百国视觉盛宴：图观丝路精神亘古常新——“2017·第七届中国北京国际美术双年展”纵览

文本刊记者 张亚萌 Zhang Yameng 译曹宇光Cao Yuguang

我眼中的历史（布面丙烯）沙凡·艾哈迈德History Within My Eyes（Acrylic on Canvas）by Shaffan Ahmed

“15年前、2002年的9月，也是在中国美术馆，首届北京国际美术双年展呈现在世人面前；15年过去，北京双年展的成绩单令国人和世界瞩目，我有幸作为亲历者，作为该展的发起人，一直见证着它的发展和成长。”中国美协主席刘大为在“2017·第七届中国北京国际美术双年展”开幕式上这样回顾。

今年恰逢北京双年展创办15周年。15年，对于双年机制与频率的北京双年展来说，是接近5500天的一步步的成长，对于历史长河，只是短短一瞬——9月24日至10月15日，由中国文联、北京市人民政府和中国美协联合主办，以“丝路与世界文明”为主题的“2017·第七届中国北京国际美术双年展”在北京中国美术馆举办，更成为“15岁”的北京双年展的重要节点——共有来自五大洲102个国家的567位美术家带来601件作品，其中外国（含特展）作品411件、中国作品190件，涵盖当代绘画、雕塑、装置、影像以及其他多媒体作品。

绚丽夺目的视觉华章

600多件参展作品，600多种不同的艺术风格，展览主题“丝路与世界文明”得到的全球呼应热度一目了然。本届北京双年展是活动创办以来首次突破100个国家参展，也是全球迄今为止首个达到100个参展国家的美术展览，表明了北京双年展的国际知名度、影响力和吸引力日益提升，其中中非、斐济、几内亚、洪都拉斯、马尔代夫、巴勒斯坦、巴拿马、塞舌尔、坦桑尼亚、也门等国都是首次参展。

“2013年秋天，中国国家主席习近平洞察世界发展的大势、顺应国际合作的潮流，提出了共建丝绸之路经济带和21世纪海上丝绸之路、即‘一带一路’倡议。4年来，这一倡议得到全球100多个国家和国际组织的积极支持和广泛参与，逐渐从理念转化为行动，从愿景转化为现实，取得显著成就。就在今年5月，‘一带一路’国际合作高峰论坛成功举办，来自100多个国家的各界嘉宾齐聚北京，共商合作发展大计，盛况空前，成果丰硕。”中国文联副主席李屹表示，双年展融入“丝路精神”，将赋予其更加牢固的根基、更加广阔的舞台，也更加富有包容性、时代感和强大的生命力。

作为“一带一路”精神最早的领悟者，中国艺术家的参展作品以题材的广泛性、形态的多元性以及手法的多样性精彩地回应了“丝路与世界文明”这一主题。“在中国艺术家的笔下，无论是古道明月、梵音涟漪，还是援非医疗队；无论是神秘的燃灯节、苦水社火，还是今日都市的微生活；无论是逍遥游、万物生，还是跨越亚欧大陆的高铁；无论是罗盘、指南针，还是海上丝路的全图胜景，无不或高亢或低吟地叙述着丝绸之路这条历史上最为古老、世界上最为绵长的人类互通共荣之路。在展览的现场，迷人的古道气息与生机勃勃的时代气象交互相生，诱人的味道弥散于历史的天空，入人心目，沁人心脾。比起传统的再现手法，艺术家们似乎更愿意将作品当作文化符码来加以建构，由此所洋溢出的象征、隐喻、寓言的意味，将观者带入冥思与遐想。”北京双年展策委张晓凌说。

尤其值得一提的是，为填补当前大型“一带一路”主题美术作品的空白，组委会专门组织国内美术家在有限的时间内完成了两件大体量的主题作品：一件是郑百重创作的6米长的国画《海上丝路新篇章》，一件是冯路敏等合作的8米长的油画《丝绸之路新篇章》。

