我在长城的墙下。

　　见证一场穿梭时空的传说。

　　虽然“穿越长城”的本领，超级魔术大师科波菲尔老早已经当众成功演出;但现在不止要穿越长城，还要穿越时空的将古今人物汇集在一块，这不仅是项创举，简直是匪夷所思。

　　被邀请来的人很多，据说都是各界特立独行的人物;大伙聚在一起也不喧闹，因为“谈话会”邀请卡上写明：与千古风流人物话家常，请先多看少说，共同见证历史的传奇。

　　时间是傍晚，地点是平遥县的瓮城墙下。

　　深秋的午后，凉意袭人，天色暗的很快，为这场穿墙而出的会面，平添几分神奇。

　　每位到场的嘉宾个个充满期待：根据事前的状况说明，不管是稗官野史，戏曲角色还是历史名角，古往今来，只要曾经引领潮流，造成时势，成就传奇的过往人物，今晚均有机会，穿墙而出，同时与大伙见面。

　　墙，自来就是一道屏障，一种阻隔。在中国文学意象上，往往代表传统礼教的藩篱，是一项约束，一则必须严加遵守的典范。

　　今天这场超越时空的见面会，选在中国最著名的古城墙---长城墙脚下举行，意义非凡。

　　我不禁神游：那千里走单骑的关云长，过五关斩六将，何等义薄云天、神威盖世。

　　一转念，牡丹亭下”为情还魂”的杜丽娘，游园惊梦，大胆示爱，谱成一段千古奇情。

　　当然金瓶梅中的几位要角，今晚如能现身和当今女性主义者聊聊，一定相当有趣。

　　一会儿脑海里又浮现历史上的暴君秦始皇好像欲言又止;时间急转而下，五四运动健将们个个雄姿英发，……呵！古今人物欢聚一堂，在历史的洪流里，这样的境遇，一世难得亲逢一回。

　　那一夜相见欢，说不尽，道不完，直至破晓时分，灰飞湮灭，仿佛梦境一场。

　　那一夜已经无法再现，因为在那不久的新华网上有一则新闻报道：

　　17日下午2点30分左右，平遥古城南门瓮城外侧东部一段东西长17.3米、厚3米（总厚度5米）、高10米的城墙突然垮塌，上千块青砖落地，据悉这是古城被评为世界文化遗产后第一次出现的大面积坍塌。

　　那一夜也没有人能说分明;直到最近我从吕鹏的作品里，隐约找回那段传奇的场景：

　　吕鹏，中国当代“东方想象”代表艺术家之一，喜欢运用墙为背景，将古今人物、图象一起并列;超越时空，象征意味浓厚。

　　穿墙而过，并不是要彰显”今是昨非”，也无意”以古非今”，只是在穿越既定的教条成见之后，重新褒贬人物、审视价值，引人更多的想象与省思。

　　吕鹏，用艺术描绘了穿越时空古今人物大会合的拼图，见证一段意象杂陈的当代传奇。

图：吕鹏 《穿墙而过之三》 布面丙烯 2006年 130*130cm

Through the Wall, and the Implicated Myth: On Lu Peng's collage of images

By Y. F. Chen

　　I stood at the foot of the Great Wall.

　　I witnessed a legend of time and space travelling.

　　It is true that the super magician David Copperfield has demonstrated his ability to "walk through" the Great Wall. But here we are talking about a lot more than "walking through' the Great Wall. We are talking about "walking through" time and space and in the process gathering together characters. That is a not just extraordinary. It is unthinkable!

　　There were unique characters from all walks of life on the invitation list. They were not rowdy when they turned up, because it was clearly stated on the invitation card that this was an occasion to have a casual chat with distinguished historical people. See more, talk less. Witness a legend of history.

　　Time: After nightfall

　　Location: At the city walls of Pingyao

　　It was a cool autumn afternoon. The sky darkened quickly, adding a touch of mystery to this special occasion.

　　Everyone present was excited with expectation. According to information available beforehand, anyone who was of historical importance - be it in the form of anecdotal or researched history - was invited to "walk through the wall' and gather together for this occasion.

　　The wall is a barrier, a blockade. It usually symbolises the constraints of social norms - a standard that demands to be upheld.

　　The fact that this meeting through the wall of space and time was held at the foot of the Great Wall - China's most famous old wall - is significant.

　　Seeing all these illustrious people, I could not help but allow my thoughts to wander. How awe-inspiring and majestic was general Guan Yunchang - who rode alone for thousands of miles and defeated all enemies along the way. And alongside him, there was Du Liniang from the opera Peony Pavilion - who was brave enough to break social constraints in order to express her feelings, and later rose from the grave to reunite with her lover. And of course, it would be very interesting if the key figures in the novel The Plum in the Golden Vase could show up and have a chat with today's feminists. A while later, the image of the tyrant First Emperor Qin popped into my head, appearing hesitant as to whether to speak or not. Then time winds fast forward, and I can see the leaders in the May Forth Movement looking heroic and impressive…… Ah! It is indeed an experience of a lifetime to have all the historical figures together like this!

　　That evening, they talked and talked till dawn. It was almost like a dream.

　　The occasion could not be repeated though, because later it appeared on the Xinhua News that,

　　At around two thirty in the afternoon on the 17th, a stretch of city wall near the South Gate of Pingyao - measuring 3 metres in thickness (total thickness of the wall is 5 metres) and spanning 17.3 metres across - suddenly collapsed. Thousands of slabs of blue brick fell to the ground. This was the first major collapse of the wall since it became listed as a UNESCO World Heritage site.

　　No one could describe that evening. At least not until recently when I saw Lu Peng's work, in which the memory of that legendary occasion seems to emerge:

　　Lu Peng is a key artist of China's contemporary "Oriental Imagination" group. He likes to use walls as a backdrop for the collage of images and figures from different times. The traversing of space and time in his works carries strong symbolic significance.

　　It is not the intention of the Through the Wall series to show the falsity of either the past or the present. Instead it tries to unleash our imagination and create more room for reflection by usurping stereotypes and prejudices and re-evaluating history.

　　Lu Peng's art depicts jumbled scenes where people from different time and space meet - a testimony to a contemporary legend that is rich in both meanings and images.

Lu Peng: Through the Wall 3, acrylic on canvas, 2006. 130*130cm.

作者：Y.F.CHEN