The two characters written here—han (寒) and shan (山)—represent the name of poet Hanshan, a mysterious hermit said to have written a collection of poems from the Tang Dynasty. Having been translated into English in the 1950s, Hanshan’s poems served as an inspiration for the Beat Generation writers and artists such as Brice Marden. By writing Hanshan, Wang Fangyu may have been reflecting upon his own experience of growing up in Republican Era China and migrating to the United States in the 1940s, as well as his role of connecting Chinese and American culture.

Wang Fangyu uses seals in a creative manner in Hanshan. Instead of depicting Chinese characters, the two seals show ideograms that represent the artist’s first name Fangyu (方宇). Featuring the same pattern with opposite color schemes, the two seals constitute a key element of the dynamic composition.

Curated by Fu Qiumeng Fine Art