"Breaking through the Iron Rice Bowl" (June 2006)
Terracotta, Stainless Steel
Sidney Meyer Asia Centre lawn
University of Melbourne, Parkville, VIC, Australia

During the Mao Zedong Regime, the term " Iron Rice Bowl" came to signify the guarantee of lifelong employment and welfare under the Communist state enterprises. Job performance, however, became nullified, and Party support became the important factor in determining job security and wages. As the government controlled virtually all aspects of the people's lives, China remained in strict isolation from the rest of the world...

Since the start of the economic reforms pushed by Deng Xiaoping in 1978, China has shifted toward a market economy and has undergone the highest rate of development the world has ever seen. This opening to the world and slow increase of liberalisation in the economy has been referred to as the "Breakdown of the Iron Rice Bowl." Since the implementation of its open-door policy, the nation has become the world's fifth largest exporter and has the world's highest influx of FDI (foreign direct investment). China also now has the third highest GDP (gross domestic product) in terms of purchasing power parity, following the United States and the European Union.

This piece demonstrates the process of China's continual opening and development. The Terracotta Warriors, a national symbol of strength and government protection, are now garbed in business suits as they march out into the world and attempt to gradually and peaceably establish China's presence on the international front.