国外艺术家的参展作品同样佳作云集，完全可以连缀成绚丽夺目的视觉华章。那些鸿篇巨制，或展示由丝路连接的文明圣地的壮观胜景，或以近乎抽象的面貌呼应一种汇融与拓展的气场；也有蕞尔小品，或抒发激情，或点化依稀朦胧的情致，洋溢出令人回味无穷的诗性。北京双年展策委丁宁说：“有些艺术家是运用了类似蒙太奇的手法，将东西方的历史情景、先贤人物或者文化符号拼接、叠合在一起，给人以朦胧而又真实的印象；有些艺术家在改造经典的图像材料的基础上略加点缀，就营造了历史的传奇感。艺术家们在艺术语言的选择与锤炼上颇多可圈可点之处，不仅仅是写实、抽象的共存，而且也有象征手法、拼贴、跨类融合以及越出架上艺术范围的有益尝试，甚至更多地吸收了中国艺术或文化元素。”而那些来自当今战乱不息的古丝路沿线国家的作品，比如也门、叙利亚、伊拉克等，更充满对和平发展的丝路精神的缅怀、憧憬和梦想，尤其让人动容。

在北京双年展策委王镛眼中，本届双年展在艺术上有两个重要的特征：写实与浪漫风格交织，趋同与求异趋向并存。“以往外国作品以浪漫风格为主，想象力比较丰富；中国的作品以写实风格为主，相对来说想象力不够丰富，缺少浪漫色彩。而本届北京双年展的作品中，很多外国作品在发挥浪漫想象的同时，增加了写实的刻画。同时，很多外国作品更多地吸收了中国元素，中国的作品也更多吸收了外国的元素。这说明趋同的倾向与求异的倾向形成了巨大的张力，恰恰是在趋同、求异这种巨大的张力当中迸发了创作的灵感，激发了艺术家的幻想。”他说。

一部功率巨大的“引擎”

除主题展外，本届北京双年展共设有“格鲁吉亚当代艺术特展”“希腊当代艺术特展”“印度尼西亚当代艺术特展”“蒙古国当代艺术特展”“从丁托列托到利兰加的艺术之旅”“北京双年展历届捐赠作品特展”6个特展。其中不仅有丁托列托、达利这样闪耀世界美术史的大师力作，还囊括格鲁吉亚、希腊、印度尼西亚、蒙古国等各国的近百位当代优秀艺术家的扛鼎之作，遴选自500多件北京双年展藏品的几十件历届各国捐赠作品，也能让观众一睹历届北京双年展展品的精彩篇章。

“丝路精神与题材所唤醒的想象力与美学渴望，源源不断地转化为艺术家们创建新形式、新语言的实践。趋同与求异两种倾向之间的巨大张力，产生了东西方艺术交流融合而又异彩纷呈的壮丽景象。可以说，这些参展作品本身就是世界文明交流互鉴的结果，就是东西方文明在丝路题材上交流融合的艺术表现。”刘大为说。北京双年展国际策展人、加拿大策展人齐妮亚·贝尼沃尔斯基认为：“丝路与世界文明”的核心是东西方的连通；丝路关注的是沟通和互相连接，而且也需要互相关注以及互相促进——它是一种非殖民化的沟通。

丝路的历史和现实题材历来都非常充沛鲜活，沿路各国在共商、共建、共享的实践中，在实现民心相通的过程中所涉及的国际友谊、民族交往和文化融合的深度故事皆可以入画。“本届参展作品比起传统的再现手法，美术家们似乎更愿将主题视作文化符号来加以建构，而不单纯发思古之幽情。丝路精神与题材所唤醒的想象力与美学渴望正源源不断地转化为艺术家们创建新形式、新语言的实践。由此所展现出的象征、隐喻、寓言的意味，将观众带进无尽的遐想。在那里，丝路将被幻化为巨大而深邃的民族史诗，将蕴含在其中的精神一一呈现诉说。”中国美协副秘书长、北京双年展策委陶勤说。

为方便民众观展，本届北京双年展特别设置了一些很暖心的环节：加大展签尺寸、增加作品说明等中英文导览信息；特意选取部分有关丝路风光、交通工具、骆驼等内容的作品图像制成休息区凳子的座套，使观众在观看以外还能通过如此“可观可坐”的方式和作品产生奇妙的接触与互动；同时设置“我眼中的北京双年展”微印相明信片互动环节，观众可以将作品拍照免费制作成国际通用的邮资明信片并现场邮往包括“一带一路”国家在内的世界各地，与远方的朋友分享自己眼中的北京双年展。

