 the blanton museum of art at the university of texas at austin presents xu bing. Jun 23, 2016 book from the sky was xu bings first major breakout work, created after he earned his masters in printmaking from the central academy of fine arts. Ap art history period 10 global contemporary flashcards. Regarded as one of the masterpieces of twentiethcentury chinese art, book from the sky ushered in the avantgarde movement in postmao era china. Whats more interesting is that these books and scrolls are filled with invented glyphs and pseudocharacters designed to mimic traditional chinese characters. The title of the installation points to the buddhist inspiration that informs xu bing s work.
When xu bing 1955 first exhibited his book from the sky in beijing in 1988, the chinese were, understandably, shocked. During the same period, xu personally carved in reverse the pearwood type from which he eventually handprinted his tianshu or book from the sky. Xu bing book from the sky china the metropolitan museum. Buddhists believe, the artist wrote, that if you look for harmony in the living word, then you will be able to reach buddha. Xu bings dialogue with chinas cultural history eira rojas. Ap art history period 10 global contemporary quizlet. Sackler gallery, and university of washington press, 2001, p. Focusing in particular on the acclaimed artist xu bing, this book looks at how he and his peers have navigated between two different cultural sites to establish a third place, a place from which to appropriate western ideas and use them to address centuriesold chinese cultural issues within a chinese cultural discourse. This volume offers a pathbreaking reassessment of xu bing s oeuvre by analyzing the diverse cultural environments in which his work has developed since the book from the sky. Xu bing had no quarrel with this criticism, and used it as the title of this worka play on words, as the word for build can also mean pound. At that time, this kind of expression was daring and new, but most startling of all were the meaningless chinese characters. Executed over four years, xu methodically deconstructed the chinese written language and rebuilt it, handcarving thousands of individual characters that were composed of the component parts of chinese.
Book from the sky certainly seemed to have fallen from the heavens. But since then he continues to explore the relationship between humans and their languages, stating, to manipulate the written word is to transform the very essence of culture. The written word and meaning in book from the sky by xu. Product information monograph focusing on xu bing s most ambitious works of art. Xu bings a book from the sky 1988 chinese printmaker xu bing is a teacher at beijings prestigious central academy of fine arts and a respected practitioner of the official social realist style.
He moved to the united states in 1990 but returned to china in 2008 to teach at his alma mater. Book from the sky to book from the ground by xu bing. Tianshu is the title of a book produced by chinese artist xu bing in the style of fine editions from the song and ming dynasties, but filled entirely with meaningless glyphs designed to resemble traditional chinese characters. He carved each character on a wood block, and then printed the characters in books, on wallsized sheets of paper, and on huge swaths of paper draped from the ceiling. His works and installation pieces, including ghosts pounding the wall an acutal rubbing of the great wall done at jinshanling in 1990 and wu street 1993, and his ongiong exploration of language have brought worldwide attention to this unassuming provocateur. Made up of 4,000 handcarved and printed characters, book from the sky remains xu bing s most iconic work to date.
Making natural languages in contemporary chinese art. A book from the sky receives approval, even from official critics, who declare. It also won xu bing international recognition, including the prestigious macarthur fellowship. Xu bing, book from the sky apartheidera south africa marlene dumas, models jane alexander, butcher boys william kentridge, drawing from tide table soho in deck chair sue williamson, for thirty years next to his heart young british artists and art as commodity jeff koons, pink panther the ybas. Xu bing s a book from the sky in october 1988, at the national gallery of fine arts in beijing, xu bing s a book from the sky installation piece was first put on exhibition and was met with generally good reactions in the academic world. A book from the sky is the title of a book produced by chinese artist xu bing in the style of fine editions from the song and ming dynasties, but filled entirely with meaningless glyphs designed to resemble traditional chinese characters. The written word and meaning in book from the sky by xu bing. It also won xu bing international recognition, including the prestigious macarthur foundation genius. As a child, xu bing was exposed to the cultural revolution. The blanton museum of art at the university of texas at austin presents xu bing. Xu bing, as is the acknowledgment of the demanding skills and years of practice needed to achieve literacy and a mastery of calligraphy. A book from the sky is an installation consisting of an arrangement of books, scrolls, and large printed sheets of paper typeset from thousands of small wooden.
