---Interview with China's famous sculptureletterMaster Painter Liu Zhong

Our Chief Correspondent  Tan Guoqi (1933-), Chinese chess player

     Liu Zhong (1927-1989), Chinese communist leader: 1960s outBorn in the Spring and Autumn and Warring States period, the famous prime minister Guan Zhong hometown, a water thousands of miles on the banks of the Huaihe River in Yingshang County, Fuyang City, Anhui Province, graduated from the sculpture department of the Central Academy of Fine Arts, under the supervision of Liu Kaiqiu, Qian Shaowu and other generation of sculpture masters. He is a member of the China Artists Association, a member of the China Sculpture Art Committee, holds a national qualification certificate for urban sculpture design, and is a professional sculptor of Hefei Sculpture Academy in Anhui Province, and has founded the Liu Zhong Sculpture Art Studio.

     Representative works: "Song of Spring" won the "International Sculpture Competition Silver Award"; "The Pearl in the Palm" as a gift from the Central Government to Hong Kong for the 20th anniversary of the return of sovereignty; "Xiang" won the "First Prize of Environmental Sculpture in the First Anhui Culture and Art Festival"; "Mother Earth" won the "Special Prize of Landscape Sculpture in the First Chinese Osmanthus Festival"; "Melody of Life" was the theme sculpture for the Beijing International Population Exchange Center. Special Award for Landscape Sculpture in the First China Osmanthus Festival", "Melody of Life" is the theme sculpture of Beijing International Population Exchange Center. Created Hainan Boao "exclusive", Hainan Nanshan 18 Luohan, Zipeng Mountain Buddha, Hefei Three Kingdoms Ruins Park sculpture, Anqing Tianzhushan Scenic Sculpture, Anqing Railway Station sculpture, Anqing Zhao Puchu Memorial Museum sculpture, Ningguo World Wooden Hut Village large-scale landscape sculpture, Yingshang Baili River Scenic Sculpture, SunislandThe main sculpture of the garden "Oriental Goddess" and other excellent works. He has participated in the production of Hefei Park landscape sculpture, Peace Square, "the city around the show" large-scale bas-reliefs and so on. In particular, two works, "King of Tibet" and "Bao Gong", were exhibited in Hong Kong and Singapore on behalf of Anhui Province in the "Anhui Localities and Customs Exhibition". Works have been published in major newspapers and magazines across the country, personal biography was included in the "Who's Who of World Artists", "Who's Who of Contemporary Chinese Artists", and published monographs "Liu Zhong sculpture collection", "China's most influential sculptor", "People's Sculptor" part of the works by the collection of the National Art Museum of China, the CCTV, Anhui Television, "the world's Anhui" program were made a special report on the community to cause a wide range of praise. Widely acclaimed, many provinces and cities have invited Liu Zhong master to design sculpture, become the country's famous sculpture masters, with one of its excellent works written in style life.

     This reporter was on this year's5On a chance visit to a sculpture design project in Chengdu, I had the honor to meet this figure of the Chinese sculpture industry, and thus started a rare interview with .......

     Newsweek Asia::Mr. Liu, from the exchange of information, your decades of pursuit of sculpture art, can be said to be renowned north and south of the Yangtze River, China, can also be said to have a place in the world, in order to promote Chinese sculpture, has played an extremely important role in your sculpture, as well as your painting and calligraphy basically formed a unique style, can you give us an introduction to how you embarked on the road of this sculpture art?

     Master Liu Zhong, Famous Chinese Sculptor::I was born in the fifties in yingshang county, fuyang, anhui province, I can take the road of art, especially the road of sculpture art, from three aspects, first of all, the family environment, in general, I am greatly influenced by the family environment, my mother found me in the early years of the hobby in the arts, very supportive. Sent me to the county palace of culture to learn painting and color sculpture, but also use the opportunity to travel to buy me back to the paper, pens and other painting supplies, in the spirit of encouraging me, in the economy to support me. In terms of life can be said that everything from the frugal, but I need to study supplies always think of ways to meet me, and then I laid the foundation of art and continued to grow, can not be separated from my mother's hand training. Secondly, it was my teachers who taught me by hand, and now more than half a century later, I am deeply grateful to them for their education and training.

