Lijiang Studio is an artists residency and much more. Their projects have a connection with local village residents, from the family that cooks meals and shares living quarters, to the artwork produced by international & Chinese artists.
I visited the studio today to talk to Lisa Li about the mural projects she’s been coordinating there. Just in time – tomorrow she’s headed up to Kunming to work on a book documenting the Lijiang Studio murals.
Here’s the first thing you see as you walk in the gate: a giant green phallic symbol out of X-tra large beer bottles.
The painting studio, lit by skylights from the upper floor. See the glass ceiling above the paintings?
Decorative pool w/sculpture
An installation of chillies next to the kitchen. Studio residents just pluck them out from the glass panels and use them as necessary.
Wood-burning stove in the office to keep warm during cold winters
Lijiang Old Town is saturated with millions of tourists a year; in the evenings, local culture is portrayed in caricature, with restaurant workers calling for tourists along Lijiang’s “Pub Street”, while wearing polyester versions of traditional clothes. [It makes Siem Reap/Angkor Wat look calm by comparison.]
Sculpture at the studio
Nice doorway to the communal toilets
Detail of traditional Naxi roof
Carved wooden doors to the kitchen, the bats are for good luck
The office w/glass floor. Adds light and space.
Gateway to the cornfields
Entrance gate
Art in concrete
Mural around the corner from the studio
Another mural, done by a talented Chinese artist
A visit to Lijiang Studio: a great way to get a feel for the countryside surrounding Lijiang town, and a chance to see some experimental art too.
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Lijiang gets 8 million visitors a year.
Yes, it is ‘touristy’ but tourism is also helping retain elements of local cultures – Naxi, Mosuo, Yi – and also providing better incomes for young people – particularly women – from outlying villages.
What a beautiful place! And I love all the bats!!!
Happysheep, thx for writing; I’m happy to receive helpful comments. I read many different figures quoted for Lijiang tourism, and as you do, see some economic benefits to tourism – after all, that’s technically what I’m doing here for 2 months, according to my visa.
Btw, I see you’ve been based in the region for awhile. do you have any contacts for papermakers? I’d like to order some large-format handmade paper, and would rather do it from individuals rather than the stuff sold in the shops around Lijiang.
E – come on over to China sometime. You’ll see bats everywhere…my favorite dishes from HK are our blue & white “bat bowls”.