▲ Sculpture "Red Tenacity" provided by Ren Zhe Studio
In the only newly built National Speed Skating Hall in the main beijing area of the Beijing Winter Olympics, there is a striking sculpture named "Red Toughness": a red Oriental warrior standing tall, ready to attack, draped behind him with a golden ribbon flying. It and this ice competition venue, known as the "ice ribbon", form an echo of ice and fire in the image, and symbolize the speed and passion, as well as the continuation of the Olympic spirit.
This sculpture was built by ren Zhe, a sculptor from the Zhentang Cultural Think Tank (hereinafter referred to as "Zhentang") for a year and a half. Zhaotang was called "the most mysterious place in Beijing" by netizens. 觿, originally refers to the bone tool of unbuttoning, and later as a ceremonial instrument, there is a saying that "a gentleman wears a bow, and there is no confusion in his heart". As a result, the hall has been given the beautiful expectation of using art to relieve people's confusion. On February 14, 2022, the Beijing News Center's "New Atmosphere of the City of the Two Olympics" interview event invited 39 reporters from 26 Chinese and foreign media to the auditorium to solve the mystery of how this art innovation workshop forges contemporary artists.
Transformed from an abandoned bazaar in the Sun Palace area of Beijing, with a total construction area of 13,000 square meters, the Hall is a demonstration base for China's cultural industry, an incubation platform for cultural and creative projects in Beijing, a cultural innovation workshop, a Belt and Road International Cultural and Art Exchange Center, and a contemporary art exhibition platform.
The first stop for reporters to visit the hall was the studio of sculptor Ren Zhe. At the beginning of 2021, "Red Toughness" stood out in the 1611 application plans submitted by 1313 artists in more than 50 countries and regions around the world after layers of competition, and appeared in the "Ice Ribbon" on the occasion of the 2022 Winter Olympics, and will be permanently placed in the venue after the End of the Winter Olympics.
The reporters went on to look for another work created by Ren Zhe. Climbing up the stairs, to the roof at the highest point of the Temple Compound, He saw a strong samurai in the ice pool, tenderly playing an ancient wood without strings, which is called the sculpture "Unsan Demeanor". The Tao Te Ching says "big sound xisheng", the closest thing to heaven is the guqin, right? Here is the source of the Water System of The Temple, and Lin Daiyu in "Dream of the Red Chamber" said, "If you want to stroke the piano... Or on the top of a mountain, or on the end of the water. On the side of the "Yunshan Demeanor", it is indeed the workshop of the guqin master Ren Jing.
Subsequently, the reporters walked into the Dragon Ball Hall and the Guowu Hall and enjoyed Ren Jing's interpretation of "Plum Blossom Three Alleys" and "Alpine Flowing Water", which was broken, three points into the wood, delicate and gentle, and swinging intestines. Li Ning, the only Chinese magician to win the international "Golden Magic Wand", Yin Yi and Li Mingliang, Sanda champions, Yuan Quan, champion of Chen's Taijiquan, and Peking Opera masters from the Beijing National Art Heritage Promotion Association... They also showed their unique skills.
They are all artists who have settled in the hall. "When other parks are collecting art, the museum collects artists, and it collects 'interesting souls'." Li Ang, the person in charge of The Hall, said that since its establishment in 2013, the Hall has gathered more than 30 artists and intangible cultural heritage scholars, covering fields such as sculpture, painting, space design, lighting design, agarwood culture, guqin culture, traditional trick magic, study room clearance, tea culture, tai chi, film and television, etc., actively advocating a healthy and upward, natural and authentic aesthetic trend with Chinese characteristics, and creating creative products that conform to the characteristics of the times and contain China's excellent traditional culture.
Breaking with the profit model of collecting rent and property in traditional art parks, The Hall waives rent for all artists and strives to create an ideal country for them to create contemporary culture and art. At present, the park has provided nearly 300 jobs, driving the output value of the surrounding real estate, services, manufacturing, entertainment, culture and other industries to nearly 700 million yuan.
Author: Jiang Shengxin, reporter of this newspaper in Beijing
Photo: Except for the photo of the signed source, it is all taken by Jiang Shengxin
Editor: Li Yang
Editor-in-charge: Lu Zhengming
*Wenhui exclusive manuscript, please indicate the source when reprinting.