黄河之水天上来——壶口大瀑印象（布面油画）严隽泰The Water of Yellow River Comes from Heaven—Impression of Hukou Waterfall (Oil on Canvas) by YAN Juntai

“今日欢聚，尽情展示和交流；明朝分别，满载喜悦和友情。”李屹说。这正是15年北京双年展达成的7次交流“盛景”。作为制度性的展览，北京双年展只有坚持才是胜利，威尼斯双年展坚持了一百多年，所以它在世界艺术领域的话语权和选择权无可比拟。中国美协驻会副主席兼秘书长、北京双年展总策划徐里介绍，从最近几届来看，参加者最多的是美国和法国等欧美国家，所以展览不仅是对第三世界的国家产生影响，还已经影响到西方发达国家。正如媒体所言，北京双年展作为一部功率巨大的“引擎”，无疑会牵动未来中国乃至世界的美术格局，让艺术的感染力超越时空、跨越国界，“各美其美，美人之美，美美与共，天下大同”，其独特的影响力必将在延续不断的运作中持续凸显出来。——我们都是从古老的游牧时代一路走来，经历了丝路上的艰难与辛劳，也享受着成就与荣耀，磨砺出了开拓精神与坚韧性格，使友好与互通成为我们彼此心之所向。有了这个基础，“一带一路”必定行稳而至远，连接起属于我们的命运共同体。

“It was in September of the year 2002, 15 years ago and also here in NAMOC that the first Beijing International Art Biennale (BIAB) was presented to the world. In the past 15 years, BIAB has achieved an outstanding result in the focus of Chinese people and the people all over the world. As its initiator and undertaker in the process, I have witnessed its development and growth.” Liu Dawei, president of China Artists Association(CAA) reviewed BIAB at the opening ceremony of the 7thBIAB.This year is the 15thanniversary of BIAB. 15 years mean a gradual growth of nearly 5500 days for BIAB, an event under the mechanism of two-year frequency while this period is only a short instant in the stream of history. From September 24 till October 15, the 7thBIAB, jointly sponsored by CFLAC, Beijing Municipality and CAA, with the theme of “The Silk Road and World Civilizations”, was held at NAMOC in Beijing. Consisting of 601 artworks by 567 artists from 102 countries of five continents,including 190 artworks from China and 411 artworks from abroad,this exhibition marked a significant milestone in its 15 years of evolution, with extensive coverage of contemporary painting,sculpture, installation, video and other multi-medias.

Magnif i cent Chapter of Visual Arts

Over 600 artworks with varied styles have highlighted an unprecedented worldwide passion in echoing the theme “The Silk Road and World Civilization” of this BIAB. For the first time in BIAB’s history, the total number of its participant countries has surpassed 100 and BIAB has become the first fine art exhibition that affracts over 100 participant countries in the world so far,both of which indicate an increasing international reputation,influence and attraction of BIAB. For the first time, Central Africa,Guinea, Honduras, Maldives, Palestine, Panama, Seychelles,Tanzania and Yemen became the participant countries of BIAB.

“In the autumn of 2013, Chinese President Xi Jinping, through his observation of the trend of global development and in accordance with the tide of international cooperation, put forward the initiative of establishing the ‘Silk Road’ economic belt and 21stCentury Maritime Silk Road, ie, ‘B&R’ Initiative. In the past 4 years, gaining active support and extensive participation from over 100 countries and international organizations, this initiative has gradually become concrete action in the reality with well-seen achievements. In this May, ‘B&R’ International Cooperation Summit was successfully held in Beijing where distinguished guests from more than 100 countries gathered to discuss future development plans in an unprecedented way and with fruitful concensus.” LI Yi, executive vice president of CFLAC expressed, “The Silk Road Spirit will provide a more solid foundation and a more spacious platform for BIAB with powerful vitality, inclusiveness and reflectior of the times”.

