Ding Yi B. 1962

"In Ding Yi's works we can see the passing of the time which is a course of long, enduring, and monotonous toiling. His "Shi Shi" is an expression of controlling will. It needs no enthusiasm, no inspiration, no imagination, but only a habit, a habit of toiling. Its purpose is at the completion of a painting-with no mark of beginning and finishing. We fail to measure its centre and rim with our eyes. As for the making of this work, it requires a high psychic quality and stable hands for a same action repeated thousands of times. In this monotonous repetition, the marks by short strokes and a picture by the linking of the marks arise out of a void, gradually become clear, and will finally fill out that void."

From "Shi Shi" As A Mark Organization by Wu Liang (ShangHART, 2004)