The laureate of the 24th National Culture Award is veteran sculptor Ju Ming (朱銘).
Ju Ming was trained as a woodcarver at the age of 15 and apprenticed to sculptor Lee Chin-chuan, who helped him establish a solid foundation for carving and painting skills when a Matsu temple in his hometown was undergoing renovation.
Nearly four years after completing traditional craft training from his mentor Lee Chin-chuan, Ju decided to pursue further study in modern sculpture.
After overcoming many obstacles, Ju eventually became a pupil of renowned contemporary Taiwanese sculptor Yu-yu Yang in 1968, and later transitioned into the field of creative arts, marking a turning point in his life. The name Ju Ming was given to him by Yu-yu Yang.
Yang's style, which values spiritually creative concepts, had a great influence on Ju Ming. Later, Ju developed his signature skills and applied them to a variety of media, including bronze, styrofoam, ceramics and stainless steel.
By the end of the 1970s, Ju had become famous in the Taiwanese art community. However, he was not yet satisfied, and in 1981 he went to the United States to further develop his artistic creativity.
In order to find a location to store and display his various-sized works, Ju started buying land in the Chinshan mountainous area in northern Taiwan many years ago. As the property expanded, Ju began building an art museum using his own funds.
The Juming museum, which opened in 1999 after 12 years of construction, was honored with the 14th Tokyo Creative Award (Foreign Award category) in 2000. The master sculptor, who only graduated from elementary school, also received an honorary Doctorate of Art from Taipei-based Fu Jen Catholic University in 2003.
After being well-known in Taiwan for three decades, Ju was honored in 2004 with the Executive Yuan National Culture Award, the highest honor for artists in the country.
