Art Exhibition in Hangzhou Features International Interpretation

Wu Weizhu　Jiang Meidan

（印度）寿天《红与蓝》Red and Blue， an artwork by Dhaneshwar Shah， India

（澳大利亚）雷奥尼·祖克斯《马路上的遗产》 MexicoLegacy on the Road， an artwork by Leonid Zuks， Australia

From November 2 to 6， the Third China Qiantang River International Art Exhibition was held at the exhibition center of Hangzhou Library. The event was organized by Hangzhou Qianjiang International Art Museum， a private institution founded four years ago. Featuring the theme of “peace， freedom， culture， and environmental protection”， the exhibition highlighted over 100 artworks by 60 artists from 22 countries.

The 3rd event in November differed from the previous two. The artists featured in the first two were largely those recommended through individual networks. The coverage was not particularly extensive. As the event was made known to more artists in more countries and Hangzhou was made known better in the world， the third annual event attracted more artists from more countries. Artists from Uruguay， Mexico， Poland， for example， exhibited their artworks for the first time in Hangzhou. “The artworks at the third event presented different styles and thoughts from different countries， making the event truly internationalized and promoting wider exchanges among artists from different parts of the world，” observed Zhang Xiangzhong， director of Qianjiang International Art Museum.

The annual event offers opportunities for artists to take a closer look at Hangzhou. Fabrizio Riccardi， a 76-year-old Italian artist， sketched on the West Lake during his participation in the exhibition in November. In his sketches are the Mid-Lake Pavilion and the three tiny stone pagodas in the lake that represent “Three Pools Mirroring the Moon”. The pavilion and the three pagodas are two tourist attractions of the West Lake. Fabrizio Riccardi is a prominent artist in Italy， with many of his artworks in the collections of various museums across the world. Four of his artworks were featured at the exhibition in Hangzhou. November 2018 saw the artist and his wife visit Hangzhou for the first time.

展覽现场 A view of the exhibition in Hangzhou

（墨西哥）亚力杭德拉·菲里特《我的后院》My Backyard， an artwork by Alejandra Phalts，Mexico

（意大利）法布里奇奧·里卡迪《毫无区别》No Difference， an artwork by Fabrizio Riccardi， Italy

Hangzhou was not something new to Dhaneshwar Shah and Sunanda Khajuria， husband and wife artists from India. They met and fell in love while taking an advanced course from 2004 to 2006 at China Academy of Art in Hangzhou. After learning about the 3rd event， they contacted the organizing committee for a possibility to exhibit their works in November. While studying at the academy more than 10 years ago， Dhaneshwar Shah got a Chinese name Shou Tian （寿天）. The name is so dear to him that he still uses it now and then. “Hangzhou has changed so much from what it was about 10 years ago. It looks both familiar and not familiar. We had the slightest idea that the city has changed so dramatically. This is a city of culture and history. Now the city has many platforms for internationalization. We hope to be able to live in Hangzhou if opportunities come our way，” said the couple.

Bradley Kickett and Rohin Kickett， two brothers and Aboriginal artists from Australia， said that the visit to Hangzhou was a lifetime experience. It drizzled while they were sketching on the West Lake. The rainy lake was vividly portrayed in their sketches. “Our visit to China is a lifelong memory. The beauty of Hangzhou will be part of our inspiration for future works，” said the two brothers.

Chyae Seoc Heui， a Korean artist， has participated in the exhibition for the past three years. He said he had benefited quite a lot in art and in other aspects from the delightful experience. He spoke little Chinese at the first exhibition. At the third exhibition in 2018， he was able to speak some complete sentences and use some trendy words and phrases. He had taken a crash course before he came to China.

“Art is universal. Hangzhou embraces beauty， opens its arms to the world， and appreciates elegance and grace. It is the unique strengths of nature and culture in Hangzhou that provides a foundation for art presentation. All the artworks at the exhibition are unique. They satisfy artists and visitors and inspire them to seek a common ground for appreciating beauty， sentiment and longing，” commented Tao Wenjie， secretary-general of Zhejiang Association for Exchanges of International Art.