Contemporary Chinese literary theory cannot avoid the terms starting with “post-”. Post-modernism, post-industrial society and post-colonialism, etc. are no longer unfamiliar terms to Chinese people, but we should be aware that post-modernism and post-industrial society are specific cultural and literary phenomena of Western post-modern society, which can only arise in the regions where capitalist material civilization is highly developed and where there is a rich modernist cultural soil, while in China, which simply lacks such conditions, it is impossible to emerge. In his book The Postcolonial Aura: Third World Criticism in the Age of Global Capitalism, Arif Dirlik emphasizes that, unlike other “post” terms, post colonialism has an unusual origin, which comes from the Third World. Therefore, the ambition of post colonialism lies in the real globalization of cultural discourse, and its strategy is to extend the issues and ideological orientations of European and American cultural criticism in the central area to the global sphere, to introduce into European and American cultural criticism the voices and subjectivity that were previously on the margins of political and ideological colonialism, which demand to be heard in the centre. The aim of post colonialism is nothing less than the abolition of the distinction between centre and periphery.

I. The Disadvantages of the Term “Internationalization” of Artworks

The tendency to reproduce post-colonial culture is the most direct cause of the “internationalization” of Chinese contemporary art. If Chinese art is to move from the periphery to the centre, it must follow the ideology and criteria of the centre and be transformed into an art style that can be appreciated by the central system, as it is intended to be. It is easy to see that almost all of the postmodern Western art styles that shock the world can be found in China. Eating dead babies, self-mutilation, abusing corpses or self-mutilation have never been more insane. All the characteristics of postmodernism as summarized by the old school American postmodern theorist Ihab Hassan: indeterminacy, fragmentation, unprincipled, non-ego, shallow, humiliated, Non-expressiveness, irony, hybridized variety, carnival, action, participation, constructionism, interiority are all reflected in the works of some so-called contemporary Chinese artists or even more insane. If this “great leap” towards postmodernism in the new era is the so-called internationalization and convergence with the West, then Chinese contemporary art will be trapped in an awkward situation.

II. The Practitioner of the Path of Nationalization, Liu Shiming

So, in the post-modern context, where do we contemporary Chinese artists go from here? It would be a shame for a nation to abandon its cultural traditions, and it is therefore relevant to re-examine the spirit of traditional Chinese art. With the influx of new ideas from abroad, the whole art world has seen a vibrant scene since the reform and opening up. The large number of works in the four major art disciplines of traditional Chinese painting, oil painting, printmaking and sculpture, and the wide range of styles, have been unprecedented. China is a nation with a 5,000-year civilization that has created a glorious culture, and a nation that has undergone many vicissitudes, and traditional culture is an endless source of artistic creation. One of the most serious problems in contemporary Chinese sculpture is the blind pursuit of style, while the essence of tradition has not been properly maintained and manifested, which makes contemporary sculpture lack profound spiritual connotations. Some Chinese sculptors are in the midst of a fierce clash between old and new values, ways of thinking and cultural concepts, and they are confused and disoriented in their artistic practice. Although Chinese sculpture will continue to exchange, absorb, integrate and develop with the cultures of the other nationalities around the world in its future development, it will, in essence, follow the trajectory of Chinese cultural development according to its own laws of development. In this context, it is imperative to further understand the developmental characteristics of the traditional sculpture and to explore how to inherit and learn from it.

Liu Shiming has set a good example for our contemporary sculptors. He has lived a life of indifference to fame and fortune, yet he has produced many works, the majority of which present a completely different choices of subject matter and the language from that of the “French” and “Russian” schools. He has been immersed in traditional culture for many years, and his works reflect his heritage and promotion of traditional Chinese sculpture. Whether in the 1950s and 1960s, when the “Russian School” reigned the art circle in China supremely, or at a time when sculpture has become publicized under the induction of the market economy, Mr. Liu Shiming remains as committed as ever to the inheritance and promotion of traditional Chinese sculpture. In his diary, he says: “My artistic tenet: my works are different from others, and I just say I exist, but I do not ask others to agree or appreciate, or to agree with me and accept to evaluate me.” From his personality to his works, the three words “truth, goodness and beauty” are evident everywhere. In my opinion, his work “Sitting Together” is the perfect embodiment of the traditional Chinese aesthetic of “harmony is precious”. His work, “Splitting the Mountains to Let the Water Flow”, is the embodiment of the spirit of self-improvement of the Chinese nation. In this age of lacking great masters, we need more artists like Mr. Liu, who work diligently on their art, rather than trying to make a fortune out of rubbish works.

III. Is Liu Shiming an International Artist?

As we all know, people with different skin color and countries are divided into geographical limits, then the distinction of ethnicity and region will always exist. Therefore, the national and regional characteristics of artworks will never disappear. Mr. Liu Shiming is a well-deserved international artist who has been able to explore deeply the local Chinese cultural resources, including the traditional artistic techniques, the contemporary borrowing of Chinese cultural symbols, the revelation and reflection of today’s social life, the adoption of unique Chinese artistic tools and media, and the establishment of his own artistic identity and values, not willing to be a subordinate of the strong Western culture. We hope that more local Chinese artists like Mr. Liu will be recognized in the world art system in terms of their status and values, and that they will achieve this true sense of “internationalization”.