     Another important factor is that the long cultural tradition and rich history of my birthplace cannot be ignored.. Yingshang is a good place with outstanding people, historically, the culture of the Central Plains and the culture of Wu and Yue mingled here, which had given birth to such cultural celebrities as Guan Zhong and Bao Shuya, the great politicians of Qi, Gan Luo, the teenage upper minister of Qin, as well as the contemporary oriental aesthetics master, Permanent Man, and so on. It is quite rich in culture, and the colorful sculptures of the folk artisans are also very famous locally, which can be seen on the street and the alleys. When I was a child, as soon as I saw the beautiful colorful plastic works on the street, I wouldWill be deeply attracted, often standing motionless for a long time, while admiring the beauty of colorful sculpture, while thinking that I myself will be sculpture how good. So I made up my mind to learn painting and embark on the path of sculpture. At the age of twenty-four, I went to the Shanghai Oil Painting and Sculpture Institute for one year of further study, where I entered a completely new field of art, but also fully appreciate the infinite charm of Western sculpture art. With the deepening of my pursuit of art and understanding, I was admitted to the Central Academy of Fine Arts Sculpture Department, on the one hand, from the systematic study of absorbing the theoretical knowledge of art, to broaden my understanding of the art of sculpture and cognition, on the other hand, listening to a generation of sculpture masters Liu Kaiqu, Qian Shaowu's wise teaching, so that I am in the sculpture of art in the ocean to swim. During this period, I also studied the works of Rodin and other art giants, and felt enlightened, as if I had entered a broader art hall. My spiritual realm, the pursuit of art has made a qualitative leap, this walk is more than half a century of sculpture, painting and calligraphy art road.

     Newsweek Asia::Mr. Liu, listening to your introduction into the field of sculpture, painting and calligraphy art, as if it makes us also be baptized and educated by the pursuit of art, your art path can be said to be thick and thin. At present your sculpture and painting has been in China contemporary industry in the same industry is known as a resounding master of art, can be said to be a veritable sculptor, painter, calligrapher, then you can give us an introduction to your sculpture, calligraphy and painting works what are the characteristics of it? What is the difference with general sculpture and painting and calligraphy?

     Master Liu Zhong, Famous Chinese Sculptor::In the same industry, I have a certain degree of visibility and influence, which can only mean that the industry and society for more than half a century I sculpture, painting and calligraphy art of a kind of recognition, but the art is endless, I am still in the continuous learning and exploration, from the masters of the gap between the requirements of me is still very large.

     As for what are the characteristics and differences of my sculpture, painting and calligraphy works, this is naturally there. Because everyone's artistic perspective, artistic cultivation have their own different characteristics, many of my works can win the praise of peers, social recognition, its artistic style so that most of my peers think it is very "sweet", is not purely Western kind of hard sculpture with sharp edges, but into the essence of a national spirit in it, the Chinese people Excellent traditional Chinese culture and Western sculpture art organic combination together, forming their own unique artistic style, works appear soft, good-looking, elegant and popular, which is the obvious difference between my style and the works of other peers. If we compare the work as a dish, then my sculpture is like a fresh and fragrant dish, full of sweetness and aroma.

     Newsweek Asia::Mr. Liu, over the years your works all over the country, has been beyond your location in Anhui, not only show your talent and works of vitality, but also to the people's lives, the enhancement of the city's image, the inheritance of traditional Chinese culture and carry forward a positive role, so many works is not only the embodiment of your wisdom, that there are also your painstaking efforts and explorations, can you introduce us to the creation of a few sections of the experience?

