Few days ago, Laura Bee sent me this photo by a Chinese artist called Xu Bing. Attached photo was taken on one of Xu’s classes titled: Square Calligraphy Classroom. The intention of this installation was to simulate a classroom-like setting, in a gallery or museum space. Desks are arranged with small containers of ink, brushes and a copybook with instructions on the basic principles of New English Calligraphy, a writing system invented and designed by the artist.
As people attempt to recognize and write these words, some of the thinking patterns that have been ingrained in them since they learned to read are challenged. It is the artists’ belief that people must have their routine thinking attacked in this way. While undergoing this process of estrangement and re-familiarization with one’s written language, the audience is reminded that the sensation of distance between other systems of language and one’s own is largely self-induced. That being said, if you look closely you’ll find the below characters not so hard to read…
A video titled ”Elementary Square-Word Calligraphy Instruction,” was played on a monitor during the exhibition, capturing the audience’s attention and inviting them to participate in the class. Once they were seated at the desks, the audience was instructed to take up their brushes and the lesson in New English Calligraphy begins.
Where is the ilussion?
the simbles say “little bo peep little bo peep has lost her sheep”
the right hand bottom corner, the very bottom has the letters “a,n,c” the one above it says “and”
the “anc” makes “can”
little bo peep has lost her sheep……
Wow..
that’s really cool, altough i didn’t get some of the words on the left poster.
Left side??? Fly find your failinit yeld. No clue. But, cool.
Neat!
The second page says little bo peep little bo beep has lost her sheep…the first one seems a bit harder.
the characters are words.
not that hard to spot.
Great! Mind-opening, it took me longer to read the left ones.
It´s look like chinese writing, but it is still english…nice one…
if you look at some of it,
you can see english
i.e. top right of #2 says HER, the next one down says SHEEP
Chinese is read going downwards instead of left to right, it’s read from top to bottom…..the words are, fly find four failing:.:.: yielding applying introduction together:.:.:impossible forgotten practice experience…..the next page reads, little bo peep, little bo peep, has lost her sheep, and can….that’s where it ends. :)
some of these are hard to read, but nice work :D
cool! :) Good ole Mother Goose. The 2nd one’s a lost simpler to read than the first page though….
Very nice. I like!
A clue. The very first instance in the upper left corner indicates the ability to be airborne.
Wow, that is neat. When I first saw it, I just assumed it was chinese lettering, then I looked closer.
Mathias Courbois, these aren’t real Chinese letters, those are European letters :D
The letters look to be Chinese, but each character is a word in English letters. For example, on the left page, the top left one is “fly” and the bottom right one is “experience”.
Little bo peep has lost her sheep and . . .
That was really cool, it took me so long to decipher the left one though!
I am gonna say the illusion is the fact that I don’t know Chinese but I see a segment of Little Bo Peep childrens story on the right hand side :D
The “Illusion” is that all of the “Chinese Characters” are actually words written in english, but made to look like a single chinese character. The one on the top left is the word “fly” for instance. You can probably figure out the rest from there.
now I can spot all of them… really great
How in the world does anyone lose a flock of sheep? Sounds like just plain carelessness to me.
Little bo peep, little bo peep has lost her sheep and can
i can’t get the left side…
that was cute
The Second Page reads:(reading from top to below)
” Little bo peep Little bo peep lost her sheep
and can”
Got to say Very GOOOD Sheep well (opps sleep well)
Thanks Easy Spotter. Now mind is bent back into shape.
I’m still amazed with the words “practice”, “introduction” and “forgotten”.
