In 2017, at the invitation of IOC President Bach, Wu Weishan created and presented a bronze statue of Coubertin to the IOC. Coubertin Wu Weishan Sculpture 76×60×40cm 2017 IOC Headquarters Collection
On January 21, 2020, at the headquarters of the International Olympic Committee in Lausanne, Switzerland, Bach and Wu Weishan hugged each other closely, hoping to integrate the cause of beauty with the Olympic spirit
On the eve of the 2022 Winter Olympics in Beijing, the National Art Museum of China and the Central Radio and Television Station successfully held the "Winter Olympics • Beauty in Pursuit of Dreams - Exhibition of Sports-themed Fine Arts Works collected by the National Art Museum of China", through more than 160 classic sports works in the collection, using beauty as the medium to illustrate the beauty of Olympic competition and Olympic culture of "faster, higher, stronger and more united". Once the exhibition was launched, it triggered media reports, and the total number of cross-media contacts reached 114 million on the all-media and multi-platform of the main station. Among them, on January 7, the "Simulcast Express News" broadcast by the "News Network" was launched by the National Art Museum of China's Collection of Sports Theme Art Works, and the number of TV viewers reached 82.067 million times, and the total rating of the national merger was 6.41%, becoming a cultural event of cross-border integration of art and sports.
On January 7, 2022, "News Network" broadcast the "Opening of the Exhibition of Sports-themed Art Works Collected by the National Art Museum of China"
One of the works in the exhibition is particularly eye-catching, not only the audience has taken photos with it, but also popular programs such as "Olympics in the Arts" on the main station also tell the story behind the works with it as the theme... On the first anniversary of the countdown to the opening of the Beijing 2022 Winter Olympic Games, at the Olympic House in Lausanne, Switzerland, IOC President Bach signed an invitation letter on the desk of Pierre de Coubertin, the founder of the Olympic Movement, inviting national (regional) Olympic committees and athletes to participate in the Beijing Winter Olympic Games, and this work was placed in the upper left corner of the table.
In the video, Coubertin's statue is located on a table
This sculpture is exactly the bronze statue of Coubertin created and presented to the IOC by Wu Weishan, member of the Standing Committee of the National Committee of the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference, director of the National Art Museum of China, and vice president of the China Artists Association, at the invitation of IOC President Bach.
Coubertin, known as the "father of the modern Olympics", founded the International Olympic Committee, the international organization leading the modern Olympic movement, and turned the centuries-old European dream of reviving the ancient Olympic Games into reality. In January 2017, on the occasion of the 80th anniversary of Coubertin's death, Wu Weishan was invited to create a smiling version of "Coubertin" at the headquarters of the International Olympic Committee in Lausanne.
Wu Weishan said that when he portrayed Coubertin, he grasped his slightly upturned beard as a feature, and conveyed a warm smile like a spring breeze with the technique of freehand sculpture, which achieved this vivid and three-dimensional image.
Bach spoke highly of the work, arguing that the statue shaped Coubertin's image in a unique way. The statue's smile is both energetic and full of determination.
In the same month, Chinese President Xi Jinping met with Bach at the International Olympic Museum in Lausanne, Switzerland, and Bach introduced to President Xi Jinping: "The headquarters of the International Olympic Committee finally has the smiling Coubertin of Chinese sculptor Wu Weishan."
In recognition of Wu Weishan's long-term contributions to Olympic culture, IOC President Baht presented Wu with the IOC President's Award.
IOC President Bach presented the IOC President's Award to Wu Weishan, director of the National Art Museum of China
In January 2017, under the auspices of IOC Vice President Yu Zaiqing (first from right), Wu Weishan, director of the National Art Museum of China (first from left), donated his statue of Coubertin to IOC headquarters, and IOC President Bach (second from left) and Wu Weishan jointly unveiled the sculpture
In January 2017, Wu Weishan's smiling version of Coubertin's sculpture stood at the IOC headquarters, and IOC President Bach and Wu Weishan, director of the China National Art Museum, shook hands in front of the sculpture
Not only that, in 2014, Wu Weishan was invited to create a large-scale Olympic-themed sculpture for the Nanjing Youth Olympic Games, spanning 36 meters, standing on the main road of Nanjing International Airport Expressway. During the Youth Olympic Games, "Torchbearer" conveyed the sportsmanship of enthusiasm, hard work and hard work to the world, becoming an important symbol of the Youth Olympic spirit and a permanent wealth of Olympic culture.
