In the Summer of 2005, Fang Shu-Jiu walked into the Volcano Editions Gallery in Oneonta, NY with a portfolio of original paintings, a published book of his work, copies of newspaper clippings, and a pocket-sized Chinese-English translator.
One of his photos showed him examining a painting with Ronald Reagan. Articles in his book described his design of a gold coin commemorating the 50th anniversary of the enthronement of the King of Thailand. Another described a 32-meter long government-funded marble sculpture: "Fang Shu-Jiu's 100 Stallions" in the Suzhou Scenic District in China. He was commissioned to paint a panda banner for the San Diego Zoo and his paintings are in the collections of Ronald Reagan, the King of Thailand, and universities and museums worldwide.
Professor Fang spoke so little English that Volcano Editions’ owners Sven and Karen Anderson called upon Chinese-speaking community members to act as translators. Ms. Anderson said, "We feel fortunate that Professor Fang approached us with his work. As he unfolded his portfolio to us, we became increasingly impressed by his talent and accomplishments. We were twice lucky to find Mrs. Grace T’sao and Professor Joseph Chiang to help us communicate."
Fang's story is intriguing. When asked how he came to be in Oneonta, a small city of 14,000 between Albany and Binghamton, he told T’sao and Chiang that he had been living in the Los Angeles area and was invited to a small town near Oneonta for commissioned work. He sold his furniture and relocated, but the work never materialized.
Fang Shu-Jiu's work includes Chinese Brush Painting. According to the Consulate General of the People's Republic of China in Los Angeles:
" The mastery of Chinese Brush Painting requires many years of dedication, serious study and self-discipline. It is one of the world's most demanding art forms.
The single, most astonishing fact about Chinese Brush Painting is that each brush stroke is a defining move that cannot be improved on or corrected. No sketch is prepared and no model is used; the artist paints with rapid, instinctual strokes transporting a mental image to mulberry paper.
From the first to the last stroke, the artist must 'get it right' the first time, unlike in the West where watercolor corrections and painting-over are a part of the technique.
Chinese Brush Painting is more than a representation of an object; it is also a symbolic expression. This is why a full flower is never painted, only a few blossoms representing the subject in its entirety, and all of life (TAO principle.) Rather than looking at a subject as one paints, the artist finds the subject within, and thus becomes a part of nature."
Fang's artistic expression of his social and political views were viewed as trouble-making in China. He said that his brushes were taken away from him at one point, but he continued painting. One of Fang’s works is a finger-painted tiger titled "Thinking." Another, "Teamwork of Tigers," is representative of a call to revolution.
He says he paints from deep in the heart and now uses the gestures of animals in his paintings to express his "liking, hate, sadness, and happiness" toward humanity and society. Although Fang currently specializes in painting horses and tigers, his work includes other animal and floral elements as well.