In the chapter Washing and Refining in the Twenty-four Poems by Sikong Tu of the Tang Dynasty, there is a saying: “Like gold out of a mine, like lead out of silver, the sincere heart is refined, and true love is purified. A clear pond brings the coming spring, the ancient mirror reflects the spiritual portrayal. The simplicity shows dignity, and like the bright moon sets off its true nature. Bathed in the light of stars, and immersed in the melody of songs. Smooth as a flowing current, and like moonlight lighting up the past.” This is a poetic realm as well as an artistic technique, that is, it is necessary to achieve a state of natural purity and return to the essence, without the admixture of worldly dust and dirt, so it is said, “Like gold from a mine, like lead from silver.” After the ups and downs of his bumpy artistic life, Mr. Liu Shiming has refined the true gold and silver in his art. Therefore, a study of Mr. Liu Shiming’s art is also on the agenda.

As for human nature: Mr. Liu Shiming resolutely retreated in 1961 and came to Henan to pursue humanistic feelings in his heart. For the next 13 years, he lived among the people at the lower end of Chinese society. He set his sights on the real hard working public, and the “unexpected encounter” with the traditional Chinese sculpture at this time, the work experience in the Henan Museum and National Museum of Chinese History (now the National Museum of China) directly injected a profound traditional cultural heritage into his sculpture language. After returning to the Central Academy of Fine Arts in 1981, Mr. Liu Shiming ushered in a creative peak. He grasps the eternal theme of the reality of life, and reflects the precious humanistic feelings of a sculptor with delicate and vivid techniques. “A falling flower is silent, one is as pure as a chrysanthemum”, which can be said to be the most vivid portrayal of Mr. Liu. Traditional art is produced in individual loneliness, which dictates the time.

The turbulent life experience is the inexhaustible source of Mr. Liu Shiming’s artistic creation. Writings are for conveying the truth, and the sculpture carries the sorrows and joys experienced by Mr. Liu Shiming and what he was interested in. He quietly cultivated the soil of this traditional art, not for fame or fortune, not for money, he was freed from the political theme creation that dominated the country at the time, and gained a new life in a more free and broad world. Mr. Liu is keen on making figure statues. This is closely related to the deep humanistic concern in his heart. He discovered and sublimated human nature by creating a series of images of people living at the lower end of society such as the elderly, children, farmers, and hawkers, which embodied his real emotions for people. It can be seen that the characters created by Mr. Liu coming out of the five thousand years of Chinese culture. Nowadays, there are more and more sculptures of all kinds in the cities we live in, and some of them have even become symbols of the city, but many of them lack cultural character, artistic imagination, and humanistic care, which is most important in Mr. Liu’s works.

In terms of being national and being contemporary: Mr. Liu has learned from traditional Chinese sculpture. What has influenced his art, and what he pursued in the past, is pursuing the present and will pursue in the future, is still the understanding of Chinese culture. Applying this understanding into his works has always been his pursuit. China’s culture of bronze wares and painted potteries all contain the rich foundation of Chinese culture. This is what China’s current sculptors may lack. After entering the 20th century, traditional Chinese culture has declined. While artists introduced Western models to the creation of art, the excellent traditions and methods of their own national sculpture were ignored by everyone. From the perspective of Mr. Liu’s personal creative methodology and the concept that he personally advocates, the imagery thinking of Chinese traditional culture will play a positive role in the development of Chinese contemporary art, and he has been following this method of creation all the way. It is a way of thinking and expression of Chinese imagery that can provide a very important way for the prosperity of sculpture art in the world that they do not have.

In terms of Art and Culture: The most accomplished sculptors in the history of Chinese and foreign sculpture are the thoughtful, insightful artists who think about social, cultural and artistic issues. They are not only sculptors but also intellectuals of culture. Their sculptural creations do not merely impact on people’s visions through the shaping of their works, but mainly influence people’s minds and hearts through the meanings and ideas contained in their shapes, thus they have an impact on society. The cultural connotation determines the form and language of the sculpture, but in turn the creation of sculpture also plays a role in enriching the culture of society and its spiritual connotation. Historically, it is religion and custom that have played an important role in the cultural connotation of sculpture. Mr. Liu’s works such as the “Ansai Waist Drummer”, or “Guangling Melody”, or “Farmhouse” or "Performer Backstage”, or “Sheepskin Raft” or “Jigong Drinking”, all reveal a deep cultural heritage. He searches for the Chinese language and successes in the Chinese cultural lineage.

In terms of Internationalization: Mr. Liu’s works are a deep comprehension and expansion of traditional Chinese sculpture. He uses simple clay and wood to shape and carve vigorous and simple images. His works are philosophical and interesting, and at the same time can be enjoyed at will, focusing on the life itself. For example, in his “Self Portrait” series, a person sits in his own little world, which makes people not only think twice, but also triggers people to question their own souls. Another example is his series “A Memory of Kaifeng” and “Fishing Boat Returning at Twilight”, which leads us to enter a state of peace from the hustle and bustle and tension of contemporary life. At the end of the 19th century, the first generation of sculptors represented by Liu Kaiqu and Li Jinfa studied in the West (mainly in France) and brought back the Western sculpture techniques. In his early years, Mr. Liu Shiming studied with the famous teachers such as Hua Tianyou and Wang Linyi at the National Peiping Art Collage (the predecessor of the Central Academy of Fine Arts).

After the 1960s, he began to study Chinese traditional sculpture culture with great concentration. Traditional Chinese sculptures range from the figurines of the Qin Dynasty to the stone sculptures of the Han Dynasty, especially Buddhist sculpture art (grottoes) and mausoleum sculptures during the golden age of the Three Kingdoms, Jin, Southern and Northern Dynasties. The development process of modern Chinese sculpture is based on the introduction and absorption of Western sculpture modeling language as the mainstream, resulting in the neglect and marginalization of the inheritance and promotion of national traditional sculpture. When our country entered the era of reform and opening up, we found that the Western art system had stridden from modernism, which we are not familiar with, to postmodernism, which is more confusing for us. Facing the attack of powerful Western culture, Chinese artists took the initiative to cater for Western “mainstream culture”, and a large number of so-called “avant-garde art” under the banner of “internationalization” dominated the market and the creative direction of young artists. At this moment, we urgently need artists like Mr. Liu Shiming to lead our contemporary artists to revitalize our national culture and local arts, so that we can have a foothold in the world, instead of being a vassal of the powerful Western culture.

To sum up, the study of Mr. Liu Shiming’s art is of great academic value, whether from a human, social or artistic perspective, or from a cultural, national, contemporary or international perspective. What he has presented to us with his works is a long scroll of life. In front of his works, what we contemporary artists have to do is perhaps more introspection and reflection!