Hints:
Jerome Sans
Liu
Taiwan
Hou Hsiao-Hsien
Jincheng
Xuzi
Jerome Sans, curator of the exhibit, says Liu's work shows one reality of a modernizing China - the people who are left behind. "He is depicting social realities, social catastrophes, or realities which have no value, but which are serious human values, or showing problems mostly in fact." Sans compares Liu to a filmmaker. The artist used old photos and notes to first map out the ideas for his paintings. A film by Taiwan director Hou Hsiao-Hsien delves into the artist's thinking as he worked. In Jincheng, Liu paints the room in the little house where he was born. He paints Xuzi, a friend who has been laid off by the paper mill. Liu also paints other old friends in their jobs, a policeman, a karaoke club manager, and an ex-convict turned restaurant owner. "As society changes, every sector is moving and the changes affect each other. All this made me very surprised. I discovered that a person's ability to adapt is like grass in the natural world. When winter comes, it is dormant, but it comes back to life when spring returns." Liu's world is filled with ordinary people, most of whom struggle to keep up with and survive in today's China.
展馆馆长杰罗姆•桑斯表示，刘先生的作品反映了中国在现代化进程中的一个现实问题——有一群人“掉队”了。 “他描绘了各种社会现实和灾难，又或是一些微不足道却很严肃的人类价值观，又或是一些大多来源于现实的问题。” 桑斯把刘先生和一位电影制作者相比较。艺术家通过旧相片和注释率先表达了他的作画理念。台湾的电影导演侯孝贤在工作时深入探究了艺术家作画时的想法。 刘先生的《金城》描绘了一幢小房子里的房间，他本人正是出生于这间屋子。“徐子”，则描绘了一个被造纸厂解雇的朋友。他还在其它的画作中描绘了他的不同职业的老朋友们，比如一位警察、一家卡拉0K的经理，还有一位从前曾被判刑的饭馆老板。 “随着社会的变迁，其他各部分也随着变动，并且每个改变都在相互影响着。所有的一切都让我惊奇不已。 我发现人们适应改变的能力就如自然界的小草一样。当冬天来临的时候，它就进入了睡眠状态，但当春天来临时它又恢复了生机。” 刘先生的世界里都是一些普通的老百姓，绝大多数人都在努力地跟上现今中国发展的步伐以求得生存。