Philosophy of Handicraft: 18 times of Awakening and Rebirth

Craft is a way of life. This book collects 18 interviews， 18 ways of awakening and rebirth. Facing real difficulties， outstanding creators in this era were awakened first. They tried to find the crux and responded with tireless work. They have not only overcome themselves but also expanded new space for the survival and iteration of crafts.

Zhang Quan

Zhang Quan is the former chief editor of Life Magazine and has won many awards， such as the China TV Golden Eagle Award， Starlight Awards， China Academy Awards for Documentary Film， China" Documentary Works of the Year， and the SOPA Awards for Editorial Excellence issued by the Society of Publishers in Asia （SOPA）.

Philosophy of Handicraft：

18 times of Awakening and Rebirth

Zhang Quan

Guangxi Normal University Press

April 2022

128.00 （CNY）

View and Mental Image

Wang Wusheng lived in seclusion in the western suburb of Shanghai， where planes occasionally flew through the bamboo outside the window. Gradually， he turned a blind eye to these planes， whether they came from Tokyo or went to New York.

He almost no longer took photos outside but spent more time in the darkroom， where he stayed all day long with more than a hundred thousand film photographs that were not systematically sorted out. Among the films were the Sea of Japan， the urban scenes of New York， Paris， Tokyo and Vienna， the villages and towns in the central United States， and the remains of walls in the water towns of Jiangnan in China. These films， black-and-white or color， had been his photography plan for years but had never been published. Western galleries often sent emails asking about the whereabouts of these photos. It seemed that only Wang Wusheng himself was never anxious about this. He was still busy with the new work “Mount Huang in Heaven.” He was not satisfied with any albums published so far. Therefore， he wanted to publish an album that really satisfied him.

He was still treating these films harshly. First， he repeatedly compared and selected them under a magnifying glass. Then， he made a dozen versions， which were lined up in a row on the wall. It seemed that he was facing a dozen twins， but only he could tell their subtle differences — they were slightly different in local tones and shades. A slight difference was enough to make poles apart. Sometimes， he was not even selecting the most satisfactory photo but looking for the view and mental image that had shocked him.

The Black and White Dream

Most people knew Wang Wusheng through Mount Huang， and others re-understood Mount Huang because of Wang Wusheng.

People cannot believe that these photos were taken in the 1970s and 1980s. In the crack of red aesthetics， Wang Wusheng explained that era differently with the three shades of black， white and gray.

Up to now， it is still difficult to trace back accurately how his image style was shaped. It seemed to arrive all of a sudden， like the divine artists who chanted the King Gesar epic in Tibet. They would remember their lost past lives in a dream and become someone else.

Wang Wusheng was born in 1945. He loved literature， painting and music from childhood. However， in the era of cultural isolation and thirst for knowledge， his experience was not different from those of his peers. He learned a lot from his parents’ words and behavior， and was inspired by many artworks.

These deposits and feelings were extremely important， but they didn’t seem to be decisive. Perhaps his encounter with Mount Huang was more important to him. In 1974， when he faced the vast sea of clouds alone， putting aside the hustle and bustle of the times， he gained a sudden insight like an old monk. Years later， he would still describe this feeling gratefully on different occasions： “On Mount Huang， I felt the universe and the history. The stones rising and for several hundred million years and the pines standing for several thousand years made me feel that I was small. How can the decades of my life be compared with the vast universe？ It was the first time I thought deeply about my life in my twenties. How should I live my short life？ How to squander this property that God gave me？ This established my outlook on life. I was determined to do one thing well and finish it before leaving this world. That is to present the mountain in my mind.”

The tone variations of black， white and gray are commonly found in Chinese ink paintings. Facing Wang Wusheng’s works， everyone will mistake them as ink paintings. When they look at them closely， they will find his photography aesthetics different from ink painting. This is not only caused by the difference in texture between Xuan paper and photographic paper. His frame and implications are more modern and transcendent. Therefore， his works can cross national boundaries， and are understood by people in different cultural contexts and knowledge structures.

An Unexpected Discovery

When people enjoyed themselves talking about Wang Wusheng’s legendary experience in the Kunsthistorisches Museum， an unexpected discovery delighted him.

In Vienna， he found a unique lamp. Today， this lamp is hidden in the corner behind the sofa in his living room. Through the adjusted leaves in front of the lamp， the light fell precisely on one of his black-and-white photos of Mount Huang. The light was spread among the rocks and clouds without overflowing around or even reaching the frame. In those years， because of such lamps， as soon as people entered the gloomy exhibition hall of the Kunsthistorisches Museum， every photo seemed to glow faintly， and the audience’s view was completely attracted. They soon calmed down and had no distractions.

In the years after returning to China， Wang Wusheng has made every effort to persuade his friends to make such lamps. He believed that the innovation of lighting technology would improve the quality and viewing experience of photography exhibitions in China.

This is Wang Wusheng’s unknown side to others.

There is no doubt that all artists attach importance to their exhibitions. Wang Wusheng’s strong sensitivity and various bold ideas about the relationship between art and space are quite rare. In his view， exhibition space is a whole artwork. In some special exhibitions， photographic art is only one of the elements. It can perfectly coordinate with sound， installation， smell and other art forms. By fully mobilizing the audience’s “five senses，” an internal world connecting art and mind is reshaped. Only when the audience is fully involved can art have new life.