Time: Sunday, Oct. 15, 2006, 2:00 p.m.

Place: the 7th Floor of the Building of the National Art Museum of China

Organizer: Zhang Zhongyi

Organizer: China Association of Collectors 

Theme: The Symposium on the Connotation of Contemporary Sculpture Art and Its Market Potential

Distinguished Guests: (in the Order of the Number of Strokes in their Surnames)

Ji Sen (Research Fellow of the National Museum)

Wang Yudong (Deputy Curator of the Art Museum of the China Millennium Monument)

Gan Xuejun (General-Manager of Huachen Auctions Limited Company

Sun Wei (Director of the Sculpture Art Institute, Central Academy of Fine Arts)

Zhu Wei (Editor-in-Chief of Cultural Relics World)

Liu Dongrui (Secretary-General and Research Fellow of National Commission for the Identification of Cultural Relics)

Yan Zhentang (President of China Association of Collectors and former Deputy Director of the National Cultural Heritage Administration)

Zhang Zhongyi (Director and Research Fellow of China Association of Collectors, member of the Expert Committee for Consultation and Identification as well as Secretary-General of the Committee for the Collection of Painting and Calligraphy Works)

Zhang Yuan (Executive Editor of Art Market)

Shao Jianwu (Director of the Arts Department of People’s Daily)

Yan Changyuan (Associate Editor of Art Weekly under China Culture Daily)

Yu Ning (Deputy Director of the News Division of China Art News)

Xiao Hong (Editor and Reporter of Yan-Zhao Metropolis Daily and Responsible Person of the Collectors’ Edition)

Su Shishu (Member of the National Committee of CPPCC and Director of China Cultural Relics Publishing House)

Chen Zui (Research Fellow of the Institute of Fine Arts, Member of the Academic Committee and Director of the Theoretical Research Office of China National Academy of Arts as well as member of the National Committee of CPPCC)

Jin Shen (Research Fellow of China National Academy of Arts and expert in the identification of Buddhist cultural relics)

Luo Zhewen (Honorary President of China Cultural Relics Academy and member of its Expert Committee for Consultation and Identification as well as famous expert in Ancient Architecture)

Lin Guliang (Research Fellow of National Museum, Deputy Secretary-General of China Association of Collectors and member of its Expert Committee for Consultation and Identification)

Hu Jigao (Research Fellow of China Institute of Cultural Relics, member of the Expert Committee for Consultation and Identification as well as expert in Dunhuang Frescoes)

Zhao Chunhua (Producer of the Column “Collection” under BTV-5)

Gao Yutao (President of Collection World)

Tang Yinfang (Director of the Editorial Department of Collectors)

Qian Ye (Editor-in-Chief of the column “Collection Appreciation” of China Cultural Relics News)

Xu Jian (President of China Collections and Editor-in-Chief of China Business Herald)

Contents:

The Preface: (Organizer: Zhang Zhongyi)

October 13 witnessed the Liu Shiming’s Solo Exhibition of Sculptures in the National Art Museum of China. Representatives from more than 20 media organisations such as CCTV, BTV, Guangming Daily and China Daily attended the opening ceremony. At the ceremony, Yang Li, Secretary of the CPC Committee of Central Academy of Fine Arts (CAFA), Fan Di’an, President of National Art Museum of China, Cao Chunsheng, Director of the Art Committee under the National Steering Committee for the Construction of Urban Sculptures, Sui Jianguo from Department of Sculpture of CAFA and Director of Baoding Bureau of Parks and Woods on behalf of Baoding Municipal Government delivered speeches, respectively. The atmosphere at the opening ceremony was very warm, and the exhibition showcased more than 200 works created by Mr. Liu Shiming with his endeavors over 60 years. These artistic works displayed the creative angle of view and bright artistic style unique to Mr. Liu Shiming.

On October 14, the special exhibition entitled “Discoveries in Golden Autumn—Appreciation of Chinese Sculpture Art between Chinese and Foreign Diplomats” was held in National Art Museum of China. This exhibition was attended by Mr. Tian Zengpei, the former Deputy Minister of the Chinese Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Lin Qing and Zhang Lian, former China’s ambassadors to the United Nations, Li Zhaoxing, Minister of the Chinese Ministry of Foreign Affairs and his wife Ms. Qin Xiaomei, the ambassadors and their spouses, cultural counselors and culture officials from more than 20 countries as well as nearly a hundred people including over 30 former Chinese ambassadors and their wives.

Today, as the sponsor, we (China Association of Collectors) have organized this symposium entitled “Exhibition of Sculptures by Liu Shiming and the Connotation of Contemporary Sculpture Art and Its Market Potential”. We have invited experts, collectors, news media and representatives of auction companies in our country to participate in this symposium. We had the relatively large number of symposiums in the past, but the symposiums like this held by us today are relatively few. This symposium is mainly designed for a special discussion on the sculptures by Mr. Liu Shiming, especially on the connotation of contemporary sculpture art and its market potential. First of all, we’d like to invite Mr. Sun Wei, Director of the Sculpture Art Institute, to give a guiding speech. 

1. Sun Wei (Director of the Sculpture Art Institute, Central Academy of Fine Arts)

Many thanks are extended to everyone who has participated in this symposium. I’m also engaged in the creation of sculpture art. As for the theme of this symposium, my opinion is as follows: With regard to the works that have been created, we have not stopped at this stage. The creation of them only means finishing a part of their promotion. And if artistic works are to fulfill their social responsibility, they should move towards the fields which are more extensive and more profound. For example, the collection circle is a very good channel of communication. This exhibition of the works by Mr. Liu Shiming was prepared during the last ten months, ranging from its plan and its implementation. After sorting out the artistic creation by Mr. Liu over several decades, this exhibition has showcased a total of more than 200 works created by him.

First of all, what I’d like to point out is that Mr. Liu is a very unique sculpture artist. He received a strict academic education in his early years and worked as an assistant to Mr. Wang Bingzhao before liberation. He stayed to work in the Central Academy of Fine Arts in 1950. During this period, he was exposed to Western arts, but later, due to various factors, his art experienced a transition, which can be clearly seen from his resume. Facing more than 200 works of art created by him, we can feel that his style did not develop in parallel with the mainstream of the times and the relationship between the Academy and him. In our study, Mr. Liu’s greatest unique quality lies in his simplicity and innocence. Inspiration comes from an ordinary life. Although there is no place for him in the artistic trend of the times, he has never deliberately tried to catch up with the market trend, but insisted on his own style of art, adhering to his own path. So today, we are going to hold a discussion on just such an artistic spirit, on the internal relationship between the artistic connotation of contemporary sculpture and the market, on how to construct such an interactive relationship, on how to have a dialogue between works of sculpture and the public, and on what standards for sculptures can be accepted and appreciated by the audience. This exhibition about the works of Mr. Liu Shiming gives us an opportunity to have a discussion, especially a dialogue between artists and collectors. Today, of course, I mainly refer to the collection of sculpture art. Through such a communication, I hope to promote good works of art in a better manner.

What is worthy of paying attention to is the issue of sculpture itself today, as well as the relationship between artistic value and the market. Simply put, the issue of the relation between artistic creation and the orientation of market value is the issue on how to create artistic works to reflect their intrinsic value. In my opinion, with this exhibition of the works of Mr. Liu as a case, I’d like to discuss this issue with many experts here. Mr. Liu’s works are indeed a unique case today because he is able to retain the pure land of his inner world by withstanding the temptation from the market as a mainstream. Perhaps, the communication with the experts can give us some inspiration for today’s artistic creation. At the same time, I’d also like to thank the Chinese Collectors Association and all the teachers and experts who have attended the symposium.

