Experiencing China——Excellent Works Exhibition of Overseas Master and Doctoral Students

On 20th, June, 2017, the opening ceremony of Experiencing China-Excellent Works Exhibition of Overseas Master and Doctoral Students themed with “Impressions”, “Imagination” and “Inhabitance” was held in China Academy of Arts (CAA), Hangzhou. The exhibition has showcased selected works of 66 postgraduate students from 26 countries including Chinese painting, calligraphy, seal carving, oil painting, printmaking, sculpture, installation, ceramics, watercolor, photos, animation, architectural models, videos. Hundreds of works have formed a multi-dimensional perspective of experiencing China.

The exhibition will be held once a year in the future and works will be both exhibited in Hangzhou and Beijing. This year’s exhibition will extend to 26th of June.

During the months of March and April of this year, the China Academy of Art in collaboration with the Central Academy of Fine Arts organized a three part culturally immersive travel experience that included drawing from nature and field work. Each of these trips gave the individuals who participated an unprecedented opportunity to break free of common stereotypes and widely held perceptions of China and find new meaning in their own work.

The exhibition is organized by China Scholarship Council and co-organized by China Academy of Art and Central Academy of Fine Arts. Following professors and leaders also attend the opening ceremony: Jiang Shengxiang, president of Zhejiang Provincial Education Association for International Exchange, Wang Shenggang, deputy secretary-general of China Scholarship Council, Qian Xiaofang, Chairman of Committee of Academy Affairs, Gao Shiming, vice president of China Academy of Art, Song Jianming, vice-president of academic board of China Academy of Art, Shu Peidong, director of Foreign Affairs Office of Department of Education of Zhejiang Province and other relevant leaders.

Qian Xiaofang, Chairman of Committee of Academy Affairs presents original of Experiencing China to Wang Shenggang, deputy secretary-general of China Scholarship Council

Wang Shenggang, Deputy Secretary-General of China Scholarship Council declared opening of the ceremony

Gao Shiming, Vice-President of China Academy of Art addressed the ceremony

Shu Peidong, Director of Foreign Affairs Office of Department of Education of Zhejiang Province made the address

Song Jianming, Former Vice-President of China Academy of Art declared Name List of Award Winners

Jin Zhilin, Director of International College of China Academy of Art Hosts the Opening Ceremony.

Students’ Representatives from Central Academy of Fine Arts/ China Academy of Art deliver the speech respectively

Based on the collective experiences of those individuals who participated, the exhibition summarized the different perceptions and understandings collected.

Perception can be unclear, like a wave constantly shifting and fluctuating. It involves the synergy of body and mind as an individual experience’s his or her immediate environment. Its concept conjures up notions of subjective experience and the individual’s internal process. Perception can also refer to a kind of subjective consciousness. It can reflect the intrinsic relationship between the perceiver and the social conditions at hand. Perception once externalized can take on the form of language and demarcate and materialized a collective social experience.

In these erratic times of constant change and development, one cannot underestimate the importance of perception. With the rise in speed of technology and its application, works of art now more than ever are capable of creating new possibilities for universal perception and exchange.

Therefore, the purpose of this exhibition aims to examine these ideas. Overseas students hope to use their experiences studying in China, grasping at their very essence., in order to better understand our relationship to the world at large. They seek to unearth and clarify these different perceptions of China, using our work to provide a platform for their exchange. Some questions asked by this exhibition include: How does one communicate his or her experience of China? How does one deepen his or her understanding of Chinese traditional Culture? These questions will be examined using a new and unique set of perceptive.

Excellent Works from Overseas Students:

By Michael Cavayero, America

By Omar Ai kanawati, the Czech Republic

By Vukovic Ilija, Republic of Montenegro

On-site Exhibition