>> welcome to the san francisco civic center. if so the president of the san francisco arts commission. -- i am the president of the sentences " arts commission. we're pleased to present to you today this incredible temporary work of art. three heads, six arms by the internationally renowned artist. this is conjunction with the 30th anniversary city celebration. you will hear more about that as well. we're pleased to have you here. we're pleased to have the artist join us today along with our

various partners in this effort. this piece will be with us for 18 months. everyone will have a chance to see it in various lights and from various angles and be able to enjoy his presence here and san francisco. i cannot imagine a more gorgeous morning to kick this off. thank you for joining us. we have the mayor, who told his staff and the folks at the san francisco arts commission that he wanted something spectacular to mark the anniversary. you will hear from the people who took that directive and got it done. first and foremost is the executive director of the san francisco arts commission. working with the rest of the staff at the arts commission,

the managed to gather the various components and people that needed to help to bring this to fruition and get it done in time for the celebration. without further ado, louis cansel. >> this is a phenomenal turnout. i am very pleased on behalf of the arts commission. i want to thank you for taking the time to join us for this dedication ceremony. the arts commission is especially grateful that mayor newsom, and others, and especially the creator of this magnificent sculpture could all be here today to celebrate the dedication of this work in the heart of our city. mayor newsom, the staff, the

commissioners, and i are especially proud to work for a mayor who normally supports the arts, the challenges us to do more, to be older -- bolder. i distinctly recall that about eight months ago, he said that he wanted something big. he said he wanted something impactful and controversy of that push the envelope. mr. mayor, i hope this is big enough for you. the arts commission celebrated its 40th anniversary and made history with the debut of the glass memorial. what is missing is at the academy of silecience. we may to history again with the world premiere of the new sculpture by this artist.

i think that is worth around applause. [applause] -- today, we make history again with the world premiere of the new sculpture by this artist. he gained international notoriety for his early performance art captured anin photographs that now grace the walls of some of the most significant museums, including the san francisco museum of art. after he moved to san francisco in 2005, he started a new chapter in his artistic career by embracing a more traditional mode of painting, drawing, and sculptures. tools work -- his work now exemplifies a more traditional link with his culture. he continues to use the body is

the primary vehicle for exploring questions related to tradition, history, and personal experience. this work is part of an important series of monumental works depicting be fragmented extremities of buddhist sculptures that inspired his discovery of religious sculptures that did been destroyed during the cultural revolution and were for sale in a tibetan market. mr. hcange was deeply -- he was deeply moved by the damaged sculptures. with this work, he believes he is able to alleviate the pain caused by their destruction. it is a commentary on the changing reality the chinese people who are being forced to reconcile their deep-seated traditions in the face of the country's successful and rapid modernization.

with this sculpture, mr. change presents us with a vision of hope that these two seemingly opposing forces can coexist with equal value. thanks to the gallery and the generosity of our many sponsors that our next speaker will address. i am happy to announce that the sculpture will be here through the end of 2011. i am also proud to announce the the national endowment for the arts award the arts commission is $70,000 grant, the second- highest this year, to support the bringing of this sculpture to san francisco. we're grateful to the chairman for that support. i want to take a moment to introduce the person, part of the team here at the san

francisco arts commission, but really the person who spent many sleepless nights trying to overcome the various obstacles associated with the transport and bringing this fabulous sculpture here to san francisco. please join me in welcoming and banking -- thanking jill for her great work on behalf of the city of san francisco. [applause] >> thank you. that was wonderful. welcome to everyone. can you hear me? i know that i have a soft voice. this is a glorious event. i am so happy that you are here to join us. i am amazed at how art to galvanize an entire city. literally overnight, a think the buddha has become the talk of the town. my main purpose is to identify and thank the many people involved on both sides of the pacific ocean.

without their help, this project could not been realized. to " the former first lady, hillary clinton, "it takes a village." with this project, that phrase could not be more true. as the project manager, i am the common thread connecting the many visible and invisible contributors to the project. i know that thank you's can be the most boring part of the ceremony and people generally to and out. please listen because my list will help you to learn the complex and dramatic sage of its dramatic journey from shanghai to san francisco. it is very complex to bring a project of this sale to for -- of this scale to fruition at the

top of my list, and must think the artist. [applause] he has given us the true honor and privilege of displaying his wonderful sculpture and our most public places. i also want to thank mayor newsom for giving me arts commission and the mandate to do something big and spectacular for the city. that is all i needed to hear to get something -- to get me going. i hope we have achieved what you desire. i am glad we pleased the mayor. we always want to do that. with the approval of my boss and the arts commission -- without their approval, this would have been dead in the water. thank you to all of them for supporting this idea.

with their usual enthusiasm for placing art, i p want i phiwantk the department of support of the sculpture. it was after was able to verify that the 30,000 pound weight would not crashed into the parking garage. engineering also contributed to this project. so many people gave and gave. this is somewhat chronological. there are still some big names to mention here. they provided the structural engineering calculations at no cost to the city. i was able to convince rec and pa the wickedrk -- i was able to convince rec and park that we could install this without doing damage to the city property. the engineer told us it had to

be within 12 inches of the center line of the plaza. it disturbs my sense of symmetry. i kept trying to move my head. we had to listen to the engineers. there was very little latitude for artistic intervention. now that i have the city approvals lined up for the most part, i asked the gallery in new york if they would consider my proposal. joe baptista from the gallery supported the idea and obtained approval from the artist. this was the make or break moment in the project's history. thank you, pace gallery, joe, and zhang huan for loading us

this wonderful piece of art. mr. howard adnd teresa hu met me for a drink. they asked what they could do. when i explained that i hoped it would help me to ship it from shanghai to san francisco at no cost to the city, that was my idea wish. my less than ideal wish was that they would do it and a great discounts. i caught them exchanging glances. howari caught them exchanging glances. howard said it would take care of it. this is a great moment. [applause] please stand up so that we can

recognize you. this is a san francisco-based company with offices anin shanghai and around the world. this project and the impact on the city appealed to them. thank you for your great gift. they went to work and quickly brought in victor. victor flew in from hawaii. provided the shipping free from shanghai along with a lot of the management and paperwork. stand up, victor. they did an excellent job. [sirens] the torso was too big to fit in the container. they put it at the top of the ship. it was wrapped in red.