Chambers Fine Art Beijing will open Wang Tiande’s solo exhibition 3,720: Recent Works by Wang Tiande on September 18. Wang Tiande recently received his Ph.D. in calligraphy from the renowned China Academy of Art in Hangzhou, and holds the position of Dean and Professor at the Art and Design Department in Fudan University, Shanghai. Wang Tiande is best known for his art creations that incorporate traditional Chinese ink and brush and cigarette-burn marks, but for his first solo show in Beijing Wang he incorporates materials related to his recent interest in literature. In March 2009 Wang was visiting artist at the University of Kansas and often walked back and forth to the Spencer Museum of Art. Observing people exercising, jogging and walking at different speeds, he envisioned writing a novel which eventually became the subject of the present exhibition he titled 3,720.
In the novel, the main character Lin Wai takes a walk every night after work from his home to a nearby park. One day he counts the number of steps he takes during the walk and discovers that the number is 3,720. From that day on he tries to repeat the number every time he takes the walk but as a result of all kinds of unexpected distractions and incidents never achieves the same number again. The story comments on the uncertainty of an ordinary life, which on its surface consists of repetitive actions but is always subject to unexpected diversions. During the course of the novel, Lin Wai’s career changes from a journalist at a state-owned publishing house to an entrepreneur of a photo studio. The story of Lin Wai can be read as a distillation of the lives of millions of Chinese citizens, whose lives went through dramatic changes when the country abandoned socialism as it turned towards a market-oriented economy.
For one of the galleries in the Beijing exhibition Wang Tiande has created a series of ink drawings and sketches to accompany and illustrate the novel. The gallery is set up as a reading room with sofas and chairs, where visitors are encouraged to sit down, read the novel, and enjoy his artwork. In the other gallery recent examples of his signature landscapes will also be exhibited.
北京前波画廊于9月18日推出《3,720：王天德近作展》。身为上海复旦大学艺术设计系的主任兼教授，王天德近期从中国美术学院获得书法博士学位。他最为知名的艺术创作方法结合了中国传统水墨与烟烫痕迹。而在其北京的首次个展中，王天德则将艺术创作与其近期在文学方面的兴趣相结合。2009年3月，王天德在堪萨斯大学应邀作访问艺术家时，经常一个人从住所走到斯宾塞美术馆。在来回的路上，经常看到人们以不同的速度锻炼、慢跑和散步，于是便萌发了创作小说的念头，而该小说也最终成为此次《3,720》展览的主题。
小说的主人公林外每天下班后都会从家中散步至附近的一个公园。一次，他偶然算出那天散步总共走的步数是3,720步。之后他每次散步都尝试去走同样的步数，但是没有一次是成功的，因为总是有各种各样意想不到的事件发生。故事呈现了日常生活的不确定性，尽管表面看来，生活总是在不停重复着一些事情，但却常常因一些无法预见的事件而有所变化。小说中，林外从一名国有出版社的记者转行成为一个自由的职业摄影师。从林外的故事中，可以窥视当下数百万中国人的生活，他们经历了从社会主义到以市场为导向的经济社会的巨大变化。
此次展览的其中一个展厅展出了王天德为该小说创作的一系列水墨作品。展厅被布置成为一间阅览室，内设有沙发和椅子，参观者可以随意坐下、阅读小说、并欣赏他的作品。另外的一个展厅内会展出王天德近期创作的其标志性的山水作品。