Young Mao Zedong, original cast bronze sculpture (artist's proof) by Pan He (潘鹤) (1990) Escultura por Chong En Cao

In the 1960's, Pan was asked to make a sculpture of Mao Zedong to be put in Mao's hometown, in Hunan. The project was trouble from the start. When Pan depicted Mao as a younger man with longer hair, he was told he could not do that: he did it anyway. The stone sculpture was so large that Pan was making it in two pieces: the torso and head, and below the waste. As a result, he was accused of trying to desecrate Mao by cutting him in half. He was jailed, made to kneel in glass and was beaten, daily. So much for good deeds.
Having a bad taste in his mouth about his first Young Mao, he decided to make a revised version in the late 1980's-early 1990's [he can't remember exactly when]. This is one of what Pan tells us around 10 copies of this smaller version artist's proof.
Several years ago, he was asked by the government for a copy of this one. Instead of saying no (he likes to make sculptures) or asking for millions, like many other modern Chinese sculptors, he told the government that he would make one a gift, in return for a letter of apology for his treatment the first time he made Mao's sculpture: he got the letter. It has special significance, entirely separate from the subject of the sculpture. He depicted Mao, in this sculpture and the first sculpture as an idealist, leaving Hunan to join the revolution in Guangzhou, instead of what he later became.
The inscription (see close-up on hyperlink page) on the rock underneath his feet is a poem by Mao that reads: 问苍茫大地，谁主沉浮？ Pinyin: wen cang mang da di, shei zhu chen fu? It means: Nature is so wonderful. Who can lead the future? In 1925, Mao left Hunan to come to the center of the revolution, Guangzhou. The line is from a poem that he wrote before leaving for Guangzhou. When he stood in front of Juzi Zhoutou (a little island in Hunan), looking at the river flowing to the north, there were red leafed trees on top of the mountain, they just looked like they'd been dyed. Many boats were out on the river, trying to run; hawks were flying, happily, in the sky; fish were playing in the water . In the deep autumn, he wrote: living things in nature are still having their free and happy life, but look at the motherland (the people), who can be the leader of you ? Who can lead the country?

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