One left to ‘translate’… (Left side. 2,4)
(Ops! I meant, left side 4,2)
E eu acho que significa junto…
well every one gets the right side pretty ez but as for the left its a lil harder i got most the words firgured out for the most part, reading from top to bottem here are the words but unfotunatly it don’t seem to be a sentace just random words idk it don’t make sence to me maybe some one eles can make sence out of it.
fly
find
four
falling <-G's look very strange…..
i4elding <-couldn't get this word
appi4ing <- couldn't get this word
introduction
together
impossible
forgotten
practice
expirence
left side don’t make sence…think its just random words(readin from top to bottem)
fly
find
four
falling <- notice G's look weird
i4elding <-some one figure out what a 4 is?
appi4ing <- again a 4???
introduction
together
impossible
forgotten
practice
expirence
I think the first one is just a collection of words without structure:
fly
find
four
failing
yielding
appiring
introduction
together
impossible
forgotten
practice
experience
The second one’s a bit more sensible, though “Little Bo Peep” is repeated for some reason.
Oops, meant to put “applying” for the 6th word.
did she find them? i need to know how to rest of the story goes!!!!!
I have rarely seen such a good illusion!
If you dont know all the worlds, scroll to the middle of the comments, and read the comment of “Easy spotter”, he has all words in a row :]
the left side:
fly find four falliing yielding applying introduction together impossible forgotten practice experience
left page, from left going down and so on:
fly
find
four
failing
yielding
applying
introduction
together
impossible
forgotten
practice
experience
On the left, it’s just words:
fly, find, four, falling, yielding, applying, introduction, together, impossible, forgotten, practice, experience
Very Cool! ^_^
(Spoiler)
L side:
Fly, Find, Four, Falling, Yielding, Applying, Introduction, Together, Impossible, Forgotten, Practice, Experience.
R side:
Little, Bo, Peep, Little, Bo, Peep, Has, Lost, Her, Sheep, And, Can.
On the left:
Fly Find Four Falling
Yielding Applying Introduction Together
Impossible Forgotten Practice Experience
Oh right, now I see it… Pretty cool!
fly yielding impossible
find applying forgotten
four introduction practice
failing together experience
these are the first words
i dont get why four is there tho
The left side says (from top to bottom, going from the left column to the right):
fly find four failing yielding applying introduction together impossible forgotten practice experience
no idea what it means though..
On the left I can read
Fly find four failing
Yielding applying introduction together
Impossible forgotten practice experience
Wo fa shing zhe shi hen li chi qui.
PUt this in traslator. It mean s i tink this is really weird.
that’s so interesting :D
I love puzzles…….Thanks, it was fun!!!!!
fly yielding impossible
find applying forgotten
four introduction practice
failing together experience
little bo her
bo peep sheep
peep has and
little lost can
SO DARN EASY
L SIDE
FLY
FIND
FOUR
FALLING
YIELDING
APPLYING
INTRODUCTION
TOGETHER
IMPOSSIBLE
FORGOTTEN
PRACTICE
EXPERIENCE
R SIDE
LITTLE
BO
PEEP
LITTLE
BO
PEEP
HAS
LOST
HER
SHEEP
AND
CAN
she lost her sheep, and she can lose her sheep?
oooooooh
Very nice indeed. :) I have a hard time reading some of them though.
this is really cool
It says
left side
FLY
FIND
FOUR
FALLING
YIELDING
APPLYING
INTRODUCTION
TOGETHER
IMPOSSIBLE
FORGOTTEN
PRACTICE
EXPERIENCE
Right Side so easy
LITTLE
BO
PEEP
LITTLE
BO
PEEP
HAS
LOST
HER
SHEEP
AND
CAN
This looks like some penmanship book from asia
I love the art of calligraphy, and it is an art I have tried to do it but like of lost it. I must take it up again, its very relaxing.
an illusion? i hav no idea wot it is!!!
its little bo peep!
WAIT is this real or did someone just make it up?!
oh i had to do that for ART last year, we had to write our names in that calligraphy. Everyone acutally though it was normal calligraphy until we were given the words that they made up…
I see it. …..How?
its probably can for the “nac”
It’s really hard for me because I’m Chinese and I can read it. So I can’t see the letters. Oh well. Now I see it because I read the comments.