2. Yan Zhentang (President of China Association of Collectors and former Deputy Director of the National Cultural Heritage Administration)

Treasures of Art Sculpture Are Rare Miracles Worth Collecting — My Feelings about the Exhibition of the Sculptures by Mr. Liu Shiming

I was very happy to visit Mr. Liu Shiming’s Solo Exhibition of Sculptures on October 13 and was educated, inspired and encouraged. This exhibition was not only a summary or a display of Mr. Liu Shiming’s achievements in sculpture creation over several decades, but also a showcase for China’s high-level sculpture art treasures and rarely collected miracles. For all the visitors, it was a rare enjoyment of the beautiful sculpture arts. Each work in this exhibition reflects Mr. Liu Shiming’s creative wisdom, superb artistic level, distinctive characteristics of the times and noble personality, and each piece of the works was a fine piece of sculpture art for collection. The exhibition was a great success and was well received by the audience. Now I’d like to briefly talk about some specific feelings of my visit to this sculpture exhibition:

First, these exhibits are the collections of sculpture art with a strong epochal character and of certain historical value. The so-called historical value, which is measured in a time span of 60 years, is very transient in the long river of history. However, for Mr. Liu Shiming, it is the crystallization of his lifetime painstaking effort. The so-called strong epochal character means that each of Mr. Liu Shiming’s works reflects the cultural characteristics of the time. For example, his sculpture “Measuring the Land” created in 1949 reflected the joy of farmers after dividing up the land of the landlords. In 1951, he created the sculpture “Volunteers Heroes”, which reflected the heroic spirit demonstrated by the Chinese people in the War to Resist US Aggression and Aid Korea (1950-1953). The sculpture “Splitting the Mountains to Let the Water Flow” created in 1958 eulogized the heroic spirit of the Chinese people to challenge nature. People of our age have come from that era. The sight of these works of Mr. Liu Shiming involuntarily brought us back to that era, calling up many memories for us.

Second, these works are high-level collections of sculpture art, which gives visitors a rare artistic enjoyment. Mr. Liu Shiming’s sculpture art represents a process of gradually reaching the highest artistic realm resulting from the wisdom, inspiration and comprehension manifested by him after the instructive guidance given to him by some professors and supervisors in the National Art School in Beiping (the predecessor of the Central Academy of Fine Arts), coupled with his own assiduous efforts. That is to say, Mr. Liu Shiming is characterized by “taking the predecessors as his models and learning widely from others’ strengths before making new advances”.  Most of Mr. Liu Shiming’s sculptures are small and exquisite, originating from life but superior to life. These works are easy for the masses to understand. At first sight, people know the general information about them. However, after careful observation, they feel that each of his works is rich in artistic connotation. In addition, the techniques of expression employed by him are very ingenious because he uses the technique of creating ancient pottery sculptures to reproduce contemporary life. He succeeds in tactfully combining artistic techniques with contemporary life, which gives people artistic enjoyment that can be repeatedly savored and never makes them tired. Such sculptures have their own enduring vitality. They are exquisite collections of sculpture art as well as rare miracles for collection. 

Third, these exhibits are sculpture art collections reflecting the author’s fine qualities. His works excellently reflect the author’s character. He was born into an intellectual family and received good traditional culture education. In 1946, he was admitted to the National Art School in Beiping at the age of 20. In 1951, he graduated from the postgraduate class of the Central Academy of Fine Arts. Educated and guided by many famous experts and professors, he stayed in the academy and worked as an assistant to Mr. Zeng Zhushao ( 1908-2012 ). In 1952, he was transferred to the Sculpture Studio of the Monument to the People’s Heroes and took part in the creation, research, discussions and other work centering on the Monument to People’s Heroes. In addition, he got over many bumps and went along many bumpy roads before finally becoming a sculptor who has a noble character, does not court fame and fortune or goes along with the social ideological trend, but is loyal to his own eyes and mind and expresses his feelings and emotions characterized by keeping a broad frame of mind. He is concurrently a Chinese intellectual of moral integrity and Chinese sculptor with humanistic feelings. Each of Mr. Liu Shiming’s sculptures embodies not only the traditional Chinese art and techniques of expression, but also his unique artistic style, as well as the spiritual world of the Chinese people in different periods and the humanistic feelings of Chinese sculptors. His ideological quality is fully reflected in his sculptures, which also reflects his noble ideological realm and profound artistic attainments.

In short, each of these exhibits of Mr. Liu Shiming is a fine collection of sculpture art, which is of historical value, artistic value, cultural relic value and commemorative significance.

At the same time, here I’d like to extend my heartfelt respect and congratulations to Mr. Liu Shiming! May Mr. Liu Shiming live a long and healthy life, create more, better and more exquisite collections of sculpture art, and make new contributions to China’s sculpture and collection circles.

3. Luo Zhewen (Honorary President of China Cultural Relics Academy and member of its Expert Committee for Consultation and Identification as well as famous expert in Ancient Architecture)

Today I feel honored to attend this symposium. I think the reason why this symposium is of practical significance lies in that it is intended to discuss the social value and collection value of art by combining Mr. Liu Shiming’s solo exhibition and today’s theme. Mr. Liu is 80 years old and we congratulate him. I have come here from Tsinghua University. This year is also the 60th anniversary of the Department of Architecture of Tsinghua’s School of Architecture, which is also celebrated by a group of people in their eighties. I think Mr. Liu Shiming’s experience is really uncommon because he has withstood a lot both in life and art. These are very meaningful to his life. It is because of these that he can make unremitting efforts in the road of art and always adhere to sculpture creation in the realm of art, which, I think, is very important to his success today.

First, his artistic inspiration comes from life, but it is artistically processed in a meticulous way. Take the renovation of a house by the People’s Liberation Army men as an example. He has a good grasp of the realism of the building and characters, but he has adopted the method of artistic exaggeration of both in proportion. Second, his works come from the Chinese tradition and are full of local flavor, which is manifested in the following two aspects: one is the life of the Chinese working people, and the other is the use of traditional Chinese techniques.  For example, he has his own special experience in the depiction of the scenes of life in cave dwellings. His art epitomizes Chinese characteristics and has a unique personal style.

Therefore, as an artist, one should have his own personal style. For example, Mr. Ieoh Ming Pei (1917-2019), from the circle of architectural design in China, designed Suzhou Museum in Suzhou City. His idea is to give the museum both Chinese characteristics and the local Suzhou characteristics. Of course, he also has his own characteristics, which are reflected in his architectural designs in the United States, France and Germany. So I think this is indispensable for an artist.

When it comes to collection, I support collectors, and a collection should also have Chinese characteristics. Collection is a part of the protection of cultural relics. It contributes a lot to the inheritance of the national cultural traditions of a country, and plays a great role in the improvement of personal cultivation and quality. Mr. Liu Shiming’s works are of a high collection value. The collection of this artistic style plays a very important role in the inheritance of this art. We cannot just sit by and watch the interruption of this unique art. If we do not pay attention to the collection in this regard, it is likely to disappear, especially the collection of modern and contemporary artistic works, and we cannot allow the loss of some artistic achievements. These are what I talk about in brief. Thank you.

4. Yan Zhentang (President of China Association of Collectors and former Deputy Director of the National Cultural Heritage Administration)

Here I’d like to add a few words. I always care about and support the cause of collection. Mr. Luo Zhewen is the Honorary Director of the Expert Committee for Consultation and Identification under China Association of Collectors. In the past, Mr. Luo always supported the cause of collection in China, especially as he said just now. He suggests that Mr. Liu Shiming’s works should be collected by contemporary collectors. After these works are collected by private collectors, they can still become cultural relics after some years.

Now, I’d like to tell you that this year, China Association of Collectors has successively organized the activities of selecting outstanding Chinese arts and crafts masters as well as the artworks of the Chinese arts and crafts masters favored by Chinese collectors in four places including Jingdezhen, Putian, Nanning and Xiamen. The selection of activities were participated in not only by the artists but also by the collectors. After the completion of the selection of activities, the works of many masters were immediately collected by the collectors.

