落脚燕郊 中国青年艺术家的理想与现实(下)

I was preparing to really do the poor, starving artist thing in Songzhuang, a well-established artist village about a half-hour away, said Li Tianqi, 24, another founder of On Space.

本来我是打算在宋庄做一个贫穷的、吃不饱饭的艺术家，On Space的另一位创始人、24岁的李天琦说。宋庄是距离这里约半小时车程的一个著名的艺术家村。

But why rent a tiny shack in Songzhuang when you can have a nice studio in Yanjiao?

如果你能在燕郊拥有一个很好的工作室，那你为什么要在宋庄租一个小棚子呢？

No one knows how many young artists now call Yanjiao home, though the On Space founders estimate that at least several hundred have space here.

没有人知道燕郊现在究竟住着多少年轻艺术家，不过On Space的创始人们估计，至少有几百名艺术家在这里设立了工作室。

Last year, the gallerists tried an informal census of the city’s artists, but ran out of time after conducting interviews with about 60 people.

去年，画廊老板们尝试对该市的艺术家进行一个非正式人口普查，但是在采访了约60人后，就没时间继续进行了。

Yanjiao has also caught the eye of established artists.

燕郊也吸引了一些著名艺术家，其中最出名的是高氏兄弟。

Its most famous tenants are the Gao Brothers, a pair of multimedia artists internationally known for their irreverent sculptures.

这对多媒体艺术家在国际上以不敬的雕塑闻名。

In 2013, they bought a former factory building and turned it into an airy studio complex they call Blessgo, which they use for making larger works.

2013年，他们买下一间厂房，改造成宽敞的工作室，称之为Blessgo，用来创作大型作品。

Referring to the quickly gentrifying 798 Art District in Beijing, Gao Zhen, the older brother, said in an interview, In 798, we still won’t be allowed to exhibit certain works of art, and you just can’t completely let go of your worries because even renting studios in 798 isn’t completely stable, with demolitions and relocations.

哥哥高真在采访中提到快速中产阶层化的北京798艺术区时说：在798，他们还是不允许我们展览某些作品，而且你没法完全放心，因为在798租工作室都不稳定，有拆迁问题等等。

The siblings still maintain a studio in the 798 district, but plan to eventually relocate entirely to Yanjiao.

兄弟俩在798艺术区依然拥有一间工作室，不过打算最终彻底搬到燕郊。

Most artists in Yanjiao work in more humble circumstances.

燕郊的大部分艺术家在更简朴的环境中工作。

Much of the city’s surplus of residential space takes the form of cheap, unfinished apartments called maopifang.

这座城市多余的住宅空间很多都是没有装修的廉价毛坯房，基本上就只有混凝土主体，

Little more than concrete shells, they are perfect for artists looking to create studios on a shoestring.

非常适合那些想以极低成本设立工作室的艺术家们。

Because of the dominance of residential space in Yanjiao, its atmosphere differs markedly from the gritty industrial hipness of Caochangdi or the more touristic 798, where cafes, boutiques and galleries have sprung up alongside artists’ studios.

由于燕郊以住宅为主，所以它的气氛与草场地粗犷的工业时髦气息或798更像景点的氛围迥然不同——798的艺术工作室周围涌现出很多咖啡馆、时装精品店和画廊。

In Yanjiao, virtually nothing comparable has appeared.

在燕郊，基本上没有此类事物。

But many of the Yanjiao artists have embraced its decidedly suburban aesthetic.

不过，燕郊的很多艺术家很喜欢这种纯粹的郊区美感。

Zhang Zhanzhan, a painter, has completely transformed his maopifang over the years, covering the concrete floors with whitewashed pine slats and the empty doorways with colored fabric.

这些年，画家张占占将自己的毛坯房进行了彻底改造，用粉刷成白色的松木板覆盖混凝土地板，用五彩斑斓的织物覆盖空空的门廊。

Pictures of his chic studio have been viewed by thousands of users on WeChat, a Chinese social media app.

他那时髦工作室的照片在中国社交媒体应用程序微信上得到了成千上万用户的浏览。

I once went to drop off some paintings at a Beijing gallery, and the person there asked me if I was the artist with the ‘Tokyo-style studio,’ he recalled.

有一次，我去北京送几幅画，有人问我，你是那个‘东京风格工作室’的艺术家吗？他回忆说。

Yanjiao’s days as an affordable outpost may be numbered.

燕郊作为负担得起的艺术家聚居点的日子可能也不多了。

Rents have more than tripled since the first artists moved in, mainly because of property speculation, and the number of unfinished maopifangs has dwindled.

从第一批艺术家入住到现在，租金已经涨了3倍多，主要是因为地产投机，也因为毛坯房的数量在逐渐减少。

Moreover, despite the city’s now solid reputation as an offshoot artistic community, Beijing’s big-city allure remains.

此外，尽管现在这座城市作为分支艺术社区的名声已经确立，但北京的大城市诱惑依然存在。

While a fresh wave of graduates from the capital’s art academies move into Yanjiao each summer, many older artists have already left.

尽管每年夏天都有新一批北京艺术院校的毕业生搬到燕郊，但是很多年长的艺术家已经离开。

Last year, On Space decided not to renew its lease, because most of its events are now held in collaboration with organizations in Beijing.

去年，On Space决定不再续签租约，因为现在它的大部分活动是和北京的一些组织联合举办的。

Zhang Yongji is going back to the capital to pursue a master’s degree.

张永基打算回首都攻读硕士学位。

This is a very temporary place, he said.

燕郊还是一个暂时停留的地方，他说，

We’re all here still hoping to someday make it in Beijing.

我们都还是想什么时候能在北京功成名就。