Xinkaipu, Heishipu and Datuopu were originally the names of the ancient posts from Changsha to Xiangtan. Usually, there would be a post for each 10 miles, and these three posts were just 5 kilometers away from each other. Gradually, the three ancient posts were evolved into the synonym of the names of the place that covers a five-mile radius. Later on, with the pace of urbanization accelerated, townships and suburbs were incorporated into urban planning, and the names of the three ancient posts became official names of streets and communities. Urbanization has changed the function of land and formed a new mechanism. It has also changed people's lifestyle  and shaped the character of contemporary Changsha people. 

​

Times have passed and circumstances have changed: the ancient posts  now no longer exist, replaced by railways and highways; the former wilderness is now filled with tall buildings, bridges leap across the wide Xiangjiang River; buildings are scattered and streets are bustling......These people, events, and things involved in the process of urbanization has formed a image that intertwines time and space. Xu Hongxiang and his family, friends, and relatives were all in this image and become a part of the development of present Changsha.. Those people working in the fields in his childhood were his grandpa, grandma, and neighbors; those early businessmen were his fathers and elder generations; and his childhood friends also live in the present Changsha, which has been fully urbanized. Only the names of Xinkaipu, Heishipu and Datuopu remain unchanged. The three place names that Xu is familiar with will be kept for long, appearing in the city’s maps, signboards, and subway stations. They are the imprint of the change of dynasties in ancient Changsha and the witness of the urbanization of new China.

​

Xu Hongxiang was born in Changsha, Hunan Province in 1984, and the three places aforementioned have been closely related to the path of his growing up. Xinkaipu is where he lived as a child and carries almost all of his childhood memories. 5 kilometers away is Heishipu, where he launched a temporary studio in 2020. Further south leads to Datuopu, where he currently lives after returning to Changsha. The three place names are like a series of clasps that connect the past and present of Changsha, as well as connect Xu Hongxiang's memories and the reality. Describing his own experience and thinking in a visual way, Xu Hongxiang has finally collected them into an exhibition to present to the audience. Xu is at the same time a creator and an observer, a personal witness and an objective describer of the city's transformation. His works depict reality but also detached from reality.

​

 Memory, fantasy, dream, and reality intertwine with each other under the changes of time and space, finally evolving into the images of Xu Hongxiang.