http://www.hicenter.cn/columns_detail.asp?id=436042
Artist finds success transforming scrap into statues
Dec 23, 2013 | Author: Wu Huixin
Zhou Feng tries to dismantle a discarded auto at his garage studio in Hangzhou.
Zhou Feng's art piece, featuring dragon, made up of discarded auto parts.
Zhou Feng's art piece, featuring Transformer figure, made up of discarded auto parts.
When 50-year-old Zhou Feng sees scrap auto parts, he envisions
stylish robot-like statues, “Transformer” figures and other beings
created by his own hands.
One of his greatest works was a robot measuring 13.8 meters high and weighing 23.8 tons. It was made from two discarded fire trucks and was listed by the World Record Association of Hong Kong as the “first fire engine device sculpture in the world.”
Zhou, a Hangzhou native, has created numerous works over seven years. For him, discarded auto parts are perfect for his statues.
“Most people were pessimistic about the future of parts assembly art. Honestly speaking, when I first started my business, I didn’t expect that I could keep going for so many years,” Zhou says.
Zhou graduated from Hangzhou’s highly ranked China Academy of Art. The professional training made it easier for him to start designing and making robot-like figures.
First, he does freehand sketches on paper and then models them in clay before starting on the sculpture.
During the sculpting process, Zhou has to cut and weld metal materials while elevated on a scaffold. The electronic welding and cutting machines often leave him with small cuts on exposed areas of his hands and ankles.
Zhou’s first three works caught the eyes of a Zhejiang entrepreneur, Xu Aiqiao, who showed great interest in such art form and invested 200,000 yuan (US$32,927) in Zhou’s business. With Xu’s financial support, Zhou was able to dedicate himself fully to his work.
Zhou’s sculptures have appeared in exhibitions at the Beijing Museum of Natural History and Huzhou Museum in Zhejiang Province, as well as exhibitions in Hangzhou.
Zhou says he doesn’t set a fixed price for his works, though his small works go for a minimum of about 10,000 yuan and large ones are at least 50,000 to 60,000 yuan.
“If someone buys my work, that means he thinks highly of me and my art, then I’ll sell the piece at the price offered by the buyer,” says Zhou. The robot listed by World Record Association of Hong Kong was purchased by a company for 400,000 yuan.
Five years ago, Zhou moved his studio to Huachi Garage on Dongxin Road to make it easier to obtain and store scrap auto parts. It takes him 50,000 yuan annually to purchase the scrap he needs.
People working at the garage are accustomed to seeing Zhou’s Transformer figures looming 6 to 7 meters tall in front of his studio.
Just like the mechanics at the garage, Zhou wears a welding helmet and dirty overalls, cutting and bonding scrap steel every day. The studio is not luxurious — it was built with iron sheets, no air conditioning, and there are plenty of grease stains.
However, the surroundings don’t dampen his passion for the art. He’s an admitted workaholic and insists on creating his art no matter the season or weather. It takes him just 10 days to finish a large Transformer figure.
Last year, Zhou worked with Hangzhou Environmental Group to create a 10-meter-high Transformer with a variety of scrap, including old gas cylinders and plastic bottles. It was named Hercules and was erected at Tianziling Landfill, conveying a message of environmental protection.
Zhou expresses the importance of recycling through his works. He considers that any significant parts assembly art piece must meet three conditions: The raw materials must be common waste material; the works should be infused with the creator’s emotion; and the finished work should be stationed in the proper environment.
“The Transformer should be put in a museum, an art academy or a landfill; it’s not fit for a teahouse,” he says.
Zhou is now focusing on welding an enormous horse, because next year is the Chinese Year of the Horse. The horse’s flowing mane and its powerful muscles are expected, as usual, to be things of beauty sculpted out of scrap.
One of his greatest works was a robot measuring 13.8 meters high and weighing 23.8 tons. It was made from two discarded fire trucks and was listed by the World Record Association of Hong Kong as the “first fire engine device sculpture in the world.”
Zhou, a Hangzhou native, has created numerous works over seven years. For him, discarded auto parts are perfect for his statues.
“Most people were pessimistic about the future of parts assembly art. Honestly speaking, when I first started my business, I didn’t expect that I could keep going for so many years,” Zhou says.
Zhou graduated from Hangzhou’s highly ranked China Academy of Art. The professional training made it easier for him to start designing and making robot-like figures.
First, he does freehand sketches on paper and then models them in clay before starting on the sculpture.
During the sculpting process, Zhou has to cut and weld metal materials while elevated on a scaffold. The electronic welding and cutting machines often leave him with small cuts on exposed areas of his hands and ankles.
Zhou’s first three works caught the eyes of a Zhejiang entrepreneur, Xu Aiqiao, who showed great interest in such art form and invested 200,000 yuan (US$32,927) in Zhou’s business. With Xu’s financial support, Zhou was able to dedicate himself fully to his work.
Zhou’s sculptures have appeared in exhibitions at the Beijing Museum of Natural History and Huzhou Museum in Zhejiang Province, as well as exhibitions in Hangzhou.
Zhou says he doesn’t set a fixed price for his works, though his small works go for a minimum of about 10,000 yuan and large ones are at least 50,000 to 60,000 yuan.
“If someone buys my work, that means he thinks highly of me and my art, then I’ll sell the piece at the price offered by the buyer,” says Zhou. The robot listed by World Record Association of Hong Kong was purchased by a company for 400,000 yuan.
Five years ago, Zhou moved his studio to Huachi Garage on Dongxin Road to make it easier to obtain and store scrap auto parts. It takes him 50,000 yuan annually to purchase the scrap he needs.
People working at the garage are accustomed to seeing Zhou’s Transformer figures looming 6 to 7 meters tall in front of his studio.
Just like the mechanics at the garage, Zhou wears a welding helmet and dirty overalls, cutting and bonding scrap steel every day. The studio is not luxurious — it was built with iron sheets, no air conditioning, and there are plenty of grease stains.
However, the surroundings don’t dampen his passion for the art. He’s an admitted workaholic and insists on creating his art no matter the season or weather. It takes him just 10 days to finish a large Transformer figure.
Last year, Zhou worked with Hangzhou Environmental Group to create a 10-meter-high Transformer with a variety of scrap, including old gas cylinders and plastic bottles. It was named Hercules and was erected at Tianziling Landfill, conveying a message of environmental protection.
Zhou expresses the importance of recycling through his works. He considers that any significant parts assembly art piece must meet three conditions: The raw materials must be common waste material; the works should be infused with the creator’s emotion; and the finished work should be stationed in the proper environment.
“The Transformer should be put in a museum, an art academy or a landfill; it’s not fit for a teahouse,” he says.
Zhou is now focusing on welding an enormous horse, because next year is the Chinese Year of the Horse. The horse’s flowing mane and its powerful muscles are expected, as usual, to be things of beauty sculpted out of scrap.
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