Artist presents otherwordly structures at exhibition

An installation by Ding Hao. [Photo provided to China Daily]

Ding Hao, 30, who works in Beijing and Wuhan, is an up-and-coming artist who creates many eye-catching installations featuring an intricate architectural structure. He uses wooden and iron plates to make fantastical works that look like heavenly castles and pavilions described in poems and tales.

He shows several these works at a current solo exhibition, titled Mansions Heading Toward the Sky, at the atrium of Beijing's Opposite House hotel until the end of the month.

The exhibition is part of a long-term collaboration between the hotel and Beijing's Red Gate Gallery, committed to presenting contemporary art and rotating works every three months.

The centerpiece of Ding's show is a 4.5-meter-high work, with the same title as the exhibition. By assembling dozens of ladders and pavilions, he presents a sophisticated structure that looks like an unstable tower connecting the earthy world with the heaven.

His works thrill viewers with not only their smart composition but also a solitude feeling that defines Eastern cultural traditions.