It was about 13 years ago when Thomas Krens, director of the Solomon R. Guggenheim Foundation, the initiator of a number of international museums, came to Beijing to meet with former foreign minister Qian Qichen. Thomans Krens proposed hosting an exhibition in New York City covering 5,000 years of Chinese history. Not only did he make a partner in the foreign minister, also the Chinese leader said he would be pleased to see an exhibition on 300 years of American art in Beijing.
On Friday afternoon at the National Art Museum in Beijing, the idea finally came to fruition. The largest-ever exhibition of Art in America held its grand premiere with the presence of China’s Minister of Culture Sun Jiazheng and US Ambassador to China Clark Randt.
After 10 years of preparation, the exhibition, which has never been mounted in the US, gathers over 130 works, including pieces from European collections, from 120 artists. Each plays an important role in American art history.
The director of National Art Museum, Fan Di’an, said the exhibition, with its rich content, no doubt offers an opportunity to Chinese art lovers and public to learn the full history of American art development. It also paves the way for a bright future for cooperation.
In fact, not only the museum official, but also ordinary visitors to the exhibition applause and value this chance to develop their understanding about American culture and traditions.
Song Wei, a Chinese student majoring in oil painting from Sichuan who just arrived in Beijing to visit friends, felt extremely lucky to be able to see the exhibition.
“The exhibition is very great. China doesn’t have a museum system like the US and European countries, so it still lags behind in terms of visual accumulation. The exhibition gives us a good chance to learn. What’s more, 300 years is a long period of time, but with the timeline, people can have a very good understanding of American art.”
Song Wei’s excitement was also shared by a spcalist of Hisotry of Art in the University of Pennsylvania. He said the works on display encompass everything from the colonial period of the 18th century, which is earlier than the official founding of the United States, right down to the 21st century, tracking 300 years of innovation in American art.
Song Wei’s excitement was also shared by a spcalist of Hisotry of Art in the University of Pennsylvania. He said the works on display encompass everything from the colonial period of the 18th century, which is earlier than the official founding of the United States, right down to the 21st century, tracking 300 years of innovation in American art.
“It’s a difficult job to express this period in a few pictures, but I think it does a good job of that. Also, it would be nice to see more dialogues between art specialists in both China and United States and to see more exchanges for public exhibitions of art for both countries.”
To facilitate more cultural exchanges between the two nations, China’s Minister of Culture Sun Jiazheng and US Ambassador to China Clark Randt addressed the event. The exhibition will tour to Shanghai and other countries after wrapping up in Beijing on April 5. [by stephanieshieh]
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