中 En
1:48 Stamped Impressions Series — Cheng Shi From Liuli China Museum
The work draws inspiration from fragmented Dunhuang murals, embedding inscriptions within empty space to create a dialogue between history and the present. The damaged paintings and stone carvings act as echoes of time, reflecting both the grandeur of past glories and the quiet contemplation that follows centuries of erosion. Through these incomplete traces, the artist expresses reverence and fascination for Dunhuang culture, while evoking viewers’ resonance with the rise and fall of civilizations across history.
In the creative process, the vivid colors of the Dunhuang murals, the tactile weight of the inscriptions, and the symbolic meaning of ginkgo leaves are skillfully combined to construct a layered artistic context. As a symbol of longevity and resilience, the ginkgo imbues the work with notions of cultural continuity and the cycle of life, giving ancient Buddhist art a sense of both majesty and mystery.
The work is based on the Stone Drum inscriptions, with the characters stretched and deformed through glass hot-bending techniques. In doing so, the inscriptions transcend their original written form, transforming into symbols of the passage of time and the loss of cultural heritage. In working with these hard-to-carve materials—murals, inscriptions, and stone drums—people historically invested their desire for eternity, hoping that faith and civilization would endure unbroken. Yet the erosion of reality and the deformation of characters suggest the reinterpretation and regeneration of tradition in a contemporary context, inviting viewers to reflect on the fragility and preciousness of cultural heritage.