An Olympic-themed Chinese art exhibition opened in Paris on Monday, in efforts to drive cultural exchanges between China and France and to spread the Olympic spirit.
Taking place on the occasion of Chinese President Xi Jinping's current state visit to France, the exhibition takes the 60th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic ties between China and France and the year of the Paris Olympic Games as an opportunity to further promote publicity of the Olympic spirit and culture through connection between the two Olympic cities of Beijing and Paris.
Titled "From Beijing to Paris: Olympic Tour of Chinese and French Artists," the grand exhibition showcases over 200 pieces of artworks by more than 100 leading Chinese artists, including Chinese ink wash paintings, calligraphy, oil paintings, sculptures, and pieces of intangible cultural heritage, highlighting the diversity and openness of Chinese art.
The exhibition, jointly hosted by China Media Group (CMG), the French National Olympic and Sports Committee, the Ligue de Football Professionnel, and several French art organizations, is open to the public from May 7 to 18.
Jointly opening the event were Shen Haixiong, vice minister of the Publicity Department of the Communist Party of China Central Committee and president of the CMG, Rachida Dati, French Minister of Culture, David Lappartient, president of the French National Olympic and Sports Committee, Vincent Labrune, president of the Professional Football League, Sun Xiaoyun, chairperson of the China Calligraphers Association and Eric Alauzet, president of the France-China Friendship Group of the French National Assembly.
Also attending the opening ceremony and seeing the exhibition were more than 300 dignitaries including Jack Lang, former French Minister of Culture and Minister of Education, Vincent Louault, vice-president of the French Senate's France-China Group, as well as officials from the French Ministry of Culture, Ministry of the Interior and Overseas Territories, officials from UNESCO and the International Olympic Committee (IOC), and well-known figures from the fields of economy, culture, art, sports, education, media, film, and television in France, as well as representatives of renowned French brands including Louis Vuitton Moet Hennessy (LVMH).
In his speech delivered at the opening ceremony, Shen said that sports and art are important components of human culture, where the beauty of sports and the beauty of art complement each other harmoniously. The exhibition creates a platform for true, multi-dimensional and panoramic storytelling of China's story through art, showcasing China's artistic achievements on its journey to building modern civilization.
Shen also mentioned that as an international mainstream media, all-media rights-holding broadcaster and the partner of the Paris Organizing Committee for the 2024 Olympic and Paralympic Games, which undertakes the most public signal production projects in the Paris Olympic Games, the CMG will send a production and broadcast team of more than 2,000 people to cover the grand sports gathering. Leveraging the latest achievements in "5G+4K/8K+AI," the CMG will complete the international public signal production for the four major sports events, serving as the "eyes" for global audiences to appreciate the beauty of the Olympics.
Together with their French partners, the CMG will integrate "thoughts + art + technology" to inject new vitality and energy into the sports field through innovative fusion, contributing to the inheritance of friendship between the two great nations of China and France, and aiming to contribute to the progress of human civilization, world peace, and the construction of a community with a shared future for mankind, according to Shen.
Also speaking at the opening ceremony, Lappartient expressed the honor of the French Olympic Committee in co-hosting the art exhibition with the CMG. He said that cultural exchanges between France and China have always been very close, and that sports and art serve as important links for such exchanges. The significance of this historic cultural event on the occasion of the 60th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic relations between France and China, as well as the year of the Paris Olympics, cannot be underestimated.
He said the body language of athletes during sports is itself a form of art. The combination of sports and art in this exhibition embodies the fusion of strength and beauty, conveying the ideals of unity, peace and friendship, and celebrating the Olympic spirit and values. The upcoming grand opening of the Paris Olympics embraces the world, spreading friendship and calling for peace together.
Labrune extended his best wishes for the successful outcome of the exhibition and said that football is an art displayed on the field, showcasing the beauty of power, passion, the desire for victory and team spirit. Chinese art is a treasure of human civilization and a magnificent artistic heritage for the world, with profound influence on French art. He said he looks forward to more French people experiencing the charm of Chinese art through this exhibition.
The Professional Football League has maintained deep cooperation with the CMG over the years, which is a vivid reflection of the friendship between France and China, said Labrune, noting that in the future, the French Professional Football League will take more concrete actions to promote sports and cultural exchanges between France and China, enhancing friendship between the people of the two countries.
Speaking on the same occasion, Sun said that the arts of China and France are like two dazzling pearls embedded in the history of human civilization. Although they originated from different historical backgrounds and cultural environments, through close exchanges between artists from the two countries and with an unprecedented broad vision, they have woven a splendid tapestry of shared culture.
Chinese calligraphy, as a unique art form of the Eastern Han (25-220 a.d.) characters, not only embodies the exquisite essence of Chinese art but also expounds on the realm of life and the path of self-cultivation, Sun said.
At the exhibition, the CMG donated the sculpture "Tong Zhou Gong Du" (literally "cross a river in the same boat") created by Huang Jian, the IOC's Olympic art ambassador and renowned sculptor, to the French Olympic Committee. This sculpture symbolizes the friendship between China and France and the spirit of the Olympics. It signifies that both countries will seize the opportunity of the Paris Olympics to work together in promoting exchanges and dialogue among different civilizations, and to convey the message of peace through the Paris Olympics.
The exhibition is held at the Les Invalides, which was built in 1670, and it is an important historical building in France and a cultural landmark. Holding a welcome ceremony at the Les Invalides is the highest honor given by the French government to foreign heads of state visiting the country. On Monday afternoon, French President Emmanuel Macron held a grand ceremony on the square of the Les Invalides to welcome Xi.
Invited to witness this historic cultural feast were Charles-Henri de Lobkowicz, adviser to the French Minister of Culture, Jean Hingray, senator of the France-China Group of French Senate, Catherine Crenier, director of the Giacometti Foundation, Roman Jeanneau, president of the Sunny Side of the Doc, Zhao Qian, recipient of the Order of Arts and Letters, Antoine Arnault, LVMH chairman, Qu Xing, deputy director-general at UNESCO, Zhang Hong, member of the IOC, Laurence Auziere, representing the Macron family, as well as a number of prominent Chinese artists.
Olympic-themed Chinese art exhibition opens in Paris
Olympic-themed Chinese art exhibition opens in Paris
