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Lot Essay
The project Book from the Sky was initiated by Xu Bing in 1987, first exhibited in the late eighties at the National Art Museum of China in Beijing.
"Book from the sky", as suggested by the title is referring to books which are too difficult to be interpreted or understood. This set of four books is being bound by Chinese traditional sewing, following the style of movable-type printing; the pages are completed by seemingly familiar Chinese Square Word characters . These characters created consist of the most simple and common component in Chinese character s , such as one side of the characters that have structural left and structural right, the sides assimilating elements like water and earth. However as familiar they look, the forms of the ' word s ' are incomprehensible. Xu Bin regards these contradictions and absurdities the causes that made readership impossible, yet the absence of absolute definitions and explanations written down in a dictionary makes possible interpretations possible.
"Book from the sky", as suggested by the title is referring to books which are too difficult to be interpreted or understood. This set of four books is being bound by Chinese traditional sewing, following the style of movable-type printing; the pages are completed by seemingly familiar Chinese Square Word characters . These characters created consist of the most simple and common component in Chinese character s , such as one side of the characters that have structural left and structural right, the sides assimilating elements like water and earth. However as familiar they look, the forms of the ' word s ' are incomprehensible. Xu Bin regards these contradictions and absurdities the causes that made readership impossible, yet the absence of absolute definitions and explanations written down in a dictionary makes possible interpretations possible.