Among the first to comprehend the essence of the “B&R”Initiative, Chinese artists have given a brilliant reply to the theme“The Silk Road and World Civilizations” with works extensive in subjects, diverse in forms and varied in techniques. “Under the brush of Chinese artists, be it a bright moon high above the ancient path vibrating with the sound of Sanskrit, or medical aid teams to Africa; be it the mystic Lamp Festival and Shehuo (a kind of folk performance during the Spring Festival) in Kushui County, or micro-life in today’s metropolises; be it “unfettered”and “symbiosis”, or high-speed trains across Eurasia; be it a compass, or a panorama of Maritime Silk Road, all tell the story of mutual exchange and common development as witnessed by the Silk Road, the most ancient and long-drawn road in the world. On the site of these works, the charm of ancient path intertwines with the vigor of the age, which generates a tempting aroma permeating into the sky of history, and then into people's hearts like a fresh wind. In comparison to traditional techniques of representation, it seems that the artists prefer to frame their works with cultural codes so that the overflowing symbols, metaphors and allegories may draw their audience into a realm of meditation and reverie where the Silk Road is turned into a profound national epic, and the inherent truths of the Silk Road unveil themselves one by one. In the remote Nomadic Age, the Chinese nation had already become the founder of international order, when the trials and tribulations as well as achievements and honors by and by molded a pioneering spirit and tenacious character in the Chinese people. It is on this basis that the Belt and Road Initiative is drawn, with steady and promising progress.” ZHANG Xiaoling, a domestic curator of BIAB commented.

What should be mentioned in particular was that the organizing committee this BIAB gathered some Chinese artists to complete two giant theme artworks within a limited time in order to make up for the possible vacancy of the large-scale “B&R” artworks.One is a 6-meter-long traditional Chinese painting A New Chapter of the Maritime Silk Road by ZHENG Baizhong and the other is a 8-meter-long joint production The New Chapter of the Silk Road by FENG Lumin and other three Chinese artists.

As for the participant artworks by foreign artists, their gala of excellent works has constituted a dazzling chapter of visual arts as well. Some are large-scale paintings with either magnificent landscapes of cultural sanctuaries in connection of the Silk Road or a unified atmosphere of integration and expansion in abstract presentation while others are tiny sketches of either romantic expressions or filmy beauty filled with poetic aftertaste. “Some artists employ a method similar to Montage which patch and put together the Eastern and Western backgrounds, sages or cultural symbols to strike their audience with a sense of vagueness and realness. Some remake classic pictures with slight embellishments for legendary effects. This BIAB shows many commendable points of artists in their selection and polishing of artistic languages. There are not only coexistence of realism and abstraction, but also meaningful attempts at symbolism, collage,cross-category fusion and those beyond the scope of easel art,including bold absorption of artistic and cultural elements of China.” DING Ning, a domestic curator of BIAB uttered. Those artworks from such turbulent countries along this ancient Silk Road as Yemen, Syria and Iraq are immersed with longing,expectation and dream for a peaceful development in the spirits of the Silk Road, which has deeply touched Chinese audiences.

In terms of manifold artistic expressions, a marked feature of the works on show is a mixture of realistic and romantic styles and coexistence of integration and difference. “Foreign works in previous BIABs inclined to be romantic and full of imagination,while domestic works in general tended to be realistic and comparatively lacking in imagination and romantic sense. In the 7thBIAB, there are more realistic depictions found in romantic foreign works, and more romantic elements in realistic domestic works. In other words, works both at home and abroad show a mixture of realistic and romantic styles, only the emphases differ.Compared to works in previous BIABs, foreign works in this BIAB have taken in more Chinese elements, and Chinese works more foreign ones. There is inclination of convergence. In the meantime, each retains its distinct local features and traditions.In between the tendencies of seeking common grounds and reserving differences has formed a huge space of development which has aroused artists’ imagination as inspiration for their artistic creation.” WANG Yong, a domestic curator of BIAB concluded.

A Powerful Engine of Fine Arts

Besides the theme exhibition,six special exhibitions, namely the “Special Exhibition of Contemporary Art of Georgia”,the “Special Exhibition of Contemporary Art of Greece”,the “Special Exhibition of Contemporary Art of Indonesia”,the “Special Exhibition of contemporary Art of Mongolia”,the “Tour of Art from Tintoretto to Lilanga” and the “Special Exhibition of Donated Artworks from Previous BIABs”, took place as scheduled. Brilliant masterpieces by Tintoretto and Dali, outstanding artworks by nearly 100 artists from Georgia,Greece, Indonesia and Mongolia as well as selected dozens of works among more than 500 donated pieces enabled the audiences to appreciate excellent chapters in the history of BIAB in all sessions.