We have made an agreement with the National Museum of China that we will try to get the fine works of the master craftsmen across the country to participate in the exhibition in the National Museum of China before the end of this year or next March. If they are willing to donate to the museum, they will be given certain rewards. In the future, the museum will offer 30 to 40 thousand square meters of building area as a long-term exhibition space for the collections of modern crafts. After Mr. Liu Shiming’s works are exhibited here today, they may be exhibited in the National Museum of China in the future. If Mr. Liu agrees, his works can be taken as the collections of the state and exhibited there for a long time.

5. Su Shishu (Member of the National Committee of CPPCC and Director of China Cultural Relics Publishing House)

I would like to share the following points with you. First of all, after visiting Mr. Liu’s solo exhibition, what impressed me most is just what Mr. Luo Zhewen said just now. An artist should come from life but stand higher than life. From Mr. Liu’s works, I can feel the connotative things in the styles of David, Rembrandt and Michelangelo. Yet, he adopts the form of expression with Chinese characteristics. His inspiration derives from life, because he succeeds in seizing many details of life in the Northern Shaanxi. However, at the same time, he stands higher than life. The speech delivered just now is very good. Mr. Liu uses his own heart to carry on the dialogue with each piece of his works instead of being affected by some so-called fashionable things in modern society. We, who are engaged in art, should learn from him. Especially under the temptation of various interests in today’s market economy, can you maintain a calm state of mind, and concentrate on your own artistic creation? Only such works created diligently are successful, organic and long lasting.

I think Mr. Liu’s artistic creation has set such a banner for us, especially today when Mr. Liu is 80 years old, he can present so many works of art, which makes people very shocked. Meanwhile, they are also moved by his spirit characterized by being willing to live a lonely life and brave enough to making contributions. In addition, the veterans in the circle of calligraphy and paintings are also great masters in this regard. All of them are able to endure loneliness and are willing to laboriously ponder over their cause by sitting on their cool stools without being affected by some so-called fashionable things at present. Only the artworks that are created in this way can boast strong vitality. So, Mr. Liu is our example in the circle of sculpture art. We should earnestly learn from him. His ultimate source of creation comes from life but is superior to it. At present, in the era when the Western culture is making inroad into our Chinese culture (of course I don’t intend to whip up anti-foreign sentiments), such a meritorious aspect is absolutely worth of our study. That is to say, the essential things are our own.

Second, the more national, the more global. This has something to do with the first point of view. Why? His sculptures, which give expression to the momentum like splitting the mountains to let the water flow, just resembles the vast spiritual realm of David. Thanks to his artistic conception, the torrential inner world of the character is depicted incisively and vividly. In fact, he considers how to apply the European approach to sculpture and how to apply that spirit to our old farmers and to the temperament of the Chinese. The momentum of struggling against heaven and earth demonstrated by him cannot be purely imitated. I think I particularly admire Mr. Liu for this trait of his. He has been fervently engaged in his artistic creation for several decades like one day. I remember that during the period of the Great Proletarian Cultural Revolution (1966-1976), I once went to CAFA, only to find that he was sitting on a small stool alone, dressed in a shabby cotton-padded jacket. No one knew that he was a sculptor because he was so slovenly dressed that he was not valued by anyone else. However, he has worked on his sculpture cause for several decades on end as if it is one day. Does he lack his inner world? Of course not. His works also contain the elements of the thoughts in the 19th century, such as expressionism, fauvism and avant-garde post-modernism. Be that as it may, the works created by him are also endowed with Chinese characteristics.

So, in this sense we can say that what’s unique for a nation is also precious for the world. His works were created at the cost of the loneliness endured by him for fifty years. I also visited his solo exhibition in 2005. Yet it is marvelous to have such a large-scale solo exhibition today. We find ourselves much inspired by his artistic creation. One’s deficiency can be topped up by accommodating the differences of styles and genres. And Mr. Liu has set up a good example for us in this regard. If you take a look at his sculpture, it is seemingly like a lump of clay. However, there are sketches, quick sketches and portrayals of characters, which are extremely precise.

At last, like the artistic spirit showed by Zhu Da in Chinese painting and calligraphy, the personal spiritual state and attainments can be expressed by way of an ordinary lump of clay, which forms a striking contrast to the plagiarism in the academic circle and the pompousness in the circles of calligraphy and paintings at the present time. Today, we are lucky enough to see such a generation of artists like Mr. Liu who unalterably make contributions to China’s artistic cause in the current state. They are really good examples for us to follow. Nowadays, various circles of art are permeated with pompous sentiments. They behave as if fragile in the face of money. Although Mr. Liu does not have a lot of money like others, he maintains a lofty spiritual realm, whose value is much higher than that of them.

Third, only by being guided by a strategic vision can collectors find epochal artistic works. China Association of Collectors has provided such a platform, which is intended to continuously promote new artists and outstanding artworks. Therefore, collectors should take a long-term perspective and be equipped with acute observation ability and appreciation ability. They should be good at finding the artists who have not become famous but are silently engaged in their artistic creation and support them so that they are relaxed in life and can devote to their artistic creations heart and soul. 

Fourth, The Chinese Collectors Association must shake the flag for the national artists with national courage, just like today’s exhibition. A person’s capabilities are limited. However, the Association is very authoritative because it constructs a platform to help the artists with national gumption to solve their practical problems in life and ease some burdens off their backs for their artistic creations. However, such a phenomenon exists in the whole world. That is, the more penniless and frustrated an artist is, the higher value his artistic works are. When a man eats and drinks to his heart’s content, he may lack the passion for artistic creation. In other words, material satisfaction is likely to drive away many spiritual needs.

Be that as it may, China Association of Collectors must pave the way for such artists. In fact, the number of such artists is large. Many great masters in calligraphy and paintings, sculpture, ceramics, industrial arts and the like are assiduously engaged in their artistic creation in a silent way. Today, in the aspect of works of fine art, many have surpassed those created during the reign (1736–1795) of Emperor Qianlong in the Qing Dynasty, which, alas, cannot be found by people. Naturally, few people are willing to collect them. For this sake, it is necessary for China Association of Collectors to participate in such activities so as to promote such artists who are silently engaged in artistic creation. 

6. Wang Yudong ( Deputy Curator of the Art Museum of the China Millennium Monument)

Having seen Mr. Liu’s artworks, I’d like to express my personal opinion. I worked in Xi’an for 30 years during which I was engaged in archaeological work and I also worked in a museum. Therefore, my feelings are related to my personal experience. Speaking of Mr. Liu’s works, the first aspect that touches me is the imprint of my childhood. When we were children, we lived in Shaanxi where nothing but loess could be found by us. In those days, we couldn’t afford to buy any other toys. We had nothing to do but play with clay for a long period of time.The sight of Mr. Liu’s works makes me recall my childhood when I molded figurines and animals such as roosters and ducks with clay.

Judging from the small works, I think that feeling is very good because it makes people feel his mental state characterized by still preserving traces of childishness. In addition to these small animals, there is the image of General Zhao Zilong, a hero during the Three Kingdoms Period (220-280), who was protecting Ah Dou who later became the second emperor of the Kingdom of Shu Han, while fighting against the enemy with his double-edged sword on the battlefield called Changbanpo. In our childhood, we often molded the images of the generals fighting battles on horseback.

There is another point worth my attention. In the middle and later periods of his career, it seems that no trace of using tools can be discerned from his works which were completely created by hand. Maybe he did not create them in his studio but readily produced them under some inadvertent circumstances. The second aspect is the impression of the Northern China. From his works, we see the Ansai waist drums, the Suona, the farmers’ cave dwellings and the sheepskin rafts as well as the performers backstage. These works have strong regional features. You cannot create such passionate artworks if you have not lived there for a long time and love the people there. Since I used to be engaged in archaeological work in Northern Shaanxi for a long period of time and have my long-term life experience, I can be deeply touched by his works.