In order to enrich the collection sequence of the Olympic Museum, while reflecting the pace of the Chinese era and the development level of China's contemporary Olympic culture, the IOC hopes to exhibit works by outstanding Chinese artists at the Olympic Museum. To this end, during his visit to China in July 2017, Bach met with Wu Weishan and invited him to create "Torchbearer" again and settle in the Olympic Museum permanently.
In 2014, Wu Weishan created a 36-meter giant Nanjing Youth Olympic Games theme sculpture "Leap - Torchbearer"
On July 2, 2017, Bach and his party visited Wu Weishan's studio and invited him to create "Torchbearer" again and settle in the Olympic Museum permanently
On August 27, 2017, Bach visited the National Art Museum of China, personally handed over the gold medal with the Olympic five rings logo and the signature of the President of the International Olympic Committee to Wu Weishan, and entrusted the National Art Museum of China to produce a smiling version of the "Coubertin" statue created by Wu Weishan, which was given to heads of state as an exclusive gift to the President of the International Olympic Committee.
In August 2017, IOC President Bach visited the National Art Museum of China and handed over to Wu Weishan a gold medal with the Olympic five rings logo and the signature of the President of the International Olympic Committee
Bach has always been very interested in Chinese culture. He once said that the Olympic Movement attached great importance to the combination of sports and culture at the beginning of its establishment. These works of art are very good examples of harmony between man and nature, as well as prayers for peace for mankind, which is also an important concept of the Olympic Movement.
Therefore, Bach's desk also has a special statue of Confucius.
The headquarters of the International Olympic Committee in Lausanne, Switzerland, raised the Chinese flag for the visit of Wu Weishan and his party
On the morning of January 21, 2020, at the invitation of Bach, Wu Weishan and his party visited the headquarters of the International Olympic Committee in Lausanne, Switzerland, and met cordially with IOC President Bach and IOC Vice President Yu Zaiqing. Wu Weishan invited Bach to serve as an international consultant to the National Art Museum of China, and presented him with the sculpture "Asking Questions - Confucius Asking Laozi", which embodies the values of Chinese asking the world and learning from the world.
On January 21, 2020, Wu Weishan, director of the National Art Museum of China, presented Wu Weishan's sculpture "Asking Questions - Confucius Asks LaoZi" to IOC President Bach
Wu Weishan first thanked Chairman Bach for his warm reception, and he extended an invitation to Bach on behalf of the National Art Museum of China. In view of his extensive international influence, outstanding achievements, lofty prestige, and his concern and support for the cause of beauty and the cause of Chinese art museums, Bach was specially hired as an international consultant for the National Art Museum of China. Bach gladly accepted this "beauty" invitation, expressed his great willingness to become a member of the international consultant of the National Art Museum of China, and signed a consent form.
Bach said that Wu Weishan's sculpture "Asking Questions" embodies the value that only by asking each other can we integrate the road. Bach himself admired Confucius's ideas and hoped that in the future he would have the opportunity to visit Confucius's hometown.
Wu Weishan said that in the history of the Chinese nation, Confucianism is an important nourishment for the endless development and growth of the nation. Confucianism believes that sports activities can only transcend themselves if they are reconciled with virtue and integrated with virtue. Confucius said that the "shooting" and "royal" in the "six arts" of the gentleman have similar events in modern Olympic competitions. The "shooting" in Confucius's heart pays attention to the spirit of courtesy, cares about the fairness of competition, and reflects the dispute between gentlemen. This is consistent with the Olympic spirit that focuses on participation.
