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Dictionary Series: Water

Qiu Zhijie

Asian Art

The Beijing-based artist Qiu Zhijie has deconstructed the traditional art form of calligraphy, assessing the shapes and impact of writing and the way that calligraphy informs Chinese cultural and political identity. In his Dictionary Series, he refers to a treatise from the second century C.E. that was one of the earliest attempts to explain the logic of the Chinese writing system. The dictionary introduced the idea of “radicals,” basic written forms that are building blocks for more complex characters and concepts. Here, the artist writes, rewrites, and combines the radical for “water,” using wet ink and a long, vertical format that suggests a waterfall so that the characters evoke and enact their meaning.
MEDIUM Ink on paper
DATES 2001
DIMENSIONS image: 70 7/8 x 11 in. (180 x 27.9 cm) mounted on silk: 80 3/4 x 11 3/4 in. (205.1 x 29.8 cm), as it hangs (including rolls)  (show scale)
COLLECTIONS Asian Art
ACCESSION NUMBER 2014.62.2
CREDIT LINE Gift of David Solo
MUSEUM LOCATION This item is not on view
CAPTION Qiu Zhijie (Chinese). Dictionary Series: Water, 2001. Ink on paper, image: 70 7/8 x 11 in. (180 x 27.9 cm). Brooklyn Museum, Gift of David Solo, 2014.62.2. © artist or artist's estate (Photo: , 2014.62.2_PS9.jpg)
IMAGE overall, 2014.62.2_PS9.jpg., 2019
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RIGHTS STATEMENT © Qiu Zhijie
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Qiu Zhijie (Chinese). <em>Dictionary Series: Water</em>, 2001. Ink on paper, image: 70 7/8 x 11 in. (180 x 27.9 cm). Brooklyn Museum, Gift of David Solo, 2014.62.2. © artist or artist's estate (Photo: , 2014.62.2_PS9.jpg)