The "One World - Art Exhibition of Chinese Painters Painting the United Nations Family" and the "Art Journey" cultural performance were held in Geneva

On the evening of July 31 local time (early morning of August 1 Beijing time), the Information Office of The State Council, the China Federation of Literary and Art Circles, the Permanent Mission of China to the United Nations Office at Geneva and the delegation of other international organizations in Switzerland, as well as the United Nations Embassy in Switzerland, jointly organized the event The "One World - Art Exhibition of Chinese Painters Painting the United Nations Family" and the "Art Journey" cultural performance, co-hosted by the Office of the United Nations, were held in Geneva, Switzerland. Olzoni Qizhe, Under-Secretary-General of the United Nations and Director of the United Nations Office at Geneva, Hu Zhenmin, Secretary of the Party Group and Vice Chairman of the China Federation of Literary and Art Circles, Li Baodong, Ambassador of China to the United Nations Office at Geneva, Feng Yuan, Member of the Party Group and Vice Chairman of the China Federation of Literary and Art Circles, Le Loare, Chairman of the Cultural Committee of the United Nations Office at Geneva, Xu Peidong, Secretary of the Party Group of the China Musicians' Association Feng Shuangbai, the Party Secretary of the Chinese Dancers' Association, Li Ronghai, the Deputy Secretary-General of the China Artists' Association, and many diplomatic envoys from various countries attended the opening ceremony. Eighteen painters and fifteen musicians and dancers from China also attended the opening ceremony.

Leaders of the China Federation of Literary and Art Circles are with artists participating in the "Art Journey" performance. (Photo by Yu Ning, China Cultural Network

Hu Zhenmin delivered a speech at the opening ceremony. He said that this art exchange aims to introduce the excellent Chinese culture to friends from all countries, express the good wishes of the Chinese people to love peace, promote the development of cultural diversity among all ethnic groups and build a harmonious world, and promote the mutual exchange and common development of cultures among countries around the world. The "One World - Chinese Painters' Artistic Exhibition of the United Nations Family" invited 200 contemporary Chinese art masters to showcase their skills. The exhibition focused on the United Nations headquarters and buildings of various international organizations, as well as the iconic cultural relics, representative buildings, folk customs, national flowers and birds recommended by 192 UN member states. Created 194 artistic masterpieces. These works demonstrate the unique form and style of Chinese painting, which conveys the spirit and meaning through form, as well as the exquisite craftsmanship. They are a concentrated display of contemporary Chinese painting art. In addition, the "Artistic Journey" cultural performance features 15 renowned contemporary Chinese vocal, instrumental and dance artists taking the stage together, presenting a splendid Chinese stage performance art. It is believed that it will bring everyone a feast for the eyes.

Orzhongni Qize and Li Baodong also delivered speeches at the opening ceremony.

This exhibition is the second stop of the global tour of "One World - Chinese Painters' Art Exhibition of the United Nations Family" following its debut in Mexico. The exhibition was warmly welcomed by envoys and visitors from various countries. They flocked to the information desk to ask for exhibition catalogues and took photos with their favorite painters in front of their paintings. Many Chinese people who work or settle in Europe also came to visit the art exhibition. Wu Jiang, the vice chairman of the Chinatown in Warsaw, Poland, specially flew all the way from Poland to visit. He said that it was really exciting to be able to view so many excellent artworks up close and feel the charm of the national culture.

The painters felt very happy in the face of the grand scene of the art exhibition. Zeng Xianguo, the vice president of the Qingdao Academy of Painting, said excitedly that the work he created for this grand exhibition was about the building of the United Nations Office at Geneva. As the provided materials were relatively scarce, he collected materials from various sources and seriously considered how to create this work to enhance its symbolic meaning. It was finally decided that when handling the picture, the clouds above the building would be painted in a shape similar to the wings of a dove of peace, symbolizing the world's development towards peace. Bai Yunxiang, the vice dean of the School of Fine Arts at Hebei Normal University, said that he was very glad to be able to participate in the grand exhibition and promote Chinese painting art to the world. Chinese painting is a unique art form of China and holds an important position in the history of world painting. However, there are misunderstandings about Chinese painting in the West. Therefore, we should hold more such activities to enable more foreigners to understand the art of Chinese painting.