     Master Liu Zhong, Famous Chinese Sculptor::Yes, an excellent sculpture from design to completion, so that people from the sculpture to see a kind of spirit, appreciate the beauty, experience a realm, which has a very difficult creative process, to pay a lot of hard labor for it. For example, I was involved in the completion of the Anhui Hefei City Park animal sculpture group of this city card highlights the production of a lot of feelings. This group sculpture can be said to be the crystallization of collective wisdom, so many years later, I still remember. At the time of the first draft of the design, I drew a mother and child giraffe based on their own imagination, the picture of the deer lying in the grass, looking up curiously at the mother, the mother deer stood tall, stretching down the neck looking kindly at the deer, the scene warm and harmonious, very moving. Later, someone suggested me to go to the zoo to carefully observe the giraffe's living habits, so that the work produced is more realistic. So I went to the west suburb of Shanghai zoo to live for half a month field trip sketching, really not a small harvest, I noticed that the giraffe seldom lie down, mainly standing life, I came back to change the design of the first draft, just because of the real effort to go to the zoo for a long time to observe, only to avoid a joke, through this incident I really realize that art comes from life, life is the source of art. This group of sculptures so far in Anhui Hefei Park stands, by the majority of tourists love, scrambling in front of the group of sculptures to take pictures. Feedback that these sculptures: real, vivid, quite a living atmosphere.

     Another work that makes me feel very deeply is "The Melody of Life", which is the main sculpture located in the Xiaotangshan International Population Center in Beijing. At that time, hundreds of millions of soldiers and civilians from all over the country made concerted efforts to fight against SARS, composing a touching poem of disaster relief and bringing back the health of countless lives. To commemorate this significant event, the United Nations invested in the construction of a population exchange center here. At that time, the design of the main sculpture in front of the main gate was subjected to a national bidding process, which attracted eight strong art units such as the Central Academy of Fine Arts and the Art Department of Tsinghua University to participate in the bidding process. In dozens of excellent works of different shapes, I created a large sculpture "melody of life" finally stood out. This work is simple, only by a man and a woman two human body composition, but its meaning is far-reaching, indicating the strength, unity and hope, in the color of the choice of a symbol of life and blood of the big red, giving a strong shock and impact. In the disaster of SARS, I am not a doctor, I can not save lives, but I am an artist, I can use the power of art to infect people, to give people spiritual support, which is as an artist can experience the greatest sense of achievement.

    Newsweek Asia::Mr. Liu, I heard you just now:skillNo end in sight. You are trying to tell us that both your sculpture and painting and calligraphy are still on the way, right? At a time when your current artistic level has reached a fairly high level, what are your considerations for your artistic career and future, can you tell a large number of people?

     Master Liu Zhong, Famous Chinese Sculptor::Yes."skillEndless" this famous saying, since childhood, I have heard, as a child do not know its meaning, grew up on its understanding and awareness of the natural more profound, especially when I embarked on this sculpture art road, the feeling will become more and more profound. In the field of profound sculpture art, is the art of no end. With the development of society, the world art of mutual exchange activities are more and more frequent, mutual learning and interaction is also naturally increased. As the inheritor of Chinese sculpture art, spreading traditional Chinese culture and art to all over the world, so that people all over the world can share this great art of China, share this traditional culture, which has become one of my goals, a mission. Today, you enjoy the popularity of the media in the world, "Asia News Weekly" can come to interview, I am very happy, but also want to borrow "Asia News Weekly" to spread our traditional Chinese sculpture culture and art to the world, as a Chinese sculpture artist, only to continue to actively explore the art of this road, and continue to pursue higher goals, with their own art for China to the world, to the art of the field of a greater hall to make a contribution. As a Chinese sculpture artist, we can only continue to actively explore this art road, constantly pursue higher goals, and use our art to contribute to China's development towards the world, towards a larger hall of art, and in the future, we can actively contribute to the integration of Chinese and Western culture and art and show Chinese civilization.