To be honest, nowadays, such sculpture artworks are rarely found. In particular, many artists are engaged in contemporary art, which is displayed in a bantering style. However, the works earnestly created by Mr. Liu, which are capable of being really appreciated by those who have such a life experience in a clear-cut way of creation, deserve recognition and affirmation. Just like his diaries, his works succeed in recording his life in the North over so many years.

The third feature is the trace of traditional culture. Many of his works really reflect the characteristics of the traditional Chinese culture. As we know, Mr. Liu used to work in a museum and did a lot of repair work related to ceramic cultural relics. Therefore, from his works, we can find a traditional image. Take the water cart in Mongolia for example. It is completely the image of the oxcart in the Tang Dynasty (618-907), which is very typical. In addition, some of his works are about the depiction of the peasant household, including the oven in the village, whose style is, to a large extent, similar to that of the shape of a small courtyard and the model of a ceramic oven in the Han Dynasty ( 206BC-AD220 ).

As we see, in the courtyard, a woman is cooking, while her children are sitting on the threshold, waiting for their meal. Her husband is drinking tea at the millstone. This image can only be seen in the portraits and painted bricks or stones in the Eastern Han Dynasty. He is able to mold the things with such features of Chinese culture. However, these things are not sheer replicas but are intended to express modern life. When it comes to the traditional Chinese sculpture, some people think that China has no sculpture. However, China has sculpture, which is realistic. Mr.Liu’s overall sculpture is general, high, large and complete, ignoring the detailed depiction of facial expressions. What he wants to reflect is the person’s mental outlook, and the inner activities of the characters are explained through actions.

Another feature of Mr. Liu’s works lies in their impressionistic style. Of all his works, three arouse my attention. The first is the depiction of a balustrade building where an old peasant is talking with an educated youth with glasses. It depicts a summer night when they were guarding a melon shed or staying in the field during the harvest. The work is called “Re-education”. It is not difficult for us to know that both of them were chatting. Those who used to go to the countryside and work there know about the so-called re-education characterized by contrasting past misery with present happiness. However, that was no more than a form. Yet this old peasant was unlikely to carry out the so-called ideological education toward the young fellow. Perhaps, he was telling the young man what the true countryside was or what the latter did not know. Such an education was the real education. This artistic form is both realistic and meaningful.

The second is called “Wooden Rafts on the Yangtze River”. With the River flowing eastward, a woodcutter was chatting with another person. The sight of this work involuntarily reminds me of the beginning words of Romance of the Three Kingdoms: With the waves of the mighty river flowing eastward, numerous events in ancient and modern times have unexceptionally elapsed amid talking and laughing. Perhaps, it is meant to be suggestive of the fact that what is hidden behind these seemingly ordinary things is cultural accumulation, bearing profound cultural connotation.

The third is called “Courtyard”. A patio used to be a spacious place in the quadrangle courtyard. But now, it becomes a narrow place embedded in a high building. What the work is intended to convey is that nowadays, in big cities like Beijing, many distinctive small quadrangle courtyards have been replaced by numerous high-rise buildings, which further has influenced neighborly relations. And maybe the small patio here has become an important spot for the people of the neighborhood to communicate with each other. And this is where many of his work details are worth seeing and enduring.

The fourth aspect is related to collection, which, in our conception, still refers to the collections housed in museums and private collections. In the West, collections by museums, especially those by art galleries have not become the mainstream, the main way of collection is by visiting an auction. So this is a very embarrassing issue. As far as sculpture is concerned, our associations of collectors together with our relatively large auction companies should give guidance.

As we know, China has no tradition in the collection of sculptures which were mainly provided for temples or tombs in the past. It is in modern times that the Chinese began to be aware of collection. Although now China boasts urban sculptures, it is still very inexperienced compared with their counterparts in the West. In the West, the classification of them is very detailed. For example, some collections are collected by large-scale institutions representing the state, some are collected by medium-size museums and cathedrals, and still some are privately collected. Such guidance in this regard is very clear. So I wonder if some of our collection institutions could do more work in this respect. 

7. Xu Jian (President of China Collections and Editor-in-Chief of China Business Herald)

Today, I am invited by the organizer to attend this symposium. I feel lacking in self-confidence, because I am not an expert in art and have never studied or been engaged in such work. In the past, I read many analyses and appraisals of his works made by famous critics. However, today, I can still attend the symposium as two identities. First, I am engaged in media and am the President of the Magazine. Second, I attend the symposium as an art lover. 

First of all, I’d like to talk about something from the perspective of a media professional. In fact, I happened to watch the program “People” on CCTV, which introduced Mr. Liu Shiming. At that time, I was moved and shocked by Mr. Liu’s legendary experience, so when the organizer asked me to participate in this activity to express my opinion, and I was very willing to attend this symposium, which is the first reason. But, since I could not watch his works carefully on the TV program, I only knew his story. It is after the catalogue of the paintings about his works came out that I had the opportunity to appreciate his works. In fact, I have always wanted to use a word to describe Mr. Liu’s experience. I don’t think it is appropriate to regard him as a legend or a recluse. The reason why he is regarded as a legend is that he looks like a legendary person, but in fact it is the bumpy experiences of his. And the reason why he is regarded as a recluse is that, simply speaking, his current popularity is not commensurate with his achievements in his works. I think that no matter whether he has rich experience or is now unknown to the public, what he actually expresses is dedication to art.

So we, as media workers, want to talk more about his artwork market and collection market. Today’s art market is indeed very thriving, and it is inevitable that some artists cannot resist the temptation. Both those who have made money and those who have not are obsessed with money. This phenomenon is not attributed to artists, and not all the money has been earned by them. This phenomenon is partly caused by the investors in art, auction houses and galleries. There is no doubt that investors are intent on nothing but profit. And both galleries and auction houses, which are commercial institutions, certainly see things from the perspective of business. Of course, some collectors who don’t completely understand the trade in this regard will surely follow the trend. Yet it is very difficult for us to say who are wrong. 

However, here we must adhere to such a principle that artists should have their own conscience and artistic pursuit. Artists are to blame if they are crazy about money no matter whether they earn it or not. This does not mean that I’m against the combination of art and business. On the contrary, I think that only by combining with business can artists step into society. But the problem lies in the mode of combination. Now, many artists are hunting for market trends, thinking that even the back of their paintings is covered with money. I think that faced with the confusing market, Mr. Liu Shiming has the spirit of perseverance in art. Although he made such brilliant achievements in the past, he still throws himself into his artistic creation even today, not caring for wealth or fame. I think this is a very precious spirit. 

In addition, I’d like to say more words as an art lover. I know I’m not engaged in art. However, even as a layman, I can feel that his works ooze with fine qualities. I think that those works of clay are tinged with a puff of the fragrance of clay if they are watched from a distance. However, upon closer scrutiny, they, after being tempered in a blazing fire, look so solid and thick and are full of the breath of life. The artistic techniques adopted by him are very natural and plain, all of which are intended to express his feelings. Technically speaking, I cannot find a whit of ostentation or any sensationalism. He is only focused on how to express the subject of his works in an appropriate way. These are my impressions of Mr. Liu’s works. His works are a little distant from today’s urban life, but I think such works, such pursuit and such achievements are an important supplement to the development of Chinese sculpture. 

I think there are two main types of collectors nowadays: the collectors of the first type are only driven by their interests and hobbies. They can buy anything if they like. Those of the second type are the collectors who can make some rational judgment about art history. For example, they can make relevant rational judgement about issues such as the life experience of the artist, the position that will be occupied by him in the history of art and the value reflected by his works. I think Mr. Liu’s work should be seriously considered by any type of collector.

