Ｄｅｌｅｇａｔｉｏｎ ｏｆ Ｃｏｎｔｅｍｐｏｒａｒｙ Ｃｈｉｎｅｓｅ Ｐａｉｎｔｅｒｓ Ｐａｒｔｉｃｉｐａｔｅｓ ｉｎ “Ｐａｒｉｓ Ｃｈｉｎｅｓｅ Ｆｉｎｅ Ａｒｔｓ Ｗｅｅｋ”

Paris Chinese Fine Arts Week， jointly sponsored by the CPAFFC， the China Council for Promotion of Culture and Arts， the Chinese Embassy in France and the Rambouillet Municipal Government， was held in France in April.

It was another grand event of bilateral art exchange since the successful holding of the China-France Culture Year and received high praise from various circles of both countries. Big in scale with a large number of participants， this activity was a grand occasion of exchange in the field of painting between China and the West. The holding of the Chinese Fine Arts Week gave well-known Chinese painters an opportunity to show their artistic attainment in Paris， city of art in the world and enabled the French people to appreciate the works of the best contemporary Chinese painters in one exhibition. This activity has fully demonstrated the charm of contemporary Chinese art， expanded the influence of the Chinese painting in the art circles of the West and written a new chapter in the annals of friendship and cultural exchanges between China and France.

Paris Chinese Fine Arts Week included an exhibition of contemporary Chinese freehand brushwork mounted in the Rome Palace in Rambouillet from April 15 to May 1 and a visit to France by well-known contemporary Chinese painters.

Exhibition of Contemporary Chinese Freehand Brushwork

After careful planning and preparation of more than a year， the Exhibition of Contemporary Chinese Freehand Brushwork with 118 pieces by over 60 well-known contemporary Chinese painters was held in the old Rome Palace， presenting the French visitors a full picture of the present day Chinese painting. The opening ceremony was held on the evening of April 15. Mayor of Rambouillet Mr. Poisson presided over the ceremony and made a warm speech. CPAFFC President Chen Haosu specially wrote a message of congratulations for the exhibition， which was read out by Li Liguo， deputy director general of the Department of Cultural Exchange of the CPAFFC. Chen wrote in his message， it is an unprecedented event in the history of art exchange between China and France that such a large number of weighty Chinese painters gather in France for an art exchange， which will surely produce far-reaching impact on cultural exchange between the two countries and cultural interaction between China and the West. Chinese Ambassador to France Zhao Jinjun attended the opening ceremony and spoke highly of the significance of this activity in his speech. Gerard Larcher， minister of labour and youth employment， was one of the initiators of the exhibition， at whose request the exhibition was mounted in his hometown Rambouillet. Unable to attend the opening ceremony due to his busy schedule， he sent a letter of congratulations. A representative of the Chinese painters presented a landscape Chinese ink painting to the Government of Rambouillet at the ceremony. The painting albums of the exhibition well printed by the organizer and other souvenirs were regarded as precious gifts by the French friends present. Several mayors and assemblymen of Rambouillet and the Department of Yvelines， local artists， members of the Chinese painters delegation， staff of the Chinese Embassy and Consulates in France， representatives of the overseas Chinese， and reporters of the Chinese and French media， totaling over 300 people， attended the opening ceremony. When Mayor Poisson met the Chinese delegation again two days later， he said happily that over 1，000 people had visited the exhibition in just two days and that they greatly admired the works by the Chinese artists. He told the delegation that it was the most sensational one among similar exhibitions held in the city.

Chinese Painters Delegation Visits France

In support of the exhibition， a delegation of more than 70 members including painters and working staff headed by Liu Dawei， executive vice president of the Chinese Artists Association， went to France to take part in the Chinese Arts Week. Quite a few celebrities in today’s Chinese painting circles were on the delegation. Among them were senior artists with high artistic attainment， middle-aged artists who are in the prime of their artistic creation and young painters with great potential. During the visit， the artists not only attended the opening ceremony of the exhibition， but also visited the Louvre Museum， the Museum of Orsay， the Georges Pompidou Centre， the Auguste Rodin National Museum， the Amsterdam National Museum (Rijksmuseum Amsterdam)， the Painting Exhibition in Commemoration of Rembrandt’s 400th Birth Anniversary and the National Museum of Vincent van Gogh in France and its neighbouring countries and appreciated the many works by great masters. They also had a paint-from-life session in the famous Barbizon Painters’ Village. Near the end of the visit， the Chinese painters took part in an on-the-spot painting session with the theme “Impression of Paris”. They showed the French artists including leading members of the French Artists Association and the French visitors the process and skills in Chinese painting and exchanged views and discussed techniques with their French colleagues. After watching the demonstration by the Chinese painters， many French visitors came up to the Chinese artists for autographs on their painting albums or to have a photo taken with them. They valued this opportunity of such close contact with the Chinese artists. A French painter also demonstrated his skill and created a painting with a twig and Chinese ink， which was collected by a Chinese painter as souvenir. An atmosphere of harmony and friendship permeated throughout the painting session.