We Do Not Dream Alone

Duration: July 19, 2021 — July 25, 2021

Time: 6:02:15 AM to 23:02:15 PM, 5 seconds/ time slot

Venue: 1560 Braodway, Times Square, NYC

For one of the Times Square billboards, Xu Bing has created a special public art installation titled We Do Not Dream Alone featuring his Square Word Calligraphy. The calligraphy image appears for five seconds each time slot from 6:02:15 AM to 23:02:15 PM throughout the day, and the artwork was on view from July 19 through July 25, 2021. We Do Not Dream Alone is inspired by the lyrics of John Lennon's song, Imagine. In Square Word Calligraphy, Xu Bing designs a writing system in which English words resemble Chinese characters. Despite its Eastern art form, the calligraphy is legible to a Western audience. In this coalescence of languages and cultures, Square Word Calligraphy stands as a unique script breaking through the boundaries of cultures and human cognition.