As media workers, we are also willing to recommend Mr. Liu and his works to the public. When it comes to sculpture, I’d like to give some superficial opinions, which may not be correct. For the current sculpture collection, I feel that our overall sculpture level is still relatively low, which is reflected both in creation and appreciation. For example, contemporary sculptures are mainly manifested in the form of urban sculptures. Of course,  remarkable progress has been made in urban sculptures in Beijing and Shanghai, and good urban sculptures can also be seen in some large and medium-sized cities, but the majority of urban sculptures are still pretty uninteresting, which are pale both visually and spiritually. If compared to the important big cities in the West, the difference is significant. Why is there such a significant difference? I think it has something to do with our artists as well as the level of the appreciation of the public, because the public allow such works to appear.

For example, in the neighborhood where we are living, the real estate agent was so arty that he installed a sculpture in the shape of a bull there. Every day I pass by it, I feel very uncomfortable because it is very ugly in appearance. It turns out that the agent intended to imitate the image of the bull on Wall Street, but the proportion is not appropriate. Maybe we can see his intention to beautify the neighborhood, but this also indicates the gap of the overall level.

My second feeling is that today’s sculpture artists really have a relatively weak sense of service for Chinese sculpture or for collectors and lovers. As sculptors in China are mainly engaged in urban sculptures and have won a good reputation internationally. Perhaps some of them serve their foreign customers. There are some sculptors who have provided high-quality works for domestic collections, but the number of them is very small. As someone said just now, Mr. Liu’s artistic value and the size of his works are very suitable for private collection, so the market prospect is quite promising.

8. Hu Jigao (Research Fellow of China Institute of Cultural Relics, member of the Expert Committee for Consultation and Identification as well as expert in Dunhuang Frescoes)

After seeing Mr. Liu’s solo exhibition in sculpture art, I think Mr. Liu is a real people’s artist and a great artist. The first thing I want to talk about here is that Mr. Liu’s works not only have his personal characteristics and national characteristics, but also are very imaginative. His works are suggestive. There are images beyond the pictures. For example, his work “Countryside Postman” only shows a vehicle without any person. However, from his work, we can still think of the existence of the postman.

The second thing I want to point out is his feelings for performers. I think his feelings are sincere. He molded a lot of statues of performers. Performers in the past worked very hard to make a living but their pay was meagre. I feel that his artworks are thoughtful and of high artistic value.

The third thing I want to emphasize is that his works succeed in absorbing a lot of traditional spiritual connotation. I am engaged in archaeological work, including preservation of cultural relics. I have seen all the cultural relics which are the prototypes of his works, including the ceramic pigsty and the ceramic house, which are very similar to those images in the Eastern Han Dynasty. The work which depicts a pigsty where piglets are lying on a sow was seen by me in a museum in Henan Province. The sight of it reminds me of the situation at that time. He did not mix his works with the market. And this point indicates that he is a pure artist, and the value of his artistic creation is reflected in this, which is of high collection value.

Speaking of this, I’d like to make a few remarks about the problems of contemporary art. The first is the vulgarity of works. Any artwork must maintain its style. Many modern painters and sculptors design their works in a very ugly and vulgar manner, but their works are bought by many people all the same. why so?  Why has this happened? This is because the economic nouveau riche only knows money, but does not understand art. They look at artworks with a kitsch eye. I think there will be a process. When their artistic vision and taste are improved, they will naturally realize what is really good art.

Second, the purchase of art is aimed not at the value of art itself, but at the status and value of the author. It is not measured by the value of art itself at all. This is a bad trend in contemporary times. Today, when we look at Mr. Liu’s art works, we find they are not vulgar. Instead, they are of strong artistic quality and of higher economic value and collection value. There are very few people in our association of collectors who have the habit of collecting sculptures. Most of them collect porcelain objects, bronze ware, calligraphy and paintings and so on. I think that we can carry out extensive publicity for Mr. Liu. After seeing Mr. Liu’s works, I am not willing to tear myself away from them. I am drawn to him, to his spiritual and instinctive feelings, and I have great admiration for him, and I am honored to pay a visit to his exhibition and to attend such a symposium.  

9. Zhang Yuan (Executive Editor of Art Market)

It is not only Mr. Liu’s sculptures that move people, but what’s more important is his spirit of the devotion to art. In contrast, living in the present consumption era, we can see a lot of works that are repeatedly produced every day. The production of the works is simplified, symbolic and abstract, leading to the loss of many technical principles and the basic appraisal standard of art. These works are irresponsibly pushed into the primary market and the secondary market, as well.

Driven by profit, some investors in art and collectors blindly accept some trashy works and fabricate some questionable figures, thus influencing the equity norms of the market, which is not only the sadness of the artists but also the tragedy of the market. And it is very probable that the makers of such sadness constitute the principal part of the team of artistic creation. In other words, they are artists. It is important for artists to keep a calm mind in the face of the market. Instead of blindly following the trend or the fashion, they should adhere to their own path of artistic creation.

In today’s complicated market economy, it is tempering and a constant topic for an artist to keep a pure heart without being corrupted by money. What is the motive force for art? Is it to serve the capital market or to obey the pioneering spirit? Is it to obey the pursuit of character in man’s inner world, or to serve the group of collectors with a fuzzy aesthetic who are only engaged in collecting artworks for the sake of the market?  This is also the question that should be answered by an artist before his artistic creation. As Henry Moore (1898-1986), a famous English sculptor said, a piece of work should have its own inherent energy and its own tremendous vitality. The acquisition of the energy and vitality requires an artist to perceive them attentively, to look into them with his life and to search after them in practice. A sculptor must carefully master the form shaped by him from space, the sense of weight and material so as to transform the inanimate object into a living organism. That is to say, the sculptor should shape an impressive and vibrant organism with his wisdom.

From the works of Mr. Liu which we have seen, we strongly feel that these works were created by Mr. Liu with the symbol of the art itself and his personal character. It is just these neglected themes that arouse our reflection on our state of survival, our spiritual desire for life and our understanding of survival culture. Mr. Liu is a mirror reflecting the creation group as well as the market. And for me, I am an artistic creator and an oil painter. Since the market is in need of original works, artists should repay collectors with their original works. 

10. Liu Dongrui (Secretary-General and Research Fellow of National Commission for the Identification of Cultural Relics)

Liu Shiming’s sculpture works are the inheritance and development of the traditional Chinese culture, which are tinged with an ancient historical charm as well as local flavor, thus giving people the enjoyment of freshness, sweetness and lyrical pleasure. Since his works are close to life, they are loved by the vast masses. 

In the period from 1974 to 1980, Comrade Shiming participated in the protection and restoration of cultural relics as a member of the technical group of the Preservation Department under the National Museum of Chinese History (now the National Museum of China). At that time, I worked in the catalogue section of the museum, so I used to be his colleague. At that time, I always thought he was just a restorer, but I didn’t know he was an accomplished sculpture artist.

I like his works for two reasons. The first reason is related to our professions. Both of us share the common professional language, the same cultural backgrounds and similar life experiences. The second reason is that I respect his character because he is unpretentious and indifferent to fame and wealth, who is really called “both professional excellence and moral integrity”. 

China has a long history of sculpture art. From the Neolithic Age to the Han and Tang dynasties when sculpture art reached its heyday, and then to the Ming and Qing dynasties, famous and excellent works were created in various dynasties. Ancient sculpture art in China has long become an important part of China’s traditional culture. Everyone knows that in this art treasure house, there are rich things that can be exploited and used. Under the banner of “using the past for the present”, multifarious usages have emerged with different motives and purposes.

Some years ago, I saw a picture of a sculpture in a magazine, which was entitled “An Uncontrollable Place”. The work depicted the combination of the human feet, male genitalia and the human mouth, which were tied together with a rope, as if prompting people to act. According to the caption of the picture, this work was placed in a park and displayed to visitors. This work caused a sensation. Was it intended to advocate “individual liberation”, or “liberalization”, or the declaration of war against a “feudal code of ethics”, or “anarchism”? It’s really puzzling.