“The spirits and subjects of the Silk Road have aroused enormous imagination and aesthetic inspiration that unceasingly evolves into artists’ practice of novel formality and language in arts. Moreover, the tendency of seeking common grounds and reserving differences is a huge space of development which gives rise to a splendid scene where the Eastern and Western arts integrate but each is unique on its own. It is safe to say that the works on exhibition themselves are the outcome of exchange and mutual learning among world civilizations, and that they are artistic expressions of the Eastern and Western civilizations in their mutual exchange and convergence on the theme of the Silk Road,” LIU Dawei commented. As Xenia Benivolski, an international curator of BIAB from Canada, held, the core of‘The Silk Road and World Civilizations” is the connection of the East and the West and thus by Silk Road we should focus on communications and mutual exchanges under the prerequisite of reciprocal focus and benefit as non-colonial communication.As the historical and current situations of the Silk Road always involve plentiful interesting topics, those in-depth stories of international friendship, national communication and cultural integration in the process of mutual negotiation, construction and sharing between the countries along the Silk Road can be painted in artworks. “Compared to the traditional representation approach, the participant artists in this BIAB seem to prefer to take the theme as a cultural token in their creations instead of mourning for the days of yore. The spirits and subjects of the Silk Road have aroused enormous imagination and aesthetic inspiration that unceasingly evolves into artists’ practice of novel formality and language in arts. The implication from the subsequent symbolism, metaphor and fable has brought the audience into boundless imagination where the Silk Road has become a giant and profound epic with narrations of its spirits one after another,” TAO Qin, a domestic curator of BIAB and deputy secretary general of CAA remarked.

For the audiences’ convenience, this BIAB designed some considerate details in particular such as size expansion of exhibits tags and Chinese-English captions for each exhibit. Moreover,some images of landscape, transportation such as camels along the Silk Road were printed on the covers of chairs in the rest area so that audiences could have a magic touch and interaction with those typical Silk Road expressions. In the meanwhile, an interesting game of “BIAB in My Eyes”, i. e, postal card made of mini photos, was created so that audiences could make an international postal card with the pictures they took in the venue of BIAB and send it worldwide, including “B&R” countries, so as to share BIAB with their remote friends.

今年又上帕米尔（中国画·纸本彩墨） 史国良Pamir Revisited (Ink and Color on Paper) by SHI Guoliang

“We gather today to showcase and communicate to our utmost while we bid goodbye tomorrow full of joy and friendship.” LI Yi, executive vice president of CFLAC concluded. Indeed, it has become an invariably touching scene of those 7 editions of BIAB in the past 15 years. As an institutionalized event, only continuity in BIAB is a true victory. It is only the legendary continuity of over a century that has endowed Venice Biennale with unparalleled power in discourse and choice in the global art arena. As XU Li, executive vice president and secretary general of CAA introduced, artists from such European and American countries as USA and France have become the majority among participants of the recent sessions of BIAB and therefore the influence of BIAB has reached the developed countries in the West as well as the developing countries. As acclaimed by some media, BIAB has evolved into a powerful engine that will enable artistic appeal to transcend time and boundary, and cause great change, in the fine arts layout of China and even the world. As Chinese aesthetics,among varied civilizations around the world, stress on artistic diversity as well as respect and harmony. its unique influence will continuously function in the ongoing process of BIAB.Having traveled since the ancient period of nomadism, undergone the hardship and toil all along the Silk Road, and enjoyed achievement and glory, Chinese people have established their own enterprising spirit and character of perseverance, and realized the common desire for friendship and mutual communications. On such a basis, “B&R” Initiative will witness a stable and sustainable development in connection with our common destiny community.

丝路舞者（雕塑）塔蒂阿娜·密特拉Dancer of the Silk Road (Sculpture) by Tatiana Mitra

佛朗哥-弗兰克-弗朗茨-弗朗西斯科-弗朗西斯（赤土陶器）彼得·贝文（选自“北京双年展历届捐赠作品特展”）Franco-Frank-Franz-Francisco-Francois (Terracotta) by Peter Bevan (from the Special Exhibition of Donated Artworks from Previous BIABs)