About
Gao Xingjian was born in 1940 in Ganzhou, China. After studying French in Beijing, he became a playwright at the Beijing People's Art Theatre. Persecuted during the Cultural Revolution, he went into exile in France in 1987 and became a French citizen in 1997. His novel 'Soul Mountain' (1990) and plays such as 'Bus Stop' (1983) earned him international recognition. In 2000, he was awarded the Nobel Prize in Literature, becoming the first Chinese-language writer to receive this honor. He is also an accomplished painter.
* 1940-01-04
Major works
- Lingshan (La Montagne de l'âme) (1990)novel
- Bus Stop (1983)play
- The Other Shore (1986)play
- One Man's Bible (1999)novel
Key milestones
- 1987Settles in Paris as a political refugee.
- 2000Awarded the Nobel Prize in Literature, the first Chinese-language writer to receive it.
- 2002Elevated to Commander of the Legion of Honour.
Themes
Exile and identityMemory and historyLanguage and silenceNature and spiritualityArtistic freedom
Sources: nobelprize.org · id.loc.gov