There was another magazine containing the picture of another sculpture entitled “Materialism”. The painting was a picture poster in the 1960s and 1970s: an industrial worker in overalls, holding high a big book in one hand, with his other hand clenched in a fist, looking forward with his shoulders straightened up, full of power and grandeur. However, his legs are shown only above the knees. When viewed from the front, it seems to be kneeling on the ground. Yet it was entitled “materialism”. This is what the author wanted to tell readers. According to media reports, the sculpture was bought by a foreign collection unit at an auction house for a whopping price. This is just one example. It is a warning sign for people if a piece of art is sold at a high price or unusually touted but not because of its cultural or artistic value.

Comrade Liu Shiming, in today’s impetuous environment and in the business world characterized by seeking quick success and instant profits, still he can, with equanimity and the mentality of a civilian, be quietly engaged in his beloved artistic creation by recording the images of the disappearing history and the historical events with clay bars. He is kind-hearted, artless, and dislikes disguising himself by wearing a mask. He rejects any pretentious performance or Machiavellian philosophy. We can credibly describe him as a natural sculpture artist in the People’s Republic of China, and his works, like his character, are always dear, respectable and lovely!

11. Gao Yutao (President of Collection World)

Upon seeing Mr. Liu Shiming’s works on display, I feel very shocked. In such a society full of money worship and utilitarianism, there are still such persistent artists like Mr. Liu, who are really engaged in sculpture art. As media workers, now that  we have known the existence of such a good artist as Mr. Liu, we will use our media power to spread such a message, so that more people can understand Mr. Liu Shiming. Here, there is a need for me to introduce a concept. For example, we printed the picture of a sculpture on the cover of issue 8 of our magazine in August. The author of the work is Jia Shuo, who graduated from CAFA and then went abroad. The work was re-auctioned by Christie Auction House this year. It is a small copper sculpture whose name is “From March-On to Money-In”. This is a very interesting artwork, which was sold at the price of RMB258, 000 at the auction. It is rare for such a small sculpture to sell at such a high price. This shows that contemporary collectors attach great importance to contemporary distinctive works of art.

As for Mr. Liu’s works today, I think the collectors will certainly have their own judgment and aesthetic appreciation when seeking the historical value and artistic value. The most important task facing our media is to promote these emerging artists and their works, and to get the consultation information across to the art collection community, galleries and private art lovers. We should also advocate such a climate characterized by showing respect to art and artists. I know there are more influential media present today. They have broader communication capacities and better communication platforms. I believe they can better spread the consultation information. Anyway, as the proverb goes, actions speak louder than words. We as media workers should try our best to do more practical work to promote the development of the artwork market.

12. Gan Xuejun (General-Manager of Huachen Auctions Limited Company)

I didn’t know Mr. Liu Shiming in the past, but after seeing his works, I think they are very thrilling. To put it bluntly, I think Mr. Liu lives for the sake of sculpture, and the significance of his life lies in kneading these clay figures. As everyone points out, it is really commendable for an artist to maintain this artistic spirit in such a state in his social life. His works reflect the unspoiled state of another form of the original nature of life. Although he received training in the orthodox techniques from the orthodox academy and has a very good Western style in realistic ability, he ended up returning to such a simple and unadorned way of expression, showing a more touching artistic temperament. As has been said just now, his works always stand outside the mainstream, but it is because of this that his unique value, which is more real and more natural, may be revealed. The subjects of his works are mostly related to the life of ordinary people, which are very detailed. In addition, the majority of the characters in his works are relatively marginalized, such as cleaners, farm women, farm houses and so on. 

Art is sometimes a strange thing. For a genre of art, although it may be marginal at present, it is likely to become mainstream in the future. Today, of course, I want to talk about the relation between collection and the market. On the whole, the art market is highly dependent on the academic nature of works, which is the foundation of the market. I have been engaged in auctions for several decades since I went into business. In my opinion, the more academic something is, the more artistic it becomes, and the more valuable it is. This is a rule. Of course, they do not develop in a synchronous way. Many experts hold that there is a climate of fickleness and various strange phenomena in the market which I think is inevitable and exists at all times and all over the world. There was such a process in a certain historical period. And we must also face such a phenomenon and facts today. On this basis, we can do something within our power. Relatively speaking, both collectors and auction houses are passive. We need the recommendation from the primary market, as well as the relevant consultation information released by such activities like today’s symposium. We need to know about artists and their works of art with the help of the professional eye of experts. However, the domestic situation in China is that the primary market is not very developed, no matter in contemporary art or traditional art. Traditional Chinese paintings, sculptures and the like come into being under improvisational conditions.

A few decades ago, it was very difficult for us to sell a traditional Chinese painting. We had to consider how to persuade the other party into buying our commodity before doing research on it after buying. Frankly speaking, nowadays many collectors are nouveau riches, who, however, don’t know what art is. Of course, we can’t blame these people because they are very important participants in our market. Many collectors I know started their business as speculators. Yet we can’t exclude them from the art market because they don’t know much about academic knowledge. It is inappropriate to rigorously request each art lover or investor to understand the things that are known to the academic experts in our academic world including institutes of sculpture and academies of fine arts because some art investors  are experts in stock or estate agents, in their own major fields. However, in the field of art, everyone present can become their teacher. Therefore, I think that today’s activity is very good. 

Mr. Liu Shiming’s works are unknown to the market today. Nevertheless, such academic and media activities conducted by us will surely attract the attention of the collectors. In fact, the sculpture art collection in our country has experienced a rapid development. More than a decade ago, we conducted a sculpture auction by placing three or five small pieces of sculptures in the optimal auction house, selling for thirty thousand to fifty thousand yuan in total. However, at today’s auction of sculptures, even a small sculpture can sell for several hundred thousand yuan, which is a very common phenomenon, instead of a miracle. We’ve expanded from a few pieces in the past to several dozen pieces today with ease. As long as Mr. Liu’s works are carefully recommended, I think collectors will make their own choices from materials and themes according to their own needs. 

Mr. Liu’s works depict the lower classes of society and have a common language throughout the world. The works have traditional cultural connotations, but the techniques employed by him are actually modern. I believe that the market prospect is very broad.

13. Tang Yinfang (Director of the Editorial Department of Collectors)

Obviously, all the themes of Mr. Liu’s works are the images of the figures from underprivileged backgrounds, which is greatly different from many schools of mainstream contemporary and modern sculpture art and they are very characteristic. In contrast, his works are very prominent both in taste and in style. Today, the National Art Museum of China and China Association of Collectors are holding such a professional academic activity here which I think is very good. As a representative of workers in the media, I am very glad to recommend such excellent artists like Mr. Liu and their works to the society so as to conduct publicity for the collectors and auction institutions in line with the market. 

14. Lin Guliang (Research Fellow of National Museum, Deputy Secretary-General of China Association of Collectors and member of its Expert Committee for Consultation and Identification)

A mere dabbler’s opinion on Liu Shiming’s works

We cannot say all of Mr. Liu’s creations are elaborate works, but most of them are immortal works of art. He is a real artist who definitely is engaged in art whole-heartedly, and his works embody his outlook on and attitude towards life. I think that the majority of them are fine works of art. In today’s society, for example, the super-girl phenomenon is characterized by being ranked in the rich list of the world all of a sudden. Even at the age of 45, some artists are exalted to the skies, going beyond the bounds of reason. Therefore, I think immortal works are the ones that are posthumously recognized by the market, while the works created by the artists who are relatively young and immature may decay quickly. Of course this is my personal opinion. On the other hand, for the promotion of art, we can copy some featured works of art, so that ordinary people who cannot get original works can also collect them. This is a good promotion method, for example, Sanxingdui (Three-star Mounds). In this way, many of his representative works can be copied and spread widely and their influence can be expanded accordingly. This is my opinion of collection. 

