Statue of Shakyamuni Emerging

The Statue of Shakyamuni Emerging is a woodcarving piece by Taiwanese artist Huang Tu-shui in 1926. The replica is an important antiquity of the Republic of China.

During the Japanese rule in Taiwan, although Huang Tu-shui became famous in the Japanese imperial exhibition, he was economically disadvantaged. The president of Taiwan Chinese Daily New Newspaper, Akaishi Sadazo, once suggested that he give up pure art creation and make smaller works catering to a general audience to make a living. However, Huang Tu-shui refused to accept this suggestion. At that time, Wanhua residents were to donate a statue of Sakyamuni to Wanhua Lungshan Temple, and Wei Qing-de presided over the fundraising. As a result, in the name of sculpting a Buddha statue, Wei Qing raised funds for Huang Tu-shui to create this work.

Huang Tu-shui changed the traditional style of Buddha sculpture. He was inspired by the painting “Shakyamuni Emerging from the Mountain” by Liang Kai, a painter from the Song Dynasty. He carved the appearance of the Shakyamuni Buddha, who eventually became enlightened after nine years of practice and descended the mountain. Therefore, the sculpture’s name is the “Statue of Shakyamuni Emerging.” The Buddha dignifiedly stands with palms folded, pulling a drooping robe to form two pulling forces. The two forces are closed by a rounded hem and a pair of bare feet, balanced and open. First, the artist made a clay sculpture and then turned it into a plaster statue, which was used as a mold to carve it out of wood. This piece was completed in 1926, brought back to Taiwan at the end of the year, and enshrined in Longshan Temple.

In 1945, during the Taipei air raid, the Statue of Shakyamuni Emerging, enshrined in the side hall of Longshan Temple, was destroyed. Later, the Council for Cultural Affairs invited Huang Chao-mo to complete the restoration in 1989. On October 30th of the same year, the Council for Cultural Affairs donated five bronze replicas to the National Museum of History, National Taiwan Museum of Fine Arts, Tainan Kaiyuan Temple, Kaohsiung Museum of Fine Arts, and Lungshan Temple, where the original wood carving was displayed.