China: Beijing sculpture brings to life ancient beasts based on traditional legends

Subscribe to our channel Chinese artist Qiu Qijing has dedicated his time to recreating mythical creatures described in the ancient Chinese legend The Classic of Mountains and Seas, as seen at his warehouse in Huairou District, Beijing, on Friday. The peculiarly shaped beasts could be seen towering over Qiu, who added the final touches of colour to one using a paintbrush, with his warehouse housing many of the 58 sculptures created by him and his team. Qiu explained how his aim was to abandon western realism when creating the sculpture, instead wanting to bring to life traditional Chinese culture. My goal is to present these creatures from ancient texts in a way that symbolises the values of modern society, said Qiu. Having sculpted since the age of six, Qiu began to read The Classic of Mountains and Seas carefully in 2012, before deciding to combine his interest in classical beasts with his interest in sculpting. Since then, he and a dedicated team of artists have spent