Chinese, modern period 1912 present, xu bing chinese, born 1955, book from the sky. This set of four books forms part of an eponymous installation first displayed in beijing in 1988. Xu bing s book from the sky presents handprinted books that consist of thousands of false characters resemble in chinese logographs with no meaning. In book from the sky, a groundbreaking work that was first presented in beijing in 1988, 1 xu creates a complex riddle that questions the merits of meaning, workmanship, tradition, propaganda, and cultural preconceptions. Xu bings work, book from the sky is a good example of the. Book of the sky became an instant classic and xu bing one of the first pioneers of chinese contemporary art crossing over to a western. The entire work consists of an installation comprising books, scrolls, and paper, all printed with xu s imaginary, 4000character language. The first display of book from the sky was in beijing in 1988. Xu bing book from the sky china the metropolitan museum of art.
The book from the sky is one of the most intriguing chinese art installations of the century and the nifty work of none other than the celebrated chinese artist xu bing. Book from the sky 1987 made up of 4,000 handcarved and printed characters, book from the sky remains xu bing s most iconic work to date. Britta erickson, mistrust of language and the book from the sky in her words without meaning, meaning without words. Xu bing is best known for his stunningly beautiful yet pessimistic 1988 installation tianshu the book of the sky. Knowledge and belief is the theme of this work because it shows the importance of words. In response to his own book from the sky, a work dated 30 years earlier whose language is illegible to anyone, book from the ground is legible to all. Jan 31, 2017 as is consistent with chinese traditional linguistic philosophy, which was reinforced in the mind of xu bing by the twentieth century works of western linguistics and philosophy that flooded china in the 1980s after maos death, like wittgenstein and saussure, book from the sky supports the idea that meaning is born through context. The tiananmen square prodemocracy protests and the massacre of june 1989, led to the questioning of the avantgarde movement. Although this artists book directly flouts those conventions which allow us to read the meaning of linguistic signs, it lovingly adheres to all the materialcultural conventions and forms. Book from the sky and other projects have brought him considerable international renown. Mixed media installation handprinted books and scrolls printed from blocks inscribed with false characters. Xu bing book from the sky certainly seemed to have fallen from the heavens. Xu bing wrote a book from the sky, a social commentary on literary culture.
Creating a book about social commentary on literary. What is xu bings impressive book from the sky all about. The mixedmedia installation is on display at museum macan. An installation that took xu bing over four years to complete, a book from the sky is comprised of printed volumes and scrolls containing four thousand false chinese characters invented by the artist and then painstakingly. His subversion of it speaks to our need to communicate and the dangers of distorting or eliminating intended meaning. Sep 28, 2016 the blanton museum of art at the university of texas at austin presents xu bing. Xu bing is a contemporary chinese artist whose work often involves the use of text, and which is invariably in dialogue with the past. It contains three lecture transcripts and eight art historical essays. Nothing signifies china more than her written language. This installation comprises a set of 4 handprinted books, as well as wall and ceiling scrolls printed in the style of a wood letterpress. An installation that took xu bing over four years to complete, a book from the sky is comprised of printed volumes and scrolls containing four.
Xu bing, book from the sky, 198791, installation of books and xu bing, book from. It also won xu bing international recognition, including the prestigious macarthur foundation genius award. In particular, they targeted a book from the sky suggesting that the meaningless symbols may hide subversive content. The book is written in the style of fine editions from the song and ming dynasties, but filled entirely with meaningless glyphs designed to resemble traditional chinese characters. One of his bestknown works, the book from the sky 19871991, earned xu. In book from the sky 198791, xu filled a gallery with scrolls and books handprinted with 4,000 false chinese charactersa stunning commentary on the subjectivity of language and its meaning. In 2012, he published book from the ground, an oppositional treatise from book from the sky 1987, instead of a book that nobody could read. The epithet was hurled at xu bing by viewers who found book of the sky incomprehensible.
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