Synopsis

Some years before 1995, a group of young artists seeking creative freedom moved to villages in the west suburbs of Beijing, where there were lakes, woods, and the ruins of the Winter Palace. These artists sold their paintings or other craft products to make a living. Their work was rebellious and rejected traditional aesthetics, which attracted the attention of the local authorities. Rumours circulated that these authorities would expel the artists from the villages; this finally became reality in the spring of 1995. This film tells the story of these artists in the spring of 1995 and the winter that followed.