Bach agreed, saying, "You can see the spirit of Confucius in your Confucius. ”
Wu Weishan then introduced that as the temple of China's national art, the National Art Museum of China enjoys a lofty reputation in the world, especially in promoting the integration and development of sports and fine arts, has made positive contributions, in recent years, continuous cooperation with the International Olympic Committee, active interaction in creation and promotion, but also quite fruitful. Wu Weishan also participated in the design review of the 2022 Winter Olympics as an expert representative and was appointed as the artistic director of the Public Art Committee of the Beijing Winter Olympic and Paralympic Games. The National Art Museum of China has also held some art exhibitions related to the Olympic spirit, promoting the development of sports with the power of art.
Wu Weishan briefed Bach on the collections and exhibitions of the National Art Museum of China. He said that the National Art Museum of China has a collection of 130,000 fine art works, many of which are sports themes, such as the Chinese painting "Before the Decisive Battle", which expresses the spirit of the women's volleyball team, and the sculpture "Challenge", which shows the self-improvement of disabled athletes. The National Art Museum of China will plan and exhibit these works during the Beijing Winter Olympics and Paralympic Games, and at the same time organize outstanding artists from all over the country to create art works on the theme of the Olympic Games, showing the sportsmanship of humanistic datong. Not only that, in the future, the National Art Museum of China will also systematically promote the combination and creation of contemporary art and sports through exhibition, publication, dissemination, education, derivative development and other means. This is not only an opportunity to promote the Olympic spirit, but also an opportunity for the multi-civilizational world to better understand Chinese art and the Chinese spirit.
Bach said that the Olympic spirit and Chinese art have an indissoluble relationship, I believe that on this basis, with the joint efforts of Director Wu Weishan and colleagues of the Chinese Art Museum, the National Art Museum of China will become better and better, and the combination of sports and fine arts will become closer and closer.
When Wu Weishan was about to leave the headquarters of the International Olympic Committee, Bach gave this familiar old Chinese friend a warm hug, and the two clasped their hands together and said: We must work together to integrate the cause of beauty with the Olympic spirit!
Today, with the Opening of the Beijing Winter Olympics looming, Wu Weishan is still sparing no effort to promote his and Bach's vision.
From January 7 to 16, 2022, the "'Winter Olympics, Beauty in Pursuit of Dreams' Exhibition of Sports-themed Fine Art Works collected by the National Art Museum of China" was successfully held at the National Art Museum of China;
"Welcoming the Winter Olympics, Beauty in Pursuit of Dreams" Exhibition Site of Sports-themed Fine Arts Works Collected by the National Art Museum of China
Cooperate with the Central Radio and Television Corporation, using modern digital information means, to tell the story of "power and beauty" to TV audiences in the art museum;
Olympics in Art Issue III: A Smiling Version of Coubertin
From January 21 to February 15, 2022, as an important part of the "Meet in Beijing" Olympic Cultural Festival, the 9th "China Beijing International Art Biennale" will be exhibited at the National Art Museum of China;
Planned and organized the "Portrait of Olympic Champions" activity, and the paintings were also included in the exhibition "'Welcoming the Winter Olympics, Beauty in Pursuit of Dreams' Exhibition of Sports-themed Fine Arts Works collected by the National Art Museum of China";
On January 28, 2022, the exhibition of poetry chanting and calligraphy works of the champions of the "Hehe Winter Olympics" was launched at the National Art Museum of China;
On the first day of the Lunar New Year, Wu Weishan led the calligraphers to write "Blessings" and send "Blessings" to tourists across the country to celebrate the New Year at the Temple of Heaven, and together with journalists from all over the world who were interviewed by the non-registered news center of the 2022 Beijing Winter Olympics and the Winter Paralympic Games, they welcomed the Winter Olympics and looked forward to the future together.
Wu Weishan said: "The Olympic spirit and the Chinese nation's spirit of unremitting self-improvement are integrated, have a common value orientation, and the integration of sports and art is also the best example of the mutual integration of 'force and beauty'." We must show Chinese understanding and innovation of the Olympic spirit, and also show the image of a confident and self-reliant China to the multi-civilizational world. He said that he would use this as a driving force to work well for the Olympic cause with all colleagues from the China Art Museum and jointly promote the development of the cause of beauty.