Book from the Sky
E466177
Book from the Sky is a landmark conceptual art installation by Chinese artist Xu Bing, featuring hand-printed books and scrolls filled with thousands of invented Chinese characters that resemble real script but are entirely unreadable.
Observed surface forms (1)
| Surface form | Occurrences |
|---|---|
| A Book from the Sky (Tianshu) | 1 |
Statements (46)
| Predicate | Object |
|---|---|
| instanceOf |
artwork
ⓘ
conceptual art installation ⓘ |
| alsoKnownAs | Tiānshū NERFINISHED ⓘ |
| completionDate | 1991 ⓘ |
| controversy | initially criticized in China for perceived political implications ⓘ |
| countryOfOrigin | China ⓘ |
| creator | Xu Bing NERFINISHED ⓘ |
| exhibitionFormat |
books displayed on low platforms
ⓘ
printed sheets covering walls ⓘ scrolls hanging from the ceiling ⓘ |
| firstExhibited | late 1980s ⓘ |
| genre |
conceptual art
ⓘ
installation art ⓘ |
| inception | 1987 ⓘ |
| inCollectionOf | various museums and institutions through partial sets and components ⓘ |
| influenced | subsequent text-based conceptual art in China ⓘ |
| interpretation |
often read as a critique of blind faith in written authority
ⓘ
often seen as reflecting on the instability of meaning in language ⓘ |
| languageDepicted | pseudo-Chinese ⓘ |
| legibility | unreadable ⓘ |
| material |
ink
ⓘ
paper ⓘ |
| medium |
hand-printed books
ⓘ
printed scrolls ⓘ woodblock printing ⓘ |
| movement | contemporary art ⓘ |
| notableExhibition | China/Avant-Garde Exhibition, National Art Museum of China, Beijing NERFINISHED ⓘ |
| notableFeature |
all characters are invented and carry no conventional meaning
ⓘ
immersive installation environment ⓘ mimics the format of classical Chinese printed books ⓘ |
| numberOfCharacters | thousands of invented characters ⓘ |
| partOf | Xu Bing’s ongoing exploration of language and writing ⓘ |
| periodOfCreation | late 1980s to early 1990s ⓘ |
| reception | later recognized as a landmark of contemporary Chinese art ⓘ |
| relatedWorkByCreator |
Book from the Ground
NERFINISHED
ⓘ
Square Word Calligraphy NERFINISHED ⓘ |
| scale | large-scale room-filling installation ⓘ |
| scriptAppearance | resembles traditional Chinese script ⓘ |
| technique | traditional Chinese woodblock printing ⓘ |
| theme |
authority of text
ⓘ
censorship and control of language ⓘ language ⓘ legibility and illegibility ⓘ meaning ⓘ |
| titleInChinese | 《天书》 ⓘ |
| usesWritingSystem | invented Chinese characters ⓘ |
Referenced by (2)
Full triples — surface form annotated when it differs from this entity's canonical label.
this entity surface form:
A Book from the Sky (Tianshu)