China’s Celebrated Sculptor, Master Ye Yushan

You are invited to attend the historic Dedication Ceremonies for the sculpture titled "Lantern Light" by celebrated Chinese sculptor Ye Yushan. The ceremony is Tuesday, June 15, 2010, at 11:00 a.m., on the Washburn University campus, northwest corner of Henderson Learning Center, in the 1900 block of Jewel. This formal dedication ceremony will be attended by representatives of the U.S. and Chinese Consulates as well as leaders of the Topeka community and the State of Kansas. We hope you will honor Topeka with your presence at this very special event for our city and the arts.
 

"Lantern Light", created by Master Ye Yushan, is one of four sculptures given as a gift to the United States celebrating 30 years of peace and friendship between China and the U.S. Other sculptures were placed in Washington D.C., Atlanta, GA and Newark, NJ.

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Master Ye was born in June 1935 in Deyang City, Sichuan Province. For his undergraduate degree he attended the Sculpture Department of Sischuan Institute of Fine Arts. In 1962, Ye completed his first major work—the seated white marble statue of Chairman Mao in Tiananmen Square. This piece led to commissions for public monuments throughout China.

To further his studies, he obtained his Master’s degree from the Sculpture Department of Central Institute of Fine Arts in 1963. During the 40 years that followed, a total of more than 100 prestigious sculptures have been completed and displayed in Beijing, Shanghai, Sichuan, Chongqing, Guizhou, Yunnan, Guangxi, Guangzhou, Hunan, Anhui, Jiangsu, Xinjiang, Changchun, Heilongjiang and many other provinces and cities. The size of those works range from life size to more than 100 feet tall.

In 1965, Ye directed the creation of “The Rent Collection Courtyard.” (pictured left) A timeless piece, studied in art history books today, this six panel display reveals the misery and political strife of human oppression.  With over one hundred clay figures depicting the fierce class struggle between the Chinese peasants and the ruling feudal landlords prior to the socialist revolution.  The work was a milestone for peasant representation throughout China, giving the people a unique voice caught in time and never forgotten.

In 1978, he returned to the Sichuan Institute of Fine Arts to be appointed as a professor and vice president of the academy. In 1983, he served as the president and dean. Ye left his job at the Academy of Fine Arts of the Sichuan in 1994 and built a studio on Mount Muma, in the southern suburbs of Chengdu.  This forest covered mountain, encircled by the Baishui River proved to be an art inspiring Eden for Ye. Eventually, the Gallery of Art Ye Yushan was founded which was the first private gallery of sculpture in China. The gallery promotes international artistic exchanges which is aided by Ye’s appointments of several government posts including the Department of culture Arts Commission Director, Sichuan Assistant Chairman of U.S. relations, the National Arts Council Executive Director of Urban Sculpture, and the Eighth National People’s Congressional Representative.

World Sculpture Park in Changchun, capital of Jilin province, opened in 2004 and contains both traditional landscape gardens and modern sculptures. The theme of the park is “Friendship, Spring and Peace”, (pictured right) reflected in a 23.5-m high monument designed by famed sculptors Ye Yushan, Pan He, Cheng Yunxian, Wang Keqing and Cao Chunsheng. The centerpiece sculpture won the award of “Outstanding Sculpture” at the 3rd National Exhibition of Urban Sculpture Construction. The park and the museum now have a collection of 439 pieces of sculptures made by 395 well-known sculptors from 212 countries around the world.

On the national level in China, Ye’s additional outstanding contributions include monumental sculpture “Ge Le Mountain Soldier’s Memorial” (collaborated project, pictured right), “The Vast Land”, “Four Seasons”, “Independence – Freedom”, “Liberation – Construction”, and “Du Fu”. These sculptures have all received honorary national awards. Several published literary works include “Ye Yushan Sculpture Collections”, “Ge Le Mountain Soldier’s Memorial”, “Ye Yushan’s New Sculpture Projects”, and “Ye Yushan’s Greatest Sulptures”. Ye has repeatedly traveled to Germany, India, Colombia, Brazil, Argentina, Chile, United States, Italy, France and Russia for foreign study and learning exchanges.

Internationally his works include “Friendly Ocean”, placed in Toronto City Hall in Canada and “A Toast to the Moon—a statue depicting of Tang Dynasty poet Li Bai”, displayed in Seattle Washington’s Chinese Garden and “Chinese Lantern Light” (pictured left) to be dedicated at Washburn University in Topeka, Kansas on June 15, 2010.


Gallery Hours: Monday – Friday, 10:00 a.m. – 6:00 p.m. and Saturday, 10:00 a.m. – 4:00 p.m. SouthWindArtGallery.com

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