David Chan Dragon s Incubator Art Wheelock Square

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1 Press Release February 2012 David Chan Dragon s Incubator Art Wheelock Square February 8th, 2012 Wheelock Square, owned by The Wharf (holding) Limited, is welcoming in the Chinese New Year with Dragon s Incubator, an exciting art exhibition co-organized with Hong Kong calligraphy artist David Chan. Visitors to Wheelock Square, located in Shanghai s central business district, will experience a fresh visual take on the theme of the Chinese dragon. The exhibition will serve to bolster the image of Wheelock Square as a center of international business, design and culture, and will help in positioning the center to be the first choice for such enterprises in Asia. Wheelock Square s Deputy Manager (Square Management) Mr. Liu says: 2012 is the Year of Dragon. It is also the 126th anniversary of the founding of The Wharf (holdings) Limited. To help celebrate this special year, Wheelock Square is collaborating with calligraphy artist David Chan to hold Dragon s Incubator art exhibition. The whole theme of the dragon has special meaning in We sincerely wish to bring to Shanghai a new cultural experience and offer our own contribution to the renaissance of traditional Chinese culture. (David Chan s Dragon Project Calligraphy Works)

2 David Chan s Chinese Renaissance : to revive Chinese calligraphy & art 2012 is the Year of the Dragon, inspired by the only mythological creature in the Chinese Zodiac. The dragon gleams in the misty clouds. It flies and dives, nurturing all things on the earth. In Chinese culture, the dragon represents man s unique relationship with heaven and earth. David Chan has developed these works so as to promote the culture of the dragon and to export Chinese culture and values to the world. The exhibition at Wheelock Square presents more than 40 works created by Chan, each displaying variations of the Chinese character dragon. The works offer insight into the Chinese view of nature and attitude towards life. They also demonstrate how Chinese characters are at the core of Chinese culture. Chinese characters are pictographs; both words and pictures at one time. Each character carries ancient Chinese views on life, nature and the universe. In order to bring about the Chinese Renaissance, according to Chan, we must therefore rediscover calligraphy and redefine it entirely. In other words, we should modernize calligraphy. David Chan has approached the rediscovery of calligraphy by integrating it with other modern art forms, namely painting and graphic design. The outcome is stunning. He lays out the design with meticulous care, making countless amendments, and executes only after thorough consideration and reflection. But when he creates his calligraphy, Chan s style becomes natural and carefree. At the opening ceremony, Chan demonstrated these masterful calligraphy skills before the public, winning high acclaim from all. ( Color I-Ching Fashion Show)

3 The Culture of the Dragon and I-Ching installation at Dragon s Incubator A dragon can fly high in the sky, and can also live modestly on earth. The dragon flies when it needs to save the world; it lives humbly when peace is on earth. It can be god-like or human-like. Like the dragon, I-Ching highlights the wisdom of adapting to one s circumstances. If to bring about the Chinese Renaissance requires rediscovering ancient wisdom through the study of ancient books, I-Ching must be the first book on the list to read. The uneducated majority in China s ancient past knew little about I-Ching s philosophy, so the book came to be used as a superstitious tool of Feng Shui and divination. In fact, I-Ching teaches us how to deal with the changes in nature and in our lives. Each of the 64 hexagrams of I-Ching includes the notions of heaven at the top, earth in the middle and men at the bottom. All changes are related to the interactions amongst these three elements. In ancient China, it was believed that there are 64 situations in our lives that must be faced, and therefore there are 64 hexagrams in I-Ching. Most importantly, I-Ching teaches us one key value: comply with heaven and conform to men, one will not suffer misfortune. During the opening ceremony, models wearing Color I-Ching dresses demonstrate a combination of old I-Ching culture and modern arts. Visitors who want to see more about Color I-Ching shows, you are warmly welcomed to Shanghai Times Square at Middle Huaihai Road to feel what the installation will bring to you. From the Wheelock Square location, David Chan s Dragon s Incubator exhibition will continue its journey towards at Shanghai Times Square, another landmark project under The Wharf (holdings) Ltd. In March, the Dragon's Incubation installation, which comprises of 64 five-foot tall bird cages and 64 colourful hexagram boxes, will be displayed at Shanghai Times Square. At that time, David Chan s Dragon Project series concept will be proudly displayed in full for all to appreciate. End

4 Reference: Wheelock Square Located on No.1717 East Nanjing Road, Wheelock Square is the perfect representation of style, prestige and quality in today s modern working environment. The building was developed by The Wharf (holdings) Limited and designed by New York s famous architecture firm Kohn Pederson Fox. It is approx. 270m in height, with 61 floors in which 50 floors are dedicated office space. Featuring simple yet refined symmetrical lines combined with subtle design elegance, Wheelock Square integrates environmentally-friendly aspects with state-of-the-art amenities to create sophisticated modern architecture with an astute awareness of urban design. In 2011 Wheelock Square was awarded third prize for 2011 Best CBD Centre by MIPIM Asia Awards. 网址 : The Wharf (holdings) Limited Founded in 1886, The Wharf (Holdings) Limited is a premier company with HK$281.8 billion of consolidated assets and a strategic focus on property and infrastructure in Hong Kong and the Mainland. It is a subsidiary of the Wheelock and Company Limited. For 125 years, "Building for Tomorrow" has been the mission for Wharf. Contributing to Wharf's presence in the Mainland are key port assets along the China coast, the most dynamic coast line in the world for cargo movement in the coming decades. Building for Tomorrow also extends to Wharf's corporate social responsibility. Under the "Business-in-Community" banner, the Group is committed to making a difference by promoting staff volunteerism, building a better Hong Kong and the sustainability of the community. For its stellar business performance, Wharf was presented by Yazhou Zhoukan the "Global Chinese Business 1000 Best Performance Awards" in Wharf has also been awarded "Caring Company" status by the Hong Kong Council of Social Service in recognition of its good corporate citizenship. 网址 :

5 David Chan David Chan is a well-known Hong Kong artist, specializing in the modernization of Chinese Calligraphy. Born in Hong Kong, where the Chinese meet and mingle with people from all around the world, Master David Chan has always felt deeply aware, challenged and inspired by the differences between Chinese and Western cultures. As an artist, Chan has managed to change the very form of Chinese calligraphy, a form that has been well-established for the past thousand years. Moving away from the traditional framework, he breaks free of rules and guidelines. Such dramatic changes may appear unintentional or without, yet Chan has executed strict discipline and maintained respect for the old forms but in his own way. Master David Chan has held his contemporary calligraphy exhibition, The Stage of A Hundred Tastes in Shanghai in October 2007 and Wei Tao in Hong Kong in The exhibition raised huge public awareness.