THE architect of Shenzhen's former municipal government building hopes to find a permanent home for more than 300 petrified wood sculptures he has created in the 10 years since his retirement.

The works by Zheng Wenzhen, 71, have gone on show at only their second public exhibition at Shenzhen Musuem but Zheng said his true wish is now to find them a permanent home.

Zheng retired in 1997 after running an interior decoration company which he set up after leaving his post as an architect with Shenzhen municipal government.

Since then he has created more than 300 sculptures in petrified wood and grotesque stone.

Following a five-month exhibition in Guangzhou, more than 160 works, selected from Zheng's collections, are being displayed at Shenzhen Museum through October 7.

"This is only the second time my works have been exhibited in public because I have devoted most of my time to petrified wood sculptures over the past 10 years," Zheng said.

To help audiences better appreciate the works on display, Zheng has given each of them a title accompanied with short comments in the form of a traditional Chinese-style poem or aphorism he has written.

Most of the titles, poems and aphorisms have been translated by his son into English for the convenience of foreign visitors although Zheng himself does not speak any English.

Now he is hoping he can find a sponsor to set up a permanent home for the works which have cost him his life savings.

The works on display are classified into major categories such as household utensils, animals, scenery and human figure sculptures.

Most of the animal sculptures are Zheng's early works. Among the human figure sculptures, highlights are works such as "African Woman," and "Master Painter Qi Baishi."

The sculpture "African Woman," carved from a whole piece of petrified wood from Indonesia, is one of the works Zheng feels most satisfied with.

Carrying a basket of fruits on her head, the African woman looks calmly forward with her hands crossed in front, and a black dog standing alert under her white dress.

The woman's head with earrings, her straight neck, large breasts, crossed hands, and one foot as well as the fruit and the dog were all carved out of the black central parts of the petrified wood and shine after being polished.

"Petrified wood sculpture is the art of reduction, which requires a sculptor, who after getting a piece of natural petrified wood, has to cut off the unnecessary parts while preserving its unique forms, textures and colors," Zheng said.

"In my works, I have been trying to combine the natural beauty of petrified wood with the rational principles guiding my artistic creation and production," he said.

Born in the ancient city of Quanzhou, Fujian Province in 1936, Zheng began to work at the Beijing Institute of Architecture Design in 1964 after graduating from the architecture department of Qinghua University in Beijing.

In 1980, when the Shenzhen Special Economic Zone was established, Zheng was transferred from Beijing to Shenzhen to take charge of designing the Shenzhen municipal government building, which remains in use today on Shennan Central Road in Futian District.

From 1986 to 1991, Zheng was sent by the Shenzhen municipal government to work in Hong Kong.

Feeling he was extremely lowly paid while working in Hong Kong, Zheng decided to resign from his official post as an architect, and open his own interior decoration company in Hong Kong in 1992.

In 1997, Zheng found it was difficult to develop his business in Shenzhen and decided to shut the business and retired.

"After I retired in 1997, I found a piece of petrified wood on sale in the Luohu Commercial City in Luohu District one day when I went window shopping there," Zheng recalled.

Attracted by the petrified wood's magical beauty, Zheng immediately bought it, wondering what he could do with it.

"I had formed a strong liking for wood and stone carving since my childhood back in my hometown in Fujian Province," Zheng said.

"However, I couldn't really find any time to develop my interest before," he said.

After intensive research and study, Zheng decided to use petrified wood as the raw material to develop his peculiar form of sculpture.

Zheng began to collect various kinds of petrified wood from home and abroad, and built a workshop in his home town in Quanzhou, Fujian Province.

"Because stone carving can produce a lot of noise and environmental pollution, it was impossible for me to build a workshop here in Shenzhen," said Zheng, who is now living in Luohu District.

Sine 1998, Zheng has made more than 300 petrified wood sculptures with the help of his young apprentice and assistant Zhou Pingting, a native of Hui'an County in Fujian Province.

"I devised all the sculptures, and Zhou had to work under my strict supervision," he said.

"I never allowed Zhou to work on his own in the workshop when I was not there, because any mistake on a piece of petrified wood can't be corrected once it has been made," he added.

So far, Zheng has invested more than 2 million yuan (US$263,000) of his own savings in petrified wood sculpture.

Zheng treats his petrified wood sculptures as treasure, and seldom sells his works.

"Frankly speaking, these works haven't given me a feeling of achievement just a feeling of satisfaction," Zheng said.

"Petrified wood sculpture is the very thing I wanted to do after my retirement, and it has made me happy every day," he said.

With his savings almost used up, Zheng said he wished to find an earnest and responsible sponsor to help him set up a special museum in Shenzhen for his works.

Dates: Through Oct. 7

Hours: 9 a.m.-5 p.m. Closed Mondays

Add: Shenzhen Museum, 1008 Shennan Road Central, Futian District (福田区深南中路1008号深圳博物馆)

Buses: 3, 8, 12 ,101, 215

Metro: Da Ju Yuan Station (Grand Theater Station 大剧院站), Exit B