Shen Blue

1999

70’H x 38’W x 26’D
Painted Steel

Shenzen, China

Shen Blue, which acquired its name long after the fabrication process, became the focal point of a vision by one of John’s long time patrons, Ralph S. O’Connor of Houston, Texas. O’Conner recognized a budding cordial relationship between China and the United States and an arrangement was established between John Henry, Houston, Texas, and the Sister City Association in Shenzhen, China. The parties would work together to establish Shen Blue as a millennium gift from the City of Houston to the City of Shenzhen.

The sculpture was completed in 1999 and shown at the Pier Walk exhibition in Chicago in the late spring of that year and subsequently moved to the plaza at First City Tower in Houston for a six-months and then shipped to China.

The sculpture was transported on a container ship, a voyage that left the surface of the piece badly marred. Upon arrival, the piece was resurfaced entirely by hand, by over forty local workman armed with little more than scrapers and sandpaper. John Henry, skeptical at first, was amazed by the quality and speed of the work.  As is a common refrain, John and his crew, along with the skilled contingent of Chinese assistants, erected the piece and painted it in its eponymous color just in time for the festivities.

The ceremony surrounding the Shen Blue’s installation was attended by hundreds of visitors from the United States as well as sculptors and arts professionals from throughout China. Shen Blue stands in Shenzhen’s central Park as an icon of cultural respect between the United States and China.