Those who live between reality and ideal life
- By Zhuang Chen
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E-mail China.org.cn, July 1, 2014
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Empty beer cans serve as the doorbell in artist Yang Yida's courtyard. [Photo by Zhuang Chen] |
Like Tao, Yang prefers the low cost of living in Songzhuang versus that of the bustling downtown area. The 40-year-old curator and painter has called Songzhuang home for the past 12 years. The village not only provides a creative outlet for him, but also allows him the freedom to work closer with nature, something he would not have been able to do in the city.
"I plant tomato, cucumber, eggplant and other vegetables on this land so that I can eat fresh veggies every day," he said.
As the number of artists grew, so too did Songzhuang's fame. Soon, the village was attracting tourists and investors alike. The cost of rent rose in 2011, the first time in more than eight years.
"The rent for my workroom was 20,000 yuan in 2009. It increased to 40,000 in 2014," said Liu Luxi, an oil painter who teaches at the Art Academy of Three Gorges University.
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