Duration: July 14, 2025 ongoing

Title: Square Word Calligraphy: Where There Are Problems, There Is Art

Location: UCCA Center for Contemporary Art, Beijing, China

Exhibited Work: Square Word Calligraphy: Where There Are Problems, There Is Art

At the first glance, the text on the wall resembles Chinese calligraphy. But on closer inspection, each “character” reveals itself to be an English word visually restructured to resemble a Chinese hanzi. Together they form the phrase “Where there are problems, there is art.” This work belongs to Xu Bing’s “Square Word Calligraphy” series, which he began developing in the early 1990s after relocating to New York. Born of linguistic barriers and cultural displacement, this series reimagines English through the structure and brushstrokes of Chinese writing, defamiliarizing the known to reflect on the space between misreading and understanding. Since its debut in 1993, the series has continued to evolve, shaping Xu’s ongoing inquiry into language, perception, and cultural systems. In UCCA’s 2018 retrospective exhibition “Xu Bing: Thought and Method,” the series provided the show’s entrance signage and was featured in an interactive calligraphy classroom. This mural emerged from of a sentence the artist formulated during his preparations for that exhibition: “Wherever there are people, there are problems. And wherever there are problems, there is art.” These words serve as both a personal credo and a thematic constant across Xu’s decades-long practice. For Xu, problems are not impediments to overcome, but generative conditions—productive sites where meaning is contested, constructed, and renewed.

The two cartoon figures in the lower right corner are adapted from Xu Bing: Where There Are Problems, There Is Art!, an educational children’s book created by the UCCA Kids team. The story unfolds from the perspective of a child visiting a museum with their parents, telling the story of the artist’s life and practice through humorous illustrations, which touch upon episodes and ideas which have never entered exhibition spaces and only exist in Xu’s imagination. The appearance of the cartoon characters here collapses the boundary between illustrated book and conceptual artwork, adding a playful counterpoint to the work. Just as the work’s calligraphic elements invite audiences to read differently, these figures suggest another way into the artist’s world—one that speaks across disciplines to viewers of different ages, echoing Xu’s belief that artworks may be interpreted in an infinite number of ways.

Duration: March 26, 2025 - Sep 25, 2025

Title: Loping and Looking — Art in MTR

Location: Admiralty, Sheung Wan, Exhibition Centre and Wan Chai, Hong Kong Museum of Art, Hong Kong, China

Exhibited Work: Square Word Calligraphy 

https://www.apo.hk/en/web/apo/hk_xb_art_in_mtr.html

In March 2024, the Culture, Sports and Tourism Bureau appointed Xu Bing as Hong Kong's Ambassador for Cultural Promotion for a term of five years. "Xu Bing in Hong Kong: Square Word Calligraphy" marks the renowned artist's inaugural commissioning art initiative in the city. One of the featured programmes of the project is the "Eying East, Wondering West — Square Word Calligraphy Classroom" exhibition.

Square Word Calligraphy is a form of writing Xu Bing began developing in 1993, in which English is written to resemble Chinese characters. This writing system highlights the interplay between Eastern and Western cultures, aligning with Hong Kong's vibrant cultural tapestry. This exhibition invites the audience to explore Square Word Calligraphy from three perspectives: "Appreciation", "Learning" and "Application", encouraging them to reflect on language and culture, challenging fixed ways of thinking, and sparking creativity through the switching between languages. Xu Bing has especially incorporated Hong Kong's distinctive linguistic features in the exhibition, further enriching the meaning and interpretation of Square Word Calligraphy and opening up new possibilities for intercultural and interlingual communication.

Throughout the exhibition, the prominent area on the glass canopy at the entrance of the Hong Kong Museum of Art transforms its style, presenting the museum's name and mission in the form of Square Word Calligraphy, enhanced with interactive augmented reality effects. "Connect Art to People" is one of the missions of the museum, aligning perfectly with Xu Bing's belief in making art accessible to everyone. Presenting this phrase in the form of Square Words embodies the museum's curatorial approach, which embraces a wide world of contrasts, from old to new, from East to West.

Presented by the Leisure and Cultural Services Department

Organised by the Hong Kong Museum of Art and the Art Promotion Office

Duration: March 26, 2025 - July 30, 2025

Title: Eying East, Wondering West — Square Word Calligraphy Classroom

Location: Hong Kong Museum of Art, Hong Kong, China

Exhibited Work: Square Word Calligraphy Classroom

https://hk.art.museum/en/web/ma/exhibitions-and-events/eying-east-wondering-west.html

https://www.apo.hk/tc/web/apo/xb_oil.html

In March 2024, the Culture, Sports and Tourism Bureau appointed Xu Bing as Hong Kong's Ambassador for Cultural Promotion for a term of five years. "Xu Bing in Hong Kong: Square Word Calligraphy" marks the renowned artist's inaugural commissioning art initiative in the city. One of the featured programmes of the project is the "Eying East, Wondering West — Square Word Calligraphy Classroom" exhibition.

Square Word Calligraphy is a form of writing Xu Bing began developing in 1993, in which English is written to resemble Chinese characters. This writing system highlights the interplay between Eastern and Western cultures, aligning with Hong Kong's vibrant cultural tapestry. This exhibition invites the audience to explore Square Word Calligraphy from three perspectives: "Appreciation", "Learning" and "Application", encouraging them to reflect on language and culture, challenging fixed ways of thinking, and sparking creativity through the switching between languages. Xu Bing has especially incorporated Hong Kong's distinctive linguistic features in the exhibition, further enriching the meaning and interpretation of Square Word Calligraphy and opening up new possibilities for intercultural and interlingual communication.

Throughout the exhibition, the prominent area on the glass canopy at the entrance of the Hong Kong Museum of Art transforms its style, presenting the museum's name and mission in the form of Square Word Calligraphy, enhanced with interactive augmented reality effects. "Connect Art to People" is one of the missions of the museum, aligning perfectly with Xu Bing's belief in making art accessible to everyone. Presenting this phrase in the form of Square Words embodies the museum's curatorial approach, which embraces a wide world of contrasts, from old to new, from East to West.

Presented by the Leisure and Cultural Services Department

Organised by the Hong Kong Museum of Art and the Art Promotion Office

Duration: January 3, 2025 ongoing

Title: Canal-Inspired Culture — Public Art Exhibition at Dayun Tower

Location: China Grand Canal Museum, Suzhou, Jiangsu, China

https://canalmuseum.net/yunboxinwen/891.html

Exhibition Period: March 29, 2025 - July 13, 2025

Exhibition Theme: Theater of the Times: Plural Interpretation of Contemporary Images

Exhibition Venue: Taipei Fine Arts Museum, Taiwan, China

Exhibition Works: Dragonfly Eyes

Link：https://www.tfam.museum/Exhibition/Exhibition_Special.aspx?id=787

Exhibition Dates: April 6, 2025 – October 29, 2025
Exhibition Title: Line, Form, Qi: Calligraphy Art from the Fondation INK Collection
Venue: Los Angeles County Museum of Art (LACMA), Los Angeles, USA
Featured Work: Landscript, 2022

Link: https://www.lacma.org/press/line-form-qi-calligraphic-art-fondation-ink-collection

Image: © Fung Ming Chip, photo. © Museum Associates/LACMA