Since I am not engaged in art, I would like to share my personal feelings and views on his specific works of art as a layman:

Liu Shiming’s “Splitting the Mountains to Let the Water Flow” and “Measuring the Land” are two successful sculptures, which are in a minority in the “Catalogue of Liu Shiming’s Works”, so it can be seen that they are not the mainstream style of Liu’s works. It is the series of works reflecting the theme of rural life that formed the style of Liu Shiming’s works.

Modern sculpture is an artistic form introduced from the West. The basis of character modeling is empirical and scientific human anatomy. Liu Shiming received the artistic training of modern sculpture, but he “gave up” the basic requirements of human anatomy, and deliberately exaggerated, deformed, and even distorted the figures. He created a series of images of rural and urban people full of soil flavor, forming his own unique artistic style and being widely recognized. He absorbs nourishment from Chinese ancient sculpture. Through his unique understanding of modern figures’ shapes, actions and miens, he succeeds in combining them with his artistic expression ability, leading to the uniqueness of his works. 

Highlighting detailed features is the common principle of creating artistic typical qualities. The features of momentary movements in Mr. Liu’s works, such as the forward stance and swinging arms of the drummer in the “Ansai Waist Drummer”, the effort made by a rickshaw puller in “A Farmer on His Way to Market”, the act of a PLA soldier who supported the bricks with his chin in the process of carrying them in “Soldiers from the People's Liberation Army Repairing Houses after the Earthquake”, the act of the child standing tiptoe with his arms outstretched in “Hold Me, Grandma” are firmly seized and characterized by ingenious vividness, nice touches and a strong flavor of life. We cannot help but admire the artist’s insights and expressive forces in observing life.

Another characteristic of Liu Shiming’s works is that his works depict a broad social life and are all very small in size, mostly ranging from 15cm to 30cm, which undoubtedly increases the difficulty of expression. This is probably due to Mr. Liu’s self-confidence in his expressive ability with miens.

For a man engaged in social science research like me, I watch Liu Shiming’s works just like watching people in a fight through a crevice of the door. I may fail to understand them clearly. So my remarks on Mr. Liu’s works are a mere dabbler’s opinion. I hope Mr. Liu Shiming will create more and better works.

15. Qian Ye (Editor-in-Chief of the column “Collection Appreciation” of China Cultural Relics News)

As a layman, I am not engaged in art, nor have I done deep research into it. However, in my opinion, what can be understood by me is a piece of good work. I will not introduce what I cannot understand. And Mr. Liu Shiming’s works are exactly what I can understand, so I think they are good. Centering on this point, there is a typical remark in Mr. Shao’s article: “When people attach importance to individuality, they often forget the standard of significance and value in art evaluation.” I understand the standard of “significance” because Mr. Liu’s works come from life and return to life at the same time. He keeps a zero distance from life and gives people a sense of intimacy. Of course, artistic creation is the reproduction of the artist’s works refined by life, and the life itself has the connotation of beauty, which can be rarely seen in today’s artistic creation and is very valuable. But, remaining unchanged is even more in need of great perseverance and artistic spirit. This spirit, I think, is the spirit that art should serve life and serve the people, which is the value and significance of art discussed by Mr. Shao.

16. Jin Shen (Research Fellow of China National Academy of Arts and expert in the identification of Buddhist cultural relics)

As a researcher of the Chinese culture and art, I do not know much about modern and contemporary stuff. In modern and contemporary times, as a rule, attention is usually paid to the mainstream. For example, before the Cultural Revolution, all artistic works needed to be connected with politics and created by centering on political themes. And human lyrical things were very rare at that time.    

Mr. Liu’s works reflect his profound basic skills. However, he was not involved in the whirlpool of mainstream culture, and his works give people a sense of spiritual detachment, which came from life. The size of his works is small, and the themes are very plain and unadorned, but the artistic conception in them is very profound. His sculpture can be viewed both from afar and at close range. I have seen a lot of large-scale sculptures. For example, a sculpture several dozen meters high is not worth appreciating when seen within a distance of two or three meters because of the lack of skills, which is manifested in its mediocre facial expression and flaccid lines. Therefore, no matter what the size of the sculpture, a standard is needed. Mr. Liu used to work in a museum, and his works do show the images of many pottery figures from the Han Dynasty, but they are by no means copied. There are many his personal things in them, so his works are able to stand being repeatedly appreciated. He borrowed ancient techniques, but contemporary factors are reflected at a spiritual level.

As for such unique works of art and artists, I think that in the face of the market, how we promote and publicize Mr. Liu’s works to guide the world to understand the artistic content of his works and the market prospects that will be displayed is a goal that is jointly striven for by our media friends and experts. The sculpture market in China is gradually being accepted, which is quite promising. Some good works of art can stand the test of time, and good art will always boast its market and audience. Of course, it needs us to do a lot of work to discover these things.

17. Ji Sen (Research Fellow of the National Museum)

When I saw Mr. Liu’s works, I encountered a bright moment, because the visual impact is particularly profoundly gigantic. The reason why I felt like that is because his works really reflect his artistic connotation and value. In other words, he succeeds in combining the actual environment and contemporary life, revealing a strong artistic appeal. People can find that they are attracted by his works as soon as they catch a glimpse of them. Here, the artistic appeal is demonstrated from inside to outside. I think that today we can use Mr. Liu’s works to activate contemporary works. How should we understand this sentence? Contemporary art lacks such vivid and creative works with artistic appeal just like Mr. Liu’s, and the art world is short of such originality. The status quo is that art is empty and full of rampant plagiarism. I have also seen many works, but they cannot be comparable to Mr. Liu’s. Now the works of pottery and traditional wood carving are fairly good. However, they are characterized by excessively pursuing traditional techniques and not minding the meticulous work, thus displaying cumbersome craftsmanship. This form of art is a striking contrast to Mr. Liu’s works created in a vivid artistic language.

Such a situation also exists in the circle of traditional Chinese paintings. Since traditional Chinese paintings have such a long history, people often think of the veining effect, inheritance relationship and traditional techniques whenever the traditional Chinese paintings are concerned. Paying too much attention to these issues will inevitably lead to the rigidity of the art of traditional Chinese paintings and to the lack of artistic vitality like that of Mr. Liu’s. Therefore, today we workers in the media should publicize Mr. Liu’s works to activate the artistic creation and take his artistic spirit as a key to open the door of artistic creation. It is necessary for our media and art experts to study and publicize such an unknown artist as Mr. Liu and do a good job in extensive promotion. 

18. Zhang Zhongyi (Director and Research Fellow of China Association of Collectors, member of the Expert Committee for Consultation and Identification as well as Secretary-General of the Committee for the Collection of Painting and Calligraphy Works)

Sincerity Touching; True Love Marking 

The concentrated exhibition of more than 200 sculptures has first of all caused a visual impact on us. Moreover, the observation and experience of each and every piece of work led us to obtain an emotional resonance. By using different techniques, the author depicted the real life of the underclass in different periods and different environments from multiple angles. Looking at Liu Shiming’s works, people can’t help thinking of Qi Baishi’s paintings. Qi Baishi (1864-1957) also delineated the most common things such as fish, insects, grass and trees in his paintings. According to Qi Baishi, a painting “is vulgar if it is very similar to the depicted object but is likely to deceive the world if it is not”. “The subtleties of a painting lie in the ambiguity between likeness and unlikeness”. His paintings are lifelike and characterized by the unity of form and spirit, which are deeply loved by the people all over the world. Although sculpture and painting are aesthetically different, there are many things in common.

