2015年CRI Art Meets Architecture as Chinese Installation Sets Sail on the Thames River in London（在线收听）

Artist Xiang Yang created 'Ultra Architecture' as a tribute to his childhood home. It's now to encounter the British capital's historic monuments.

Chugging along London's River Thames - between the sightseeing cruises and transport vessels - is an artistic tribute to architecture.

The work of upcoming Chinese artist Xiang Yang, known as 'Ultra Architecture' – has traveled halfway round the world, from Tianjin, China before hitting the British capital.

It's the artist's first international solo exhibition.

Artist Xiang Yang says the artwork is a visual representation of the interaction between Chinese and western philosophy, art and architecture.

"I want to open a door from the Chinese culture and let it merge into the contemporary concepts of architecture."

Xiang Yang's work combines materials that are symbols of traditional Chinese culture.

He works with antique wooden furniture, colored silks and ink paintings.

He has combined these elements into a large-scale sculptural installations which explore modern China's relationship with its past.

Xiang was raised in a wooden house in China before moving to the United States.

The artist says his latest work is a tribute to this lost childhood home.

"The original inspiration of the piece comes from my childhood when I had a wooden house just like this. It was torn down because of the demand from the reconstruction of China. I think what is happening in China today is to destroy our memory of the past. And for me the culture has become dream composed of broken pieces which are travelling with me and never vanished."

2015 has been designated as the Year of Cultural exchange between the UK and China.

Earlier this year, several prominent British artists were invited to exhibit their works in China.

Alex Gao, Director of the renowned Today Art Museum in Beijing says artistic exchanges between the two countries have increased in recent years.

"Because this year is the China-UK Cultural exchange year and in the first half of this year we saw many British artists coming to China, and we hope that in the second half of the year we can see many Chinese artists display their works in the UK."

As business, travel and tourism between Beijing and London increases, Xiang Yang's work is intended to be a symbol of east meeting west.

'Ultra Architecture' by Xiang Yang will be on show on a floating pontoon at London's St. Katharine Docks until October 28.

Permanent collections of Xiang Yang's work are on show at the National Art Museum of China and the Today Art Museum in Beijing's famous 798 Art district.

For CRI I'm Poornima Weeerasekara.