Artist's creative journey highlighted

Hsiung also attended La Grande Chaumiere, the art school known for encouraging its students to be free from strict academic rules.

Hsiung's exploration with art advanced shoulder to shoulder with his accumulation of Chinese cultural traditions. He once said,"Philosophy is in the pursuit of the meaning of existence, while making sculptures is to visualize the meaning by creating an image out of it".

Wu Weishan, director of the National Art Museum, says Hsiung's creations show a pursuit of scientific precision and meticulousness that Hsiung learned in Europe.

Wu exchanged correspondence with Hsiung and sculpted his bust when he visited Nanjing in 2002.

"His works also transmit a charisma of tenderness and modesty and the open mind of Chinese scholars he was born with," Wu says.

Hsiung notably depicted and sculpted cows, as they represented the hard work, integrity and unpretentiousness of Chinese culture.

His Kneeling Cow was unveiled in March 2002 at Nanjing University to mark its centennial anniversary. It bears an inscription by Yang Zhenning, which says Hsiung summarized in the sculpture the self-definition of several generations of Chinese intellectuals.

Hsiung himself said of the work that, "a benevolent man sees (in the cow sculpture) an ultimate devotion, a brave man sees an unyielding gesture, and a wise man sees it is ready to kneel down to let the cowboy climb up and together, they march to the soil to be cultivated... It is a cow to represent the spirit of Chinese nation, enduring a heavy load and embarking upon a long journey."

Hsiung died just months later after suffering a stroke.

Wu said of his friend that, "Pingming was always seduced by new territories. He did not look forward to becoming a noted figure in certain areas. Often, he was too committed to venturing into the new territories to find the way back."