“The Resonance of the Olympic Spirit and Visual Arts”

The year 2024 marks the 60th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic relations between China and France. The Paris Olympics leave behind a precious legacy, a new milestone in the history of human civilization, symbolizing mutually beneficial exchange and cooperation.

During the Olympic Games, the “Beijing-Paris” event took place under the Eiffel Tower, and today, during the Shanghai International Import Expo, the “Paris-Shanghai” program has been recorded on the Huangpu River. This fills me with deep emotions.

As a visual artist with 30 years of experience in China and 40 years in France, through my learning, life, and creative work, I have had the privilege of observing both Eastern and Western civilizations through the lens of art history. I have been able to grasp the greatness of Chinese civilization, particularly the “spirit of image” from the scholars of the Song dynasty, which once illuminated the world. This “spirit of image” is also at the core of the exploration of abstraction in contemporary Western art. From Fan Kuan to Cézanne, from Zhu Da (Badashanren) to Van Gogh’s works, we can clearly observe the common quest for visual art and the shared aesthetic values across cultures.

In this era of China’s cultural renaissance and the building of a shared destiny for humanity, it is essential for an artist to embrace the world and create works that carry noble spiritual meanings and universal values, capable of resonating with different civilizations, cultures, and contexts.

Regarding art, I firmly believe that the form of expression is not the most important thing. What matters is the sincerity with which one expresses their emotions, the way one conveys aesthetic ideas, and the ability to transmit a worldview and the spirit of our time that inspires positive energy.

I wish the seventh edition of the Shanghai International Import Expo great success, with fruitful results. We have witnessed the importance of this event in further promoting China’s high-level economic opening and stimulating global economic growth. The Expo is also a platform for cultural exchange and the sharing of ideas, demonstrating China’s sincerity and openness to cooperation and a shared future with the world.

At this moment, I am reminded of the revolutionary pioneers such as Zhou Enlai, Deng Xiaoping, and Chen Yi, as well as the artists Liu Haisu, Xu Beihong, Lin Fengmian, Yan Wenliang, and Zhao Wuji, who all once journeyed from Shanghai to France. It is here, on the banks of the Huangpu River, that generations of Chinese sought ideals, brought back what they had learned, and offered it to their motherland. I am deeply grateful to our ancestors and to this beloved land, Shanghai, my hometown!

I will continue to strive to share through my works the decades of artistic exploration and practice, proving that an artwork can be created around the spirit and emotions of Chinese culture, thus making a modest contribution to the arts.