Spa City artist leaving a mark

Sculpture to go in downtown; exhibit set for museum

HOT SPRINGS — With much love for the city he has called home for 31 years, local artist Longhua Xu continues to place his artistic footprints across Hot Springs in a bid to leave the community better than he found it.

Coming public works of Xu’s include a large sculpture of an American Indian woman riding a horse that will be placed downtown, and an exhibit in collaboration with his 6-year-old grandson, Han Xu, that will be showcased at the Mid-America Science Museum.

The downtown sculpture will stand 12 feet tall and 12 feet wide. The exact location has not yet been released.

“It’ll be very nice for the center of downtown,” Xu said.

He said it will be named “The Explorer” or “Visit.” He hasn’t decided which yet.

Originally the face was of an American Indian man riding the horse, but he changed it to a woman’s after his wife, Shunying Chen, died last November. Now, after four years, the sculpture is complete and will honor what Xu and his wife want for their art in the community: to leave a lasting impact that makes people feel good.

Xu said when his work makes people happy, it makes him happy.

“This is not my family project, this is a people project,” he said. “We want the people to realize that we’re a tourist town. We want this town to be better than we leave. We came here, we loved it because natural mountains, flowers, trees, but we cannot just keep it like this. We have to add our footprints.

“My wife and I lived here for 30 years. We’re trying to make a mark on here. We say we want to make this city better looking. This is why she don’t buy jewelry, no expensive clothes. We don’t go shopping for years, but she buy my clay or my canvas. … She realized life is more important. You have to give to society instead of taking from society.”

Xu has also made an array of sculptures and paintings for local medical facilities.

“I have so much people I don’t know. They call me, they say ‘we appreciate what you do for us,’” he said. “I say ‘I don’t do anything for you, what are you talking about?’ They say … they walk out of the hospital and they see the big sculpture, and they feel something watch over them.”

“Sculptures really affect people’s life,” Xu said, “not only to look pretty.”

But Xu’s mark isn’t being left only on the community. It’s in his family too. As a family of artists and doctors, its members all take pride in community service. And now, at just 6 years old, his grandson is dabbling in the arts.

“Since my grandchild was 3 years old, he’s started painting on canvases with brushes,” Xu said.

Now, three years later, the two are preparing for their first collaborative exhibit to be showcased in the Mid-America Science Museum. “Crayons to Canvas” will be on display May 29 to Sept. 26.

According to a museum brochure, for his exhibition Xu avoids the traditional position of art and artist and adopts one that reshapes perception.