On June 1, under the guidance of the Publicity Department of the Zhejiang Provincial Committee of the CPC and the Department of Culture, Radio, Television and Tourism of Zhejiang Province, the 'Grand Tour · 2026 China Academy of Art (CAA) Graduation Season' was grandly inaugurated. The event was hosted by the China Academy of Art and co-organized by the Zhejiang Art Museum, World Tourism Expo Museum, Zuikuiyuan Art Center, Zhejiang Printmaking Institute, Quan Shanshi Art Center, and the various schools of CAA.
The Graduation Season unfolds across nine major venues—the Xiangshan, Liangzhu, and Nanshan Campuses of CAA; Zhejiang Art Museum; Zuikuiyuan Art Center; Zhejiang Printmaking Institute; Quan Shanshi Art Center; World Tourism Expo Museum; and the Citywide Media Exhibition Area—featuring nearly 3,000 graduation works by 2,888 graduates from 20 academic units (including 1,655 undergraduates, 1,076 master's and doctoral students, and 150 high school students from the affiliated school). Embracing the ethos of the Grand Tour, it reaches out to society and gives rise to a new, energetic, and youth-driven cultural outlook. That evening, the opening performance and fashion show of the Graduation Season took place, launching a highly cross-disciplinary and youthfully energetic art festival.
The 2026 International Youth Art Dialogue series was also launched on June 1, featuring three major events: "Mission of Art Education in light of Global Civilizations — Dialogue among International Art Academy Presidents," "International Young Artists Dialogue," and "One Art Boundless Seas — International Youth Art Exhibition." These events brought together deans from over 50 international art academies and young artists from more than 50 countries, forming a systematic network spanning creation, teaching, research, criticism, and curation.
Yu Xuhong, President of CAA, stated that this Graduation Season presents a fully developed academic profile, with significant breakthroughs achieved across various professional fields. He emphasized that artistic creation should step out of enclosed exhibition spaces, engage face-to-face with the public, and be tested and nurtured within the real social context. "Going international does not necessarily mean leaving Hangzhou-Hangzhou itself is an international hub," he remarked. He noted that the graduation exhibition of CAA has already become substantively involved in shaping the new landscape of world art. He encouraged the younger generation to cultivate both profound cultural roots and bold, pioneering creativity-to deeply preserve tradition while fearlessly advancing into the contemporary era.
The Grand Tour has no end — the world unfolds before us
Since 2009, CAA has taken the lead by bringing together graduation works from all majors for a public exhibition in a new format known as the "Graduation Exhibition Week," introducing outstanding young talents to society and setting a precedent among art institutions. In 2019, this largest-scale graduation exhibition carnival in the world broke through the boundaries of the academy and expanded into the city of Hangzhou, gathering even greater momentum. On the one hand, it broke down internal and external barriers, forming a "wall-less academy"; on the other hand, it achieved the sharing of educational achievements with society, the synchronicity of institutional accomplishments with the city, and the co-development of young artists with the times—establishing the most influential graduation season in China.
This year, the Graduation Season of CAA takes "Grand Tour" as its theme. The Grand Tour is a practice of personally engaging with the world and expanding the mind through experience. On the road, mountains and rivers become the classroom, while wind and clouds turn into texts. Only by traveling thousands of miles can one fathom the relationship between heaven and humanity and grasp the transformations of the past and present. The Grand Tour is no longer merely geographical movement, but has evolved into a rite of passage—young minds inscribe themselves into history through walking, and understand culture through seeing. Art, in turn, extracts structure from complex experiences and establishes form in a flowing world.
Step toward the distant mountains, venture deep into the vastness of heaven and earth, and open yourself to the living scene of society and the world
On the evening of June 1, the 'Grand Tour: 2026 CAA Graduation Season' kicked off, with a thematic performance and a fashion show to weave a live scene of treading the path with song.
According to Liu Yihong, Chief Director of the opening ceremony and Associate Dean of the School of Visual Communication, the ceremony integrated screens with physical structures to create a spiritual realm that embodies the idea of “stepping toward distant mountains and venturing deep into heaven and earth.” The runway functioned like a path leading into the unknown, transforming the entire opening ceremony into a spatial narrative of departure and journey. Music became an important form of expression for this opening ceremony. This year's graduation season was directed by Yu Tian, a lecturer at the School of Innovative Design of CAA and lead singer of the band "The Sweet Children." He specially composed the theme song "Grand Tour" for the graduation season, using music to respond to the ideals, passions, and zeitgeist of the youth. In terms of narrative structure, multiple layers of imagery were deeply interwoven with the live performance. The opening ceremony integrated documentary film, thematic visuals, live performance, and visual art - including the documentary I See Myself chronicling the graduates' journeys, two versions of "Grand Tour" themed visuals, the opening ritual Dandelion, and the conceptual performance piece The Path in the Woods — together forming a complete live narrative. The graduation fashion show featured nearly 140 ready-to-wear outfits, unfolding its overarching narrative across four chapters, showcasing both the graduates' works and the rising force of young designers.
Global Art Dialogue: One Art, No Borders.
Culture connects hearts; art bridges the world. The "2026 International Youth Art Dialogue," initiated by CAA, is infused with the spirit of the "Grand Tour." It weaves together the entire chain of teaching, creation, research, and exhibition, bringing together young artists, curators, educators, and international art academy deans from around the world to build this open platform for dialogue. International students and young artists from over 50 countries, along with presidents from more than 50 international art academies, gathered to celebrate this grand occasion.
This dialogue unfolds across three specific dimensions: international young artists' conversations that sharpen the edge of ideas; in-depth discussions among presidents of art academies from home and abroad to envision the future of educational transformation; and a visual landscape that transcends borders, jointly constructed by the "One Art, Boundless Seas" international youth art exhibition, works by international artists created during their visits to China, and an online digital exhibition zone. Together, the three make this inclusive realm a perceptible and sustainable reality of creation.
This is an age of uncertainty. Technology is reshaping the world, and the global landscape is evolving at an accelerating pace. We stand at the intersection of tradition and the future. The value of art lies precisely in its ability to navigate through change, connect hearts, seek wholeness amid fragmentation, establish direction amidst turbulence, and dare to walk and dare to create — even in uncertainty.
The graduation exhibition of CAA has always been a cultural event open to the whole society — a spiritual manifesto for all the youth of this era. Through this platform, we hope to...
inspire a new spirit — a youthful spirit full of vitality and soaring aspirations;
set a trend — a brave posture of daring to journey, daring to sing, and daring to forge a world of youth with the very self of youth.
From the "Brain Garden" came the explorers of thought. Along the "World Tree," they have rooted themselves deep below and stretched their branches high above. Through the "Seventy-Two Transformations," they have tempered themselves through endless changes, embracing transformation as their guiding principle. Now, they embark on the grand expedition of the "Grand Tour." May the youth take mountains and rivers as their stage, and the wind and rain as their chorus. May they carry with them the conviction to guide artificial intelligence with artistic intelligence, the judgment honed by craft and embodied perception, and the warmth of genuine care for the real world and for life itself — as they journey forth into the great odyssey of their youth.
The exhibition runs until June 21.
