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On June 14， 2020， Gao Xiaowu’s sculp- ture art exhibition， themed “Harmony and Music，” opened at Shiyuan Garden in Beijing， and would run for two months. The garden features clear streams， green trees and lush grass. With pavilions and cloisters scattered across the garden to form various landscapes， it employs classical art concepts. Around the garden are different styles of modern sculpture. Classical and modern works collide there， guiding the audience through time and space.
The exhibition features dozens of representative works by famous contemporary Chinese sculptor Gao Xiaowu from the past two decades. His most renowned early work， Standard Age （2004）， which gained global attention and became a hot topic of discussion， is included. Since 2015， he has begun reviewing daily phenomena to “awaken original nature with rebirth.” Inspired by the idea， he created the sculpture series Rebirth.
Gao’s works， whether serious or humorous， consistently express rational ideas about social issues and nature. He believes that today， especially since the outbreak of the COVID-19 epidemic， the peaceful coexistence between man and society， man and nature， and among mankind has become the common mission of all human beings. This idea has remained at the heart of his recent work.
China Pictorial： Your previous solo exhibitions were mainly organized to release new works. This time， you selected representative works for the exhibition. Why did you make this decision， and did you want to imply anything by it？
Gao Xiaowu： In 2004， I held my first solo exhibition featuring Standard Age， which has attracted great attention. Since then， every few years， I would release new works through solo exhibitions， which continues to this day.
Originally， we were preparing another exhibition for new works， but the outbreak of the epidemic and then the continuous and tortuous changes of the global pandemic provided me an opportunity to review my previous works. Over the years， I have continued to ponder and express the relationships between man and society， man and nature， and among mankind. Against this special backdrop， harmony has become the common aspiration of all mankind. With a lot swirling through my head， this special exhibition was launched.
China Pictorial： Forbidden City， created just after you graduated from the Central Academy of Fine Arts in 2004， already displayed considerable personal style. Then Standard Age from the same period attracted an even wider audience. How did your unique form of expression develop？ Gao： Forbidden City has a direct visual connection with pottery figurines of traditional Chinese sculpture art， and it was a pleasant surprise of my early exploration.
Working on Standard Age during the same period marked that I had truly found my own sculpture language and expression. When I was studying at the Central Academy of Fine Arts， I mainly focused on Western realism. By creating Standard Age， I first realized the tolerance and arbitrariness of Eastern art by finding appreciation for the beauty of its artistic concepts. Art has no national boundaries. It is about expressing one’s heart thoroughly. I am always finding more comfortable ways to express myself.
China Pictorial： What specific influence did contemporary Western art give you？ Why have you gradually shifted focus to traditional Chinese culture？
Gao： French artist Marcel Duchamp was an influential figure in the history of contemporary Western art. His work taught me to explore more possibilities. When I was in art school， the sculptures my teachers created were mostly documentary works like portraits. In addition to providing basic modeling skills for sculptures， my enlightenment from contemporary Western art was related to injecting social and philosophical thinking into sculpture.
More importantly， contemporary Western art concepts stress that the most important thing for artists is finding a unique way of understanding life.
As a Chinese person， I grew up in this land， and everything I am interested in remains here. My roots here have deepened， enhancing my self-confidence and ability to freely express myself with my art.
There is no need to deliberately distinguish between Eastern and Western artistic styles. The true charm of art is how artists leverage their own life experience to express philosophies about society， life， and the future.
The exhibition features dozens of representative works by famous contemporary Chinese sculptor Gao Xiaowu from the past two decades. His most renowned early work， Standard Age （2004）， which gained global attention and became a hot topic of discussion， is included. Since 2015， he has begun reviewing daily phenomena to “awaken original nature with rebirth.” Inspired by the idea， he created the sculpture series Rebirth.
Gao’s works， whether serious or humorous， consistently express rational ideas about social issues and nature. He believes that today， especially since the outbreak of the COVID-19 epidemic， the peaceful coexistence between man and society， man and nature， and among mankind has become the common mission of all human beings. This idea has remained at the heart of his recent work.
China Pictorial： Your previous solo exhibitions were mainly organized to release new works. This time， you selected representative works for the exhibition. Why did you make this decision， and did you want to imply anything by it？
Gao Xiaowu： In 2004， I held my first solo exhibition featuring Standard Age， which has attracted great attention. Since then， every few years， I would release new works through solo exhibitions， which continues to this day.
Originally， we were preparing another exhibition for new works， but the outbreak of the epidemic and then the continuous and tortuous changes of the global pandemic provided me an opportunity to review my previous works. Over the years， I have continued to ponder and express the relationships between man and society， man and nature， and among mankind. Against this special backdrop， harmony has become the common aspiration of all mankind. With a lot swirling through my head， this special exhibition was launched.
China Pictorial： Forbidden City， created just after you graduated from the Central Academy of Fine Arts in 2004， already displayed considerable personal style. Then Standard Age from the same period attracted an even wider audience. How did your unique form of expression develop？ Gao： Forbidden City has a direct visual connection with pottery figurines of traditional Chinese sculpture art， and it was a pleasant surprise of my early exploration.
Working on Standard Age during the same period marked that I had truly found my own sculpture language and expression. When I was studying at the Central Academy of Fine Arts， I mainly focused on Western realism. By creating Standard Age， I first realized the tolerance and arbitrariness of Eastern art by finding appreciation for the beauty of its artistic concepts. Art has no national boundaries. It is about expressing one’s heart thoroughly. I am always finding more comfortable ways to express myself.
China Pictorial： What specific influence did contemporary Western art give you？ Why have you gradually shifted focus to traditional Chinese culture？
Gao： French artist Marcel Duchamp was an influential figure in the history of contemporary Western art. His work taught me to explore more possibilities. When I was in art school， the sculptures my teachers created were mostly documentary works like portraits. In addition to providing basic modeling skills for sculptures， my enlightenment from contemporary Western art was related to injecting social and philosophical thinking into sculpture.
More importantly， contemporary Western art concepts stress that the most important thing for artists is finding a unique way of understanding life.
As a Chinese person， I grew up in this land， and everything I am interested in remains here. My roots here have deepened， enhancing my self-confidence and ability to freely express myself with my art.
There is no need to deliberately distinguish between Eastern and Western artistic styles. The true charm of art is how artists leverage their own life experience to express philosophies about society， life， and the future.