The China Project

143 Three Decades: The Contemporary Chinese Collection AH Xian Ah Xian developed his ‘China China’ series of porcelain busts at Jingdezhen, the old Chinese city famous for its kilns — which have for centuries produced fine porcelain ware and objects for the Chinese court. The series inspired his interest in other traditional materials and techniques; working in cloisonné, lacquer, jade and then bronze became a natural progression of his reinterpretation of the great traditions of Chinese craft and design. The most ambitious and monumental expression of this progression is Human human – lotus cloisonné figure 1 2000–01, winner of the ‘National Sculpture Prize & Exhibition 2001’ held at the National Gallery of Australia in Canberra. Ah Xian made this full-body sculpture by using the traditional cloisonné technique. This work was first intended to be a porcelain figure, but the sheer ambition of its scale made porcelain an impractical medium, so the experiment with cloisonné was initiated. The sculpture was completed with the help of artisans in Hebei Province, and was successfully realised only at the third attempt. 1 A 1388 text called Ko-ku yao-lun by Ts’ao Chen, found in China, is perhaps the earliest reference to cloisonné enamelling. It describes the technique as Kuei-kuo , or ‘Ware of the devil’s country’, suggesting that the practice had come from abroad. By the mid fifteenth century, the Chinese had achieved mastery of the technique, and Chinese cloisonné work has become world-renowned. In this sculpture, Ah Xian uses the lotus flower as his decorative motif. Closely associated with Chinese Buddhism and Taoism, the lotus is rich with symbolism, representing spiritual unfolding, purity and awakening leading to the state of nirvana or eternal bliss. In addition, the lotus is associated with aspects of the divine within humanity. This serene, nude figure is adorned with blossoms on her cheek, shoulder, breast, abdomen and thigh, suggesting an overall sense of adoration, with the blooms and stems reaching around and embracing the figure. Bliss, harmony and stillness are personified in this sculpture, invoking the finer aspects of human nature. In contrast, Ah Xian’s 2007 ‘Metaphysica’ series, the latest iteration of the bust form, is characterised by humour, irony and lightness. The works nod to both Chinese and Indian historical sculptural canons associated with images of the Buddha and Bodhisattva, which often featured a mandorla of flame on the topknot. The caprice of placing highly coloured everyday shapes such as a fish, turtle or deer above his busts playfully confounds their meaning. Ah Xian’s interest in and engagement with traditional craft is intended partly as a means of retrieving aspects of aesthetic pleasure. The technical excellence of traditional Chinese crafts that once mesmerised emperors has today largely been pressed into the service of a virtuosic but uninspired craft industry that manufactures imitation antiques. Ah Xian’s work reinvigorates these techniques to create breathtaking contemporary sculpture. above Metaphysica: Red fish 2007 Bronze, brass and oil paint / 60.5 x 44 x 23cm / Collection: The artist opposite Human human – lotus, cloisonné figure 1 2000–01 Hand-beaten copper, finely enamelled in the cloisonné technique / 158 x 55.5 x 32cm / Purchased 2002. The Queensland Government’s Gallery of Modern Art Acquisitions Fund endnote 1 See Ah Xian [exhibition catalogue], Queensland Art Gallery, Brisbane, 2003.