Zhan Wang

Artist description

The prolific sculptor Zhan Wang is renowned for his meticulously crafted stainless steel replicas of scholar's rocks. Historically, scholar's rocks were displayed in Chinese gardens and considered microcosms of the universe. Reflecting on the rapid economic development and urbanization that characterized China in the 1990s, Zhan sought to "update" this traditional object for contemporary society through the use of a modern industrial material: stainless steel.

The work Ornamental Rock was created using Zhan's signature method of working with stainless steel. By hammering a pliable steel sheet onto the surface of the original rock, Zhan created a copy that reproduced every minute undulation of the original's surface. Intended to be placed in the urban landscape of Beijing, this rock and others like it would have reflected the surrounding skyscrapers, producing on its surface a distorted version of Beijing's rapidly growing urban fabric. In 2000, Zhan expanded his methods to create the conceptually rich performance project Beyond 12 Nautical Miles-Floating Rock Drifts on the Open Sea. For this work, the artist transported one of his hollow stainless steel rocks and let it drift into international waters. The title of the work refers to the point beyond which any country can claim free waters as territory. Left to drift where the currents take it, the rock has the following passage inscribed in five different languages on its surface.