Wu Jian’an (Andy Mo)

“Bamboo Grove,” charcoal and pencil on paper, 79 x 110 cm, 2011

For a long time literati have been painting bamboo, but the question I am interested in is how to reinterpret the relationship between bamboo and literati in a contemporary context. Once while passing by a newly-built neighborhood in Beijing, I chanced upon a gardener fixing brackets on newly planted bamboo. I was moved by the fact that he was still using bamboo. This juxtaposition reflects the current state of urban life, plagued by crazy construction. Tall buildings spring up like mushrooms. Planting several bamboo trees in the clearing between buildings, and spreading a few flowers and plants through the grounds turns the place into a so-called “natural” space. A friend of mine who is an architect said the reason why we can no longer paint Song and Yuan Dynasty landscapes is that we are too far removed from the natural. I think we’ve not only left behind only a bamboo forest and a few flowers and plants, what we are missing is the spirit of Chinese traditional literati.