Tennis star Wu Yibing promotes Chinese art at US Open

As Chinese tennis star Wu Yibing wowed the world in the past week with his historic runs in New York at the US Open, a tournament that dates back to 1881, the medallion on his orange jersey’s left sleeve also attracted a lot of attention.

Unlike usual sponsor logos, Yibing’s medallion showcases Chinese ink painter Xu Lei’s group painting The Variations of Chalk Cliffs of Ruegen. Xu’s group painting is currently representing China’s contemporary art at the Chinese Pavilion of the 59th Venice Biennale and is from a collection of the X Museum based in Beijing.

The medallion on Wu’s jersey is the brainchild of the Beijing museum’s new public art project X Mobile Museum, which aims to bring art out of the museum and connect with a wider audience.

“We are thrilled to have this crossover collaboration with Wu Yibing, who has been on top of his game since recovering from his injuries,” said Huang Xufu, X Museum’s co-founder and director.