The "Artistic Journey" cultural performance, with Xu Peidong and Feng Shuangbai serving as artistic directors, was held simultaneously. The young pianist Chen Sa performed "Autumn Moon over the Calm Lake" and "Spanish Rhapsody". Fan Jingma performed the Italian song "Please Tell Me" and the Chinese Kazakh folk song "Gaolitai". Zheng Yong sang the Chinese song "Pamir, How Beautiful My Hometown Is" and the excerpt "Deep Night" from the Italian opera "Troubadour". Zhang Yalun performed the excerpt "Have You Won the Choice?" from the opera "The Marriage of Figaro" and the excerpt "Ode to the Yellow River" from the Chinese song "The Yellow River Cantata". Zhang Jianyi performed the excerpt "Why Did Spring Wake Me Up?" from the French opera "The Sorrows of Young Werite" and the excerpt "How Peaceful the Nights Were" from the Italian opera "Luisa Mille". Song Jie, a student from the Dance College of Shanghai Theatre Academy, performed the Chinese Dai ethnic dance "Zanha", and Yu Bo and Zhu Yan, actors of the National Ballet of China, performed a selection from the ballet "Don Quixote". The young erhu player Chen Jun performed the famous Chinese pieces "Jasmine Flower" and "Galloping Warhorses", while the young violinist Li Chuanyun played the Chinese piece "Sunlight on Taxkorgan" and the Italian piece "Dance of the Elves". Singer Zhang Ye performed Chinese songs "Liuyang River" and "Ode to Good Fortune". Finally, the evening party reached its climax with "No One Sleeps Tonight" sung by Fan Jingma, Zhang Jianyi, Zheng Yong and Zhang Yalun. Chinese artists passionately sang selected segments of classic masterpieces from both China and abroad, passionately performed world-renowned pieces and Chinese folk music, and splenddly presented classic ballets and ethnic dances, showcasing their profound artistic attainments to the audience present. The audience all expressed that this was truly a high-level artistic performance, allowing them not only to see the programs rich in national characteristics of China, but also to enjoy the classic Western programs performed by the artists, making them feel very close to Chinese artists.

All the participating artists attached great importance to this performance. They said that it was a rare opportunity to perform for UN officials and envoys from various countries at the Palais des Nations. When Zhang Yalun received the invitation from the China Federation of Literary and Art Circles, he was performing the opera "The Wandering Dutchman" in Stuttgart. He immediately adjusted the performance time to ensure his participation in the "Artistic Journey". When Chen Sa received the invitation, she was on a piano tour in the United States and Singapore. So she took advantage of the break between the two performances to participate in this event. The stage of the Palace of Nations was not suitable for ballet performances. Under the leadership of the leaders of the National Ballet of China, the staff made adjustments to the programs performed by Yu Bo and Zhu Yan, ensuring that they were suitable for stage performances without affecting the quality of the programs. Eventually, the performance was a success.

After the opening ceremony, artists organized by the China Federation of Literary and Art Circles and staff members of the Chinese Permanent Office in Geneva held a get-together. At the social event, Li Baodong gave a very high evaluation of this activity. He said that China is not only developing rapidly economically, but also a major cultural country with a long history. The "One World - Art Exhibition of Chinese Painters Painting the United Nations Family" and the "Art Journey" cultural performance have showcased China's unique cultural charm to the world. All the artists are great envoys. They have conveyed a very good message to the world, that is, China is willing to get along amicably with people from all over the world. China has a civilization of five thousand years and a character of inclusiveness. Seeing the paintings and performances of the artists is like witnessing the strides of our motherland. With their lively brushstrokes, beautiful songs, splendid performances and graceful dance steps, the artists have presented the future of a great nation to the world. Hu Zhenmin composed a poem on the spot: "In the vast sea of people, we have no connection. Serving the country and rejuvenating the nation are tied by a single thread." Tonight in Switzerland, it's as hot as China; the sky is illuminated with the colors of ink and brush." It won rounds of applause from the artists and embassy staff present.

This event showcased the charm of Chinese culture to the world and also reflected China's growing national strength and continuously rising international status. Artists say that culture is soft power and that efforts should be made to enhance the international exchange and promotion of culture to boost the influence and competitiveness of Chinese culture. Du Ziling, a professor at Nankai University, said that Chinese people have a relatively good understanding of Western culture and art, but the West has very little knowledge of Chinese culture and art. The enlightenment this event offers us is that Chinese artists should create more outstanding works, and relevant units such as the China Federation of Literary and Art Circles should continuously introduce Chinese cultural and artistic forms like painting, music, dance and drama to the world. Zhou Rongsheng, the head of the Chinese Federation of Literary and Art Circles' group of painters in Geneva, Switzerland, and the chairman of the Inner Mongolia Artists Association, said that the grand exhibition was creative and had a good theme, expressing the Chinese painters' best wishes for world harmony. This event was held at the Palais des Nations in Geneva and is of profound significance. It is a large-scale concentrated display of Chinese painting art and has enhanced the international influence of Chinese painting art. China is enhancing its soft power, and the prosperous development of culture is one aspect of the strengthening of soft power. In the development of culture, external communication and publicity are of great significance. This event organized by the China Federation of Literary and Art Circles and other units is an excellent cultural promotion activity to the outside world, introducing China's outstanding art to people from all over the world. The first exhibition of the "One World" art exhibition in Mexico achieved a good effect, and the second stop at the Palais des Nations received an even stronger response. It is believed that after the entire tour, more people will come to know Chinese art and more people will like Chinese culture. (Reporter Yu Ning