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Allen, 57 years old, is from Zhejiang.

It has the artistic style of George Lam and Tsui Hark.

In the eyes of his daughter Amber, he is a cool dad who never spoils the fun.

He never complains when traveling with his daughter.

She fully cooperated with Harvard graduate to do self-media and shoot vlogs.

Nor do they urge marriage or childbearing.

Amber visits "Neighbors": Artist Li Qunli's studio

A minimalist house for my daughter Amber

In 2019,

He bought a 300-square-meter house in Songjiang, Shanghai for his daughter.

It was transformed into a minimalist black with less than 20 pieces of furniture.

Only one bedroom.

There are almost no doors in the room, it's like a small maze.

Allen, who has entered retirement,

Refuse to be a self-sacrificing traditional parent.

I like running marathons and mountain climbing.

Visit exhibitions around the world and watch the World Cup.

Enjoy traveling alone.

Allen and his daughter Amber

He said: "I like to be a free and unique person.

I also encourage Amber to try and make mistakes.

Burn like a flame and live a wonderful life.

But if she feels very tired and miserable because of her current job,

Don’t do it. Your dad has made the fortune.

The two words "wealth freedom" should be separated. If you want freedom,

Then have less wealth.”

The following is Allen’s own account.

Self-introduction: Allen

Editor: Wenmin

Editor: Xu Ying

My name is Allen. I am 57 years old and have entered retirement. Of course, the word "retirement" may not be so appropriate. I have been a freelancer in my twenties and started my own business at the age of 26. Some artists are still creating in their 80s and 90s, and some people have been working hard to create value for society all their lives. So why should we say retirement? I think the antonym of "work" is not "retirement", but a state of focusing on one's own life and hobbies.

In 2019, I bought a house in Songjiang Art Park in Shanghai. The two floors together cover 300 square meters, and it took me three and a half years to renovate it. At that time, Amber was studying art history at Columbia University in the United States and was about to graduate, so I thought that this space could be used by her in the future.

Allen in his youth

In Amber's eyes, this house is like my big toy. The style is indeed like me: a weirdo, a maverick, a rebel, and not following the beaten path.

I never went to college. After graduating from high school, I worked in a factory. In the early 1990s, I caught the first wave of people going into business. Everything I have now is achieved through my own hard work.

Amber said the house is like a little maze

Bathroom without door

When decorating the house, I gave the designer Wang Yunfeng a key word: "sense of shock", a feeling that makes you gasp.

This house does not have a white wall base like an ordinary house, but a cool black house with narrow and long corridors. For example, the entrance corridor is 15 meters long.

There are no doors, not even in the bathroom. There are winding paths leading to secluded places.

The highest floor height is 8 meters

(Left) The original structure of the house; (Right) The light and shadow diagram when it was just built

The living room is 8 meters high. The biggest change in the whole house is the living room window. After knocking down two non-load-bearing walls, three large glass panels were installed to provide a wide field of vision. The window frame is a natural picture frame. Every day when you look out, you can see the sunset, sunrise, and the changes of cloudy and sunny days. The farmland with different scenery in four seasons is the eternal protagonist in this natural picture.

The bedrooms on the second floor also try to preserve the architectural features of the house

I also tried to preserve the original features of the house.

The roof has many slopes, and the walls are also sloped, not square. Even though the exposed concrete beams and columns are rough and not smooth, we try to keep them as much as possible, because we want a rough, wild and natural feeling.

Kitchen, dining room

(Left) Dining table; (Right) Zhang Zhoujie’s virtual digital furniture

I only eat one meal a day and don't eat carbohydrates. I have been doing this for 15 years. I live in New York half of the year, do intermittent fasting regularly, and have a physical examination every year. I just had a physical examination before returning to China in July. All indicators are basically the same as 10 years ago. I feel healthy.

Keep running every day

Participate in marathons in Shanghai and New York

I started running in 2020, and I run for an hour every day. I have participated in marathons in New York and Shanghai, as well as several cross-country races in China. Every year I set a flag (goal), covering travel, exhibitions, reading lists, hiking and other fun things. For example, one year I wanted to climb 20 mountains over 3,000 meters, and I finally did it. I like a life with a little adventure, and life should be fun.

Minimize furniture

(Left) David Hockney's collection; (Right) Liu Xiaodong's works

The whole house is extremely simple, with as few pieces of furniture as possible, unless necessary, about a dozen or so. After I turned 40, I started to do subtraction, stopped my business, had no more than 10 friends, and closed my Moments. Now I like art, and hope to have more pursuit of beauty and spirituality.

In addition to furniture, there are also some works of art in the house. The collection of works in front of the window is from artist David Hockney, who is still creating works in his 90s and has a very strong vitality.

The work of artist friend Li Qunli, an airplane on the tarmac

There is a painting of an airport in the living room. I have taken hundreds of photos of airports so far, and my artist friend Li Qunli made this painting from one of them. His studio is near this house.

