Chinese Art Stones
C.C. Hsiao Art Stones
Weiming Lu Art Stone
China has a long history of using stones, calligraphy, and poetry in classical China Gardens; stones with features that evoke mountains and landscapes, or become poetic tablets, or are chosen to reproduce a particular painting.
This China Garden has five Chinese Art Stones that carry symbolic meaning in the number 5: 5 elements (water, wood, fire, earth, metal), 5 directions (North, South, East, West, Center), 5 sacred mountains (Mount Heng in Shanxi Province – North, Mount Heng in Hunan Province – South, Mount Tai – East, Mount Hua – West, Mount Song – Central).
Weiming Lu Art Stone
Weiming Lu pointing at his calligraphy on Art Stone
The Weiming Lu Art Stone rises organically in front of the Xiang Jiang Pavilion.
山水有清音 心与月俱静
shān shuǐ yǒu qīng yīn xīn yǔ yuè jù jìng.
The text on this art stone is a composite of two Chinese poems:
The first line (right side of stone) is from a poem by Zuo Si 左思 (250-305), 山水有清音, and translates as:
“Mountains and waters are making pure music.”
The second line (left side of stone) is from a poem by Li Tiaoyuan 李调元 (1734-1803), 心與月俱静, and translates as:
“My heart and the moon are listening in peace.”
The stone is reminiscent of Chinese landscape paintings of the Northern Song dynasty, with layers of mountain ranges and beautiful calligraphy and poetry to enhance one’s enjoyment of this work of art and one’s connection to nature. Two of the necessary elements of a China garden are mountains 山 and water 水. Here, one can imagine oneself as a traveler starting in the foothills and wandering on the cloudy path up the mountain, listening to the peaceful music of the mountain streams and waterfalls. This stone is engraved with the Chinese brush calligraphy of past MCFGS board member and Advisor Weiming Lu. Weiming was an Urban Planner instrumental in designing Lowertown St. Paul, a world-renowned calligrapher, and a leader of the sister-city relationship. He traveled in 1988 to Changsha with then-Mayor Latimer for the official creation of the St. Paul-Changsha Sister-City Relationship. This Chinese immigrant worked for decades promoting friendship and understanding between Minnesota and China and furthering art on the board of Public Art Saint Paul.
Weighing nearly 3,000 pounds, this stone is a local deeply-weathered Limestone. The characters on the Weiming Lu stone were engraved by Brian Rosen, Stone & Steel Design, St. Louis Park, MN. This stone is from Hedberg’s Landscape, Plymouth, MN.
The four Hsiao Art Stones
Between the two paths leading from the Hmong Plaza to the Xiang Jiang Pavillion, the four Hsiao Chinese Art Stones arise like four mountain peaks.
The character Mei 美 means “Beautiful” and is also the first character in the word Meiguo 美國 meaning “America”
The character Zhong 中 means “Middle” and is also the first character in the word Zhongguo 中國 meaning “China”
The character Ming 明 means “Bright” and is also the first character in the word Mingzhou 明州 meaning “Minnesota”
The character Yuan 苑 means “Garden” or “Park” and has been the logo for the Minnesota China Friendship Garden Society, since its founding in 2005
MCFGS received four beautiful pieces of original Chinese brush calligraphy created by the late Dr. C.C. Hsiao, Co-Founder of MCFGS. Taken together, these four characters form the phrase “Mei Zhong Ming Yuan,” which translates as “US-China-Minnesota Garden.” Each Chinese character carries an individual literal and symbolic meaning.
The first and second stones, Mei 美 and Zhong 中, are dedicated to Dr. CC Hsiao and his wife Joyce Hsiao to symbolize their life of being born in China and moving to the U.S. and raising a family in Minnesota, and to honor them for their decades of work in building bridges between China and the U.S. Dr. Hsiao was one of the founders of the Minnesota Chapter of the USCPFA (the US-China Peoples Friendship Association) in 1974 and one of the Co-Founders of the Minnesota China Friendship Garden Society in 2005. Joyce Hsiao was on the founding MCFGS Board of Directors where she served for 17 years until moving to the MCFGS Honorary Advisory Council for several years until her passing in 2025. Both were instrumental in the founding of the US-China Peoples Friendship Association-Minnesota Chapter. Their legacy is continued through their daughter Caroline Hsiao Van, who is a MCFGS Honorary Advisory Council member, and their granddaughter Ali Hsiao Van, who is a current MCFGS Board member. Throughout their lives, CC and Joyce worked to promote cultural understanding and friendship between the US and China and between Chinese Americans and Hmong Americans.
The Hsiao art stones are granite basalt, weighing approximately 1 ton each, from Hedberg’s Landscape, Plymouth, MN. The characters were hand-carved onto the stones by Minnesota artist Peter Morales, Balam Studios, St. Paul, MN. Morales also hand-carved the elegant characters on the granite West Paifang Entrance.
The third and fourth stones (明 and 苑) are dedicated to two other individuals who had a significant impact on US-China relations over many decades and who were instrumental in the creation of the China Friendship Garden. The Ming 明 stone is dedicated to Mary Warpeha who was the President of the US-China Peoples Friendship Association-Minnesota Chapter at the time when the idea for a China Garden first arose in 2000. In her capacity as President, Mary supported the creation of the China Garden Committee and became one of its founding board members when MCFGS was incorporated in 2005. Mary continues to actively serve on the Board after 20 years. Mary’s interests have centered around friendship, cooperation and embracing global cultural traditions.
The Yuan 苑 stone is dedicated to Linda Mealey-Lohmann, who with Dr. C.C. Hsiao first came up with the idea to build a China Garden in Minnesota based on sister-city relationships in 2000 and co-founded the Minnesota China Friendship Garden Society in 2005. Linda served as the MCFGS President for 15 years, from 2005 to 2020. During this time, under Linda’s leadership, MCFGS raised more than $1.5 million to fund and construct Phase I of the St. Paul-Changsha China Friendship Garden of Whispering Willows and Flowing Waters at Phalen Regional Park, St. Paul, Minnesota. She was the lead for coordinating the sister-city gift of the 5 Peanuts sculptures to Changsha, and the Changsha architects and artisans involved with the Minnesota construction through 2019. She was also the Project Manager for the 9 Art Stones project (Chinese, Dakota & Hmong) in 2021. Linda has continued to serve as the Secretary of MCFGS since 2020. Linda’s interests have centered around building friendship and an understanding of Chinese culture for all visitors to the China Garden.