Ju Ming (Zhu Ming)

executed in 1994, this work is number 3 from an edition of 8

Venice, Lido, OPEN 1999: The 2^nd International Exhibition of Sculptures and Installations, 1999, this edition exhibited
Macao, Temporary Exhibition Gallery of the Civic and Municipal Affairs Bureau, Sculpture Exhibition of Ju Ming: Taichi & Living World Series, 2005, this edition exhibited
Hong Kong, Times Square, Ju Ming Sculpture Exhibition, 2006, this edition exhibited

Sculptures Ju Ming: Taichi and Living World Series, Civic and Municipal Affairs Bureau, Macao, 2005, cover, p. 3 & 12, illustrated in colour
Ju Ming Sculpture Exihibition, Time Square, Hong Kong, 2006, cover & p. 37, illustrated in colour

This work is consistent with the artist's chosen medium and working method. It is in our opinion that the work is in very good condition.
"In response to your inquiry, we are pleased to provide you with a general report of the condition of the property described above. Since we are not professional conservators or restorers, we urge you to consult with a restorer or conservator of your choice who will be better able to provide a detailed, professional report. Prospective buyers should inspect each lot to satisfy themselves as to condition and must understand that any statement made by Sotheby's is merely a subjective, qualified opinion. Prospective buyers should also refer to any Important Notices regarding this sale, which are printed in the Sale Catalogue.
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Energy and Force: Disregarding Mass

If energy represents a sense of movement and force represents a sense of weight, then Ju Ming's bronze sculptures successfully separate these notions of weight and movement from the actual mass of the materials and the finished product. The artist's breadth of vision allowed him to quickly cast off traditional rules of sculpture, and his ability to use and shape materials was masterful and complete. Henry Moore would create miniature models in plaster before enlarging them into large-scale sculptures. Ju Ming took a different approach by working directly in the proportions he planned to cast in bronze. In this way, the strength, weight, and texture he poured into his variously sized works neatly corresponded to their dimensions.

In the large-scale Taichi series sculptures Ju Ming created in the 1990s, his hand is yet more bold and resolute. This is evident in the strength of his surfaces, which emphasise the structure of the human body. As a result, subtle and minute movements are discernible within the massive sculptures. One work that possesses this sense of movement is Taichi Series: Single Whip (Lot 1005), which portrays a Taichi practitioner in the midst of squatting, turning, and rising again with a bent leg. Taichi boxing includes postures both upright and low to the ground. The single-whip stance is a posture in which the centre of gravity is low: the practitioner sinks in defence, gathers energy, and rises again to strike. The origins of the single whip posture lie in Taichi legend Zhang Sanfeng's observation of a fight between a snake and a magpie. He noticed that the snake would slacken its body, face upward, and dodge back and forth with its head when the magpie attacked. The low defensive posture assumed by the snake embodies the Kung Fu principle of "using softness to overcome hardness". Ju Ming's Taichi sculptures, like the cursive-script (cao shu) calligraphy he is fond of, possesses an intense temporal kineticism comparable to the important concept of dynamism in traditional Chinese painting and calligraphy. Dynamism comes from structure, and so does the kinetic feel of Ju Ming's sculptures. His rapid and precise hand lends a firm structural touch to his sculptures that contributes to their fluid dynamism and coiled sense of speed.

"Ju Ming has a sense of weight, like the modern Japanese sculptors; Ju Ming has dynamism, which is also like the modern Japanese sculptors. But none of the Japanese sculptors have both qualities at the same time as Ju Ming does."
Kyoto National Museum President Kawakita Michiaki, 1977