Artist paints with algae to highlight China's toxic waters
SHENZHEN, Guangdong -- Last month, Chinese artist Gu Wenda led 1,500 schoolchildren in Shenzhen to paint 1,500 square meters of rice paper with algae water.
In a modern riff of traditional “qinglu shanshui” landscape painting -- especially popular in the Qing and Ming dynasties -- the project aimed to highlight China’s toxic algae blooms.
The artist with the kids.Credit: GU WENDASEE ALSO:After China, a Canadian company plans to sell India bottled air from the Rocky MountainsChina has struggled with algae blooms for the past decade. Caused by industrial run-off, they have severely compromised the health of the lakes and rivers and the people who depend on these bodies of water. In some cases, people have been left without drinking water for days.
Just this summer, Qingdao, a port city in eastern Shandong, experienced an algae invasion of over 58,000 hectares. According to a 2014 report, 28 percent of rivers are so toxic that they aren’t even suitable for agricultural use. Thirty-eight out of 71 rivers are unsuitable for humans to touch, according to a report by the State Oceanic Administration of China.
The algae situation in Qingdao in July 2016.Credit: ImaginechinaChinese tourists play with green algae on a beach in Qingdao.Credit: Xue hun/Imaginechina“My algae paintings are symbolic of a green China,” Gu says, referring to the color of the algae. “Over the last 30 to 40 years, after senior leader Deng Xiaoping’s Open Door policy, China has vastly grown its economy and international production. This has damaged certain rivers and lakes, causing algae blooms because of chemical run-offs. This is the concern of everybody today.”
For the artwork titled “Verdant Mountains, Emerald Waters", corporate sponsor Ping An Insurance donated 1 million RMB ($148,000) to provide drinking water to schools in rural poor areas in China.
1,500 square meters of rice paper in the hall.Credit: GU WENDACredit: GU WENDAGu says he chose to involve children in his project with the hopes of inspiring them to get into art in the future.
“Contemporary art in China is an import from the West. It is not yet mainstream today,” Gu says. “So when I have kids participate, the hope is that the future of contemporary art is going to be mainstream.”
Credit: gu wenda'Not an activist'
Gu, a multimedia artist who got his start in the 1980s, is known for his creative use of materials. His multi-year project “United Nations” used hair from hundreds of people to weave into illegible text. His project “2000 Natural Deaths” used sanitary napkins and tampons as a medium.
Although he is cut from the same cloth as Ai Weiwei, who also got his start in the 1980s, Gu doesn't identify as an activist. In past interviews, he has described himself as a peacemaker whose main goal is to unify.
“This algae problem is not that controversial because it is already exposed in the government television and government newspaper. It’s already in people’s minds,” he says.
Gu is currently including the children’s work into a complete piece, which will eventually be displayed in a Shanghai art gallery in November.
Credit: gu wenda相关文章
- PRE-ORDER NOW: The new Google Nest Learning Thermostat (4th gen) is now available for preorder at Am2024-09-22
- 买房时,大家最关心的就是房子的质量问题了。看得见摸得着的二手房、现房质量比较容易辨别,而在建的、尚未完成建设的、不能交付的期房怎么看房子质量好不好呢?俗话说得好,内行看门道,外行看热闹。作为外行人,我2024-09-22
- 献血官兵与血站工作人员合影90后官兵参与无偿献血,拿上献血证那一刻小伙子内心满满正能量官兵踊跃参与献血,血站医护人员雅安日报讯橄榄绿献出殷红希望。持续高温天气,我市迎来献血“淡季”,血站部分血型库存出2024-09-22
- 芦山地震现场2024-09-22
Sinkhole swallows up car, injuring 2 in Seoul
A sinkhole has swallowed up a car on a road in Seoul's Seodaemun-gu, on Thursday. (Yonhap)A sin2024-09-22- 为优化协警岗位设置,明确岗位职责,进一步激发大队协警的工作热情,充分调动协警队伍的工作积极性和进取性,名山县公安局巡警大队根据工作性质、业务特点,制定了《巡警大队巡逻队员绩效考核暂行规定》,本着自愿、2024-09-22
最新评论