Ju Ming: Lifelike sculptures descend upon Singapore

Ju Ming: Lifelike sculptures descend upon Singapore

Carla Bianpoen, Contributor, Singapore

Those entering Singapore after Wednesday will be struck by a set
of parachutes coming down at Changi Airport. Don't be misguided,
however, as these are the Living World series of sculptures made
by Ju Ming.

Ju Ming -- whose solo exhibition of 70 sculptures, including
his most recent Taichi series, opens in Singapore on June 30 --
is Taiwan's preeminent contemporary sculptor, a onetime craftsman
whose rise was set in motion by the powerful energy released
during his tai chi exercises.

Natural breathing and flowing movements of an unusual esthetic
characterize tai chi, the ancient practice that has its origins
in martial arts and has gradually found momentum today for mental
and physical health.

Demanding great precision in its practice, tai chi movements
release tension in the muscles through which immense energy can
be set free.

Said to have been taken from the movements of animals and
nature itself, it is highly spiritual and has also been termed
"meditation in motion", or an "inner martial art with an esoteric
technique".

All these features are revealed in the monumental sculptures
of Ju Ming, who has made tai chi part of his daily life ever
since he was advised to learn and practice it to improve his
slender posture, as well as developing his mental discipline.

Sometimes similar to rock structures found in nature, his
larger than life bronze Taichi sculptures never fail to stir our
senses. Motion and poise marked by an inner strength, the very
characteristics of tai chi exercises, make his giant sculptures
appear like indomitable creatures caught in a cosmic dance.

But among his most recent, and perhaps last works in the
Taichi series -- for the first time being shown in Singapore --
is the Arch series, in which Ju Ming visualizes the joining of
energies evoked by the movements of two tai chi practitioners
standing opposite each other.

Sometimes an arch may incline to the left or right side, or is
bolder in a certain part, probably indicating the stronger energy
coming from that part. But somehow the artist manages to obtain a
perfect balance, making his sculptural art an awe-inspiring
esthetic piece.

It is telling for the artist's versatility that he has not
remained stuck in representing the tai chi that has made him
world renowned. From those cosmic dimensions of humankind, Ju
Ming has moved on to human figure in every day life, but never
leaving the movement and grace of his Taichi series.

This can be seen in the parachutist sculptures, once exhibited
at France's Dunkirk Museum of Contemporary Art, and now in
various stages of descent at Changi Airport. With parachutes made
of strips of stainless steel, the life size figures of the
parachutists are cast in bronze.

Other sculptures from his Living World series shown in
Singapore are Lining up, a sculpture of a painted bronze,
presenting life-size people of a wide segment of society standing
in line, and Rest, aptly showing people resting on a bank.

While his Taichi sculptures are mostly in dark gray, the
Living World shows color, inspired by the teachings of his first
master who used to color his wooden sculptures of the goddess
Kuan Yin.

Six of his most recent Living World sculptures relate to the
monk the Venerable Ming Yi who cares for the sick and aged in
Singapore.

Driven by the compassion and selfless giving of the monk, Ju
Ming sculpted six monk sculptures in various poses. Five of the
six sculptures were put up in an auction that was to be held last
April, but was postponed until June 27 due to political
circumstances in this part of the world.

Proceeds of the gala dinner and Art of Benevolence auction,
the amount of which is unknown at the time of this writing, will
be split between the Ren Ci Hospital, where the Venerable Ming Yi
offers his services for the poor, and the Singapore Art Museum to
fund the exhibition

Both in the cosmic dimensions of his Taichi series and in his
instinctive, human and intimate Living World series, Ju Ming's
strength seems to be rooted in an art derived from self-
cultivation.

For Ju Ming, self-cultivation is the key to his artistic
creation. Cultivating your art, he says, is like the process of
self-cultivation in Buddhism. It starts with everyday life --
what you eat, what you wear and what you think about.

Up in the mountains of Nantou on the border of central to
southern Taiwan, the master sculptor whose powerful and
expressive style created a milestone in modern Chinese sculpture,
lives an almost monk's life, mostly confining himself to his wood
cabin and studio. Only now and then does he come out,
entertaining interested guests, like on that memorable day when I
joined three other people to his mountain "abode".

In his studio he showed us soldiers in styrofoam, awaiting
their cast in bronze to become a part of his National Troops
series. Though they may appear alike, they in fact are different,
in height and in facial shape.

A revival of the Xian Warriors? Not at all, it's to fulfill a
promise to let people know the experiences of a soldier, he made
one day long ago. These sculptures will only be shown at the 5th
anniversary of the Ju Ming Museum, slated to be in September
2005.

Ju Ming, who was born in Miaoli, Taiwan, on Jan. 20, 1938,
started life as a humble temple sculptor. It was a search for a
personal style that brought him into contact with the late Yang
Ying-feng (b. 1906) under whom he studied and learned how to
simplify his forms and intensify spiritual expression.

Ju Ming's first one-man show at the National Museum of
History, Taipei, in 1976 brought him international renown and
exhibitions in Asia, Europe and North America, which further
enhanced his reputation as an artist who had achieved a personal
expression that was unmistakably Chinese and yet comprehensible
to a lay audience. In 1991 some of his larger figures were
displayed at the South Bank Center, London and in 1997 at Place
Vendome, Paris.

In 1999, he brought to conclusion his 12-year work, the
construction of the 11-hectare Ju Ming Museum, an open air park
that also serves as a repository for his works, in the hills of
Jinshan, Taipei County, just an hour's drive from Taipei.

His fame is further enhanced by the prestigious French
publisher Editions Cercle D'Art 's in January 2001 released a
book on his works, titled simply Ju Ming. He has also received an
honorary doctorate from Fu Jen Catholic University for his
contributions to the arts.

The six-month-long exhibition of sculptures spread out over
Changi Airport, the Singapore Art Museum, the Orchard Road, the
Fullerton square and other vicinities in the city state, is Ju
Ming's first solo exhibition in Singapore of this scale. No small
achievement.

The six-month event includes an arts talk on July 4 on Sharing
the Development of Chinese Art and Esthetics, featuring Chinese
arts specialist Dr. Michael Sullivan, as well as Dr. Zhu Qi from
the Ministry of Culture/China and Dr. Liu Baicun and Dr. Chin-
Cheng of the National Taiwan College of the Arts at the Asian
Civilizations Museum, Ngee Ann Auditorium (Empress Place
Building).

Guided talk tours, multicultural tai chi demonstrations,
children's programs, sculpture walk tours and modern interpretive
dance, as well as photo contests and painting classes, will be
held throughout the period.

Helina Chan of iPreciation gallery said that for the
transportation of the thousands of tons weight of the sculptures,
a massive sum of funds was needed, and specialists had to measure
the ground of Orchard road and other vicinities for their
carrying capacity before installing the sculptures.

The exhibition, which is jointly organized by the Singapore-
based iPreciation gallery, the Singapore Art Museum and the
JuMing Museum/Taipei, will travel to Beijing and Shanghai as of
the end of December 2004.

JU MING solo exhibition runs from June 30 to Dec. 30. Further
information at Singapore Art Museum, Bras Basah Road 71, tel: +65
63327808, fax: +65 63323218; and iPreciation, The Fullerton
Hotel, 1 Fullerton Square, #01-10, Singapore, tel: +65 63390678,
fax: +65 6438208.