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The Liberty
Tribune-News June 8, 1994 
They called her "yellow hair" and the other Americans "long noses." They were friendly, fascinated and curious to know more about these Westerners to whom they have been exposed only since the 1970's. That's how Ken Southwick of Liberty perceived the Chinese on a recent visit to Beijing. Southwick was there for a one-man art show at the Central Institute of Fine Art, exhibiting his oil, gouache and acrylic paintings as well as some computer paintings. He was accompanied by his wife Jane; friends Stella Walter and Claudette Smith; and Tommy Wu, a retired professor. Unfortunately, Chinese customs officials are not as friendly as the rest of the people. When they spot a "rich" American, dollar signs dance before their eyes, Southwick says. Southwick says his paintings are still in China and he's fearful he may not see them again unless he comes up with a lot of money. One official demanded $1,000 from him. At this point, Southwick doesn't know the status of his paintings; he's hopeful they are safe at the art institute. "Professor Wu is still over there and I'm counting on him to take care of it. I'm at his mercy right now. It really bothers him that his fellow countrymen exploit people that way." Southwick's paintings include a series of Chinese subjects from a previous trip there in 1987, some paintings of Chinese religious statuary he produced at the Nelson-Atkins Museum of Art, and a series of landscapes of the Ozark region of Missouri and Arkansas. He estimates their worth at around $10,000, but they're worth much more than that to him personally. "It's more sentimental than anything else. I don't paint to sell, I paint to illustrate my life," he says. Southwick's work in lithography and prepress at Direct Digital Design plus his friendship with Wu were the catalysts for him being invited to China by the ministry of culture. The art institute in East Beijing is in the beginning stages of developing computer graphics, desktop publishing, animation and 3-D. Southwick presented his video on computer art applications to the computer graphics department at the school. He was received warmly by about 200 students, faculty and businessmen when he spoke on opening night of his week-long show. He says he was surprised at the progress made by students at the institute with just two years of experience in computer graphics. "Their computers are old and beat up. I was amazed at what they were producing on them. They're using advanced software and really trying to compete"  Chengdu street scene They boarded a train after the opening of Southwick's show for the journey to Chengdu where they would spend four days. While there, they saw Buddhist temples and the Blue Mountain resort area. Then it was on to Xian to the site of terra cotta army excavations near the tomb of Emperor Ch'in who unified China 2,000 years ago and for whom China was named. Southwick says these life-sized figures were discovered in 1974 and are considered the greatest archaeological find of the 20th century. A highlight of the trip was definitely not the food, Southwick says. They were warned not to eat food on the train because it was not sanitary, so they stuck with tuna fish, peanut butter and crackers, and granola during their four days on the train. When they finally had the opportunity to eat home cooking with Wu's family, it wasn't exactly what they expected. Eel, pickled duck's feet, 100-year old eggs. "The eel didn't taste bad, it was unusual looking," Southwick says. "The 100-year old eggs looked terrible, but they were good. They were like hard-boiled eggs, but the white part was black." It was the way they prepared food that was reallly different, he says. When the Chinese cook duck or chicken, for instance, they chop up the entire carcass, bones and all. "Whenever you took a bite you'd have a mouthful of bones. That was hard to get used to ." In the Szechuan provinces where Wu's family live they like their food spicy, using large quantities of ginger and garlic which also proved a bit much for Southwick.  Rural area West of Xian While on the train, Southwick says he was surprised to see hundreds of miles of wheat fields, not rice paddies. Almost all the land is hand-worked, with most of it irrigated because of the dry region. In the cities, pollution control does not seem to be a priority. Southwick saw factories spewing out ugly black smoke near high-rise apartments. And Beijing has lots of dust and dirt in the air because of its proximity to a desert area. Traffic is a nightmare, Southwick says; streets are congested with cabs, buses, trucks, tractor-like vehicles, pedestrians and bicycles. "You would expect there to be millions fo people dead along the road, he says. "It's a game of bluff. I can't look." But he says the pedestrians and cyclists seem to instinctively know when a vehicle is bearing down on them and they move out of the way. "Honking has its own language."  Relief in Forbidden City People in the cities appear to be lower-middle class and live in high-rise apartments resembling tenements on the outside, but the interiors Southwick saw were neat, clean and well-furnished, he says. He saw no poverty in China; everyone seems to be employed, even if it's just sweeping the streets. He says they're very industrious and are always cleaning, although their level of sanitation is much lower than Western standards. Sanitation was especially poor on the train. "The smells you just can't imagine," Southwick says. On the subject of trade with China, Southwick says he shied away from discussing politics too much. But his general impression was that the Chinese think we should let them run their own country." There is, however, a strong student movement pressing the United States to increase pressure on China to improve its human rights record, he says. What most impressed Southwick about China is the industriousness of the people and the low crime rate. What he liked least is the food, even more than the poor sanitation. "They've been through a lot with the cultural revolution and the oppression," he says. "Now they're opening up and becoming more liberal and capitalistic. They seem like content people." |