In any era, a great artist must have three basic pre-conditions: the experience of hardship, the possession of cultural accumulation and devotion to art.  By the same token, great works of art must also have three basic pre-conditions: distinct individuality, record of history and expression of touching emotion. Liu Shiming, as one of the postgraduates specializing in sculpture creation of the first generation after the founding of the New China, walked out of the palace and went down to the lower end of society. With his almost legendary life experience, he combined theory with practice by organically integrating traditional culture into folk art. In this way, he was silently engaged in his artistic creation and demonstrated his sincere dedication for several decades, forming a unique style of works. Different from classical Chinese and Western sculptures, Liu Shiming’s works give less sense of awe but more sense of affinity to the audience.

The sight of Mr. Liu’s works can lead people into the artistic realm where they can have a dialogue and communicate with them. This is the common feeling of many people. They are so attracted and affected by the realm and romantic charm of the works that there is no time for them to pay attention to whether the technical creation of the sculpture is excellent or not, or whether the proportion of the structure of the figure is accurate or not. This artistic effect cannot be achieved by ordinary works. The reason why there is such a strong appeal and penetrability lies in the core of his works which is just the source of human affection and love. Liu Shiming’s works, just like Qi Baishi’s, are unpretentious, fresh and natural, naïve and romantic as well as easy to understand. We might as well say that Qi Baishi is the people’s artist and Liu Shiming’s sculpture is the people’s sculpture.

The work “Kaifeng Handcart” (pottery) vividly depicts the life scene of the people at the bottom of society. Bending at the waist, a man and his wife are pulling a handcart and moving forward. The cart is heavily loaded, tires flattened. The work is full of hardship and the bitterness of life. Another work “Fusion” (copper) conveys the love between a man and a woman in a subtle and euphemistic way, which combines strength and wisdom to achieve a perfect state of harmony and beauty. Liu Shiming’s works were not created for the sake of creation, but inspired by feelings. The feelings and love expressed by him are not personal aria, but ultimately come down to the national feelings and human love. The sincere emotion and broad love enabled Liu Shiming to create naturally and freely. The utmost sincerity can influence even metal and stone. I can feel the flow of his feelings in his works as well as the rhythm of life of him who dedicates himself to art and eulogizes truth, goodness and beauty. The reason why Zheng Banqiao (1693-1766) left a good name by painting bamboo is that “even a branch and a leaf affect my feeling”. The greatest success of Liu Shiming’s works is attributed to the genuine feeling and the traces of great love.

I don’t know what the implication of the theme entitled “Liberal Wormwood” of this exhibition is. I remember that Li Bai (701-762) once wrote a poem, “When I go out, looking up to the sky and laughing, how can I be willing to always remain a mediocre man like wormwood?” Maybe this poem was used to reveal the viewpoint of a philosophical view that depicts that the ordinary contains excellence and common qualities give birth to greatness. Characterized by seeing big things through small ones and recognizing the whole through observation of the part, Liu Shiming’s works are both traditional and fashionable. By expressing feelings and love, his works have broken fresh ground in the circle of sculpture art, thus providing a lot of enlightenment for the value connotation of contemporary sculpture and its artistic development. 
Maybe I have a superficial understanding of the connotation of sculpture and its market potential. 

Sculpture is a collective name for engraving and molding. Since it occupies a three-dimensional space, it is a form of typical visual art, and has a long history and colorful culture in our country, including bronze ware of the Shang ( 1675-1029 BC ) and Zhou ( 1029-221BC ) dynasties, stone sculptures of tombs of the Han Dynasty ( 206 BC-AD 220 ), grottoes of the Northern and Southern Dynasties ( 420-589 ), the pottery figurines of the Tang Dynasty (918-907) and so on, thus occupying an important position in the world history of sculpture. The biggest characteristic of sculpture artworks can be described as intuitive, lifelike and easy to understand. Capable of breaking through the boundaries of languages, texts, images and nations, they vividly record history and social life and express authors’ feelings through their unique plots, realism, exaggeration and symbolism. Some sculptures are like colorless paintings and some are like pieces of music without scores. They are aesthetically unique and contain unique artistic and historical value. Due to their relatively long natural life, they are the precious materials for people to research on the spirit of the times and the history of mankind. 

When it comes to the market, due to the strong professionalism of sculptures, they have a relatively small number of audiences. At the beginning of the mass collection and transactions, the market is relatively quiet. However, artistic value, historical value and documentary value will embody economic value in the end. In recent years, more and more sculptures have been auctioned. At the recent Sotheby’s Autumn Auction in Hong Kong, a gilt sitting statue of Buddha created in the period of Yongle of the Ming Dynasty ( 1368-1644 ) was purchased by Mr. Cai from Xiamen for 116 million Hong Kong dollars. This is a case of the auction of ancient Chinese sculptures. It is needless to say, all of the above indicate the vast size of the market for Chinese sculptures. The value of sculptural works should attract the attention of art collectors, intermediaries and the media.
   
Today, due to time limits, you may not enjoy yourselves to the full, but we will have more opportunities to communicate with each other in the future. Today, on behalf of our organizer, I would like to express my thanks for the arrival of Mr. Liu and all the guests and experts present. It is hoped that the major media and experts present today will do more extensive publicity for Mr. Liu and the Chinese sculptures so as to promote the development of Chinese sculpture art and the market, and expand a broader market space. Thank you again for your participation.

19. Chen Zui (Research Fellow of the Institute of Fine Arts, Member of the Academic Committee and Director of the Theoretical Research Office of China National Academy of Arts as well as member of the National Committee of CPPCC)

Opening “The Catalogue of Liu Shiming’s Works”, I caught sight of the image of a master — the self-portrait sketched on the title page. And “Self Portrait” in the work was created by a master while the image of the object was also the image of a master.  As to that work photo, it shows the image of a simple and honest farmer in the North.  However, it is this “Northern farmer” who kneaded out many unforgettable paintings with his strong hands.

The first characteristic of the work is the concept of the national character. There are not only the anatomy and structure of Western sculpture, but also the carving and chasing of the national sculpture, such as “Going for a Walk with Birds” and “Performer Backstage”. On the whole, they are more of a popular aesthetic taste. What are related to this are the traits of folklore in themes and styles. The Western sculpture focuses on clumps and images, which, however, become not very important to Mr. Liu. Even his representative work “Splitting the Mountains to Let the Water Flow”, which is relatively “Western style”, is still full of “soil” flavor. After the 1980s, his works were almost in the style of genre painting. He likes to elaborate his works in a panoramic manner. He built boats and houses in the sculptures. He used sculptures to narrate stories, for example, “A Farm House”. In fact, none of these are what a sculptor is supposed to do, but he did them. 

The second characteristic is technically the style of freehand brushwork. Its extension can be described as pictorial, like drawing a painting in the style of “freehand brushwork” with mud. “Re-Education” is a case in point. 

The third characteristic is its distinct individuality characterized by doing extra things in the name of sculpture, which, on the contrary, displays the unique effect. The picture is depicted as complex, the spirit is put forward as simplistic and the interest is revealed in the random elements. Thanks to his elaboration and narration, the complex houses, walls, courtyards, pots and pans, chickens and ducks, pigs and dogs, which are seemingly very miscellaneous and complicated, unintentionally help him tell stories. He did not “seriously” depict facial features of the five sense organs (ears, eyes, lips, nose and tongue), but the manner was expressed. By his seemingly casual acts such as twisting, piling, kneading and molding, he offered people an endless aftertaste. This is Liu Shiming’s sculpture, or more accurately, ceramic craft. We seem to have seen them in the unearthed cultural relics or in the folk art but ultimately they were created by him. This is Liu Shiming. I don’t know whether this “northern farmer” is an alcoholic, but I always associate him with his work “Ruan Ji”, who is so intoxicated and so frank.

Mr. Liu is a man who has experienced more than half a century. His works are permeated with life experiences, full of rich feelings, and also reflect the glamour of the spirit of our national art. As time goes on, his works will become more valuable.