The airport is a place I cannot avoid. When I am waiting for the flight, I often wonder where the plane in front of me comes from and where it flies to. It comes and goes in a hurry, and is often delayed or cancelled for various reasons. It is unknown and impermanent. I think life is like this, isn’t it?

(Left) On the streets of New York; (Right) Li Qunli's painting: Allen and his son watching the World Cup

I often travel alone, visiting 3 to 5 countries every year, and have been to almost 60 countries in total.

I learned English by myself without hiring an English teacher. When I was in my 40s, I listened to English radio for half an hour every day and memorized words with small cards when I was in the car. Because I often traveled around alone, it was very convenient for me to stay in hotels, buy tickets and ask for directions after I mastered basic daily expressions. My daughter was also very supportive. She said that instead of doing anything for her and her brother, she hoped that her parents could enjoy their own lives.

Father and daughter travel to Vietnam

Amber loved watching period films when she was young, and her father tried hard to arrange a photo with Liu Yifei and Jimmy Lin

"Parents who don't spoil the fun" has long been a popular term on the Internet, and I try to be a dad who doesn't spoil the fun. In April this year, we traveled together to Vietnam. I am usually a germaphobe, but my daughter carefully arranged a motorcycle snack trip. We ate at dirty and messy street stalls. Whether we liked it or not is one thing, but I tried not to complain. I experienced the daily life of the locals and made the trip full of happy memories.

Amber has always been very opinionated and always wanted to be the best. In high school, she decided to study in the United States and was admitted to Columbia University. Later, she went to Harvard for graduate studies. When she was deciding on her major in her sophomore year, she chose art history because she found that her classmates in art history were full of vitality. I also told her that good art can reduce prejudice, broaden her horizons, and make her smaller.

Amber in the studio of artist Li Qunli

We often discuss it together. Her favorite art style also shows the growth history of a girl. At first, she liked Impressionist works, such as Monet, which had a romantic and hazy atmosphere. Now she likes European post-war art, which has a soul-shattering feeling and can trigger her thinking about human nature and reality.

After graduating from Harvard with a master's degree, she chose to return to China to engage in self-media content creation and art agency. "Internet celebrity" may be a derogatory term in the eyes of many people, and the competition in this industry is becoming increasingly fierce, but she decided to do it, and I support her 100%. Sometimes she said let's go out and shoot a vlog today, and I would say OK, okay, what time do you go out?

In the eyes of many people, maybe after graduating from a prestigious university, you can work in a top company or financial company step by step, earn a good income and live a decent life. But when I chatted with Amber, she said:

"After entering the society, I found that academic qualifications are more like a social business card, which can greatly reduce communication costs and establish trust as soon as possible. The life path of high education + big companies may improve the lower limit of life, but where is the upper limit? Impermanence is the norm, not to mention that education itself has a lag. I compare all walks of life to icebergs on the sea. When climbing the towering icebergs, the effort required is much greater than those of the newly exposed icebergs, because the latter's natural rising process can lift us to a higher place. However, everything is full of uncertainty. Whether it is working or starting a business, making some choices for the sake of stability is a bit like a mirage, and it is also a waste of our life possibilities. So instead of pursuing "popularity", it is better to look inward and pursue passion."

She is a self-media person and enjoys the creative process. When she spreads valuable content, she can bring herself a sense of pleasure, self-worth and identity from the inside out. That is enough. I hope everyone can see more different possibilities and then decide on the lifestyle they want.

I also agree with Amber's other point: "There is no such thing as a permanent job. No matter what you do, you must stay hungry and keep getting stronger so that you won't be eliminated. And while getting stronger, try to keep a kind heart."

Amber's Self-Portrait

I don't like being restricted, I like to be free. I encourage Amber to try and make mistakes, to be wonderful in her own way, and to burn like a flame. My way of educating children has always been free-range. Every child is unique, just like a tree, so let it grow naturally. Maybe the road ahead for Amber is not so clear, but she can try and rush freely and confidently. I would rather be a solid backing and a bottom-up presence.

I won't urge her to get married, nor have I arranged blind dates for her. Amber thinks love, marriage, and having children are three things, and it's a bit too extravagant to have them all at once. It's better to spend energy on doing what you should do well, and everything else will fall into place.

Life is only about 80 years old. Try more before 40 and don't be afraid of making mistakes. But work and money are not everything in life. Amber is a person who always wants to be the first. I told her that if she is passionate and interested, she should continue to do it. If she is tired, she should stop doing it. Don't live in pain. Your wealth has been earned by your father.

There is a popular word called "financial freedom" now. These two words should be separated. If you want more freedom, then you should have less wealth. If you want more wealth, then you should work harder and study harder. When you really reach financial freedom, you may not be so free (laughs).

Some pictures from: Youyi Architectural Design