Article Author: Heavy snow
April 1 this year coincides with the 153rd anniversary of the scientific discovery of giant pandas. More than 150 years ago, when the French missionary David discovered giant pandas in China, a black and white whirlwind swept the world. On this special day, Mr. Luis Schmidt, Ambassador of the Republic of Chile to China, and his party visited the Beijing Shenyu Art Museum to visit the long-scroll printmaking work of Chinese painting with the theme of giant pandas on display, "Ten Thousand Miles of Ice and Snow National Treasures". Ambassador Schmidt is about to leave his post and return to China, and this time he visited the art exhibition to personally promote cultural and artistic exchanges between China and Chile. This is the first time that Ambassador Schmidt and his party have exhibited the first volume of the world's limited edition of this long volume, which is extremely precious! Mr. Ma Xiaoling, former Secretary-General of the Philatelic Association of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Li Yangyang, Deputy Director of Shenyu Art Museum, Mr. Liu Zhong, a famous panda painter, and Mr. Cong Zhijun, Editor-in-Chief of Philatelic Magazine, warmly greeted and accompanied the visit.
When Ambassador Schmidt and his party walked into the Shenyu Art Museum, they were attracted by the exquisite and rich collection in the museum, and the quiet and elegant jade showed the profound traditional Chinese history and culture, which was dazzling. Subsequently, the crowd came to the long-scroll print of "Ice and Snow National Treasure Wanli Map" with great interest and began to carefully examine this masterpiece. The original work of "Ice and Snow National Treasure Wanli Map" was carefully created by Liu Zhong, a director of the China Artists Association and a famous domestic panda painter, over a period of three years. The long scroll is 1 meter high and 202.2 meters long, symbolizing the 2022 Winter Olympics. The painting depicts 109 ice and snow sports projects and 5,000 cute Chinese national treasure giant pandas for the Beijing Winter Olympics, and also draws the important passes of 24 Great Wall and the Forbidden City in Beijing, which can be said to represent the image of China's giant panda, the Great Wall and the Forbidden City. The painter used the "national treasure animal" panda to express the excitement of the Chinese people in welcoming the Beijing Winter Olympics, and it is precisely with the help of the panda's high international popularity and symbol of peace and friendship that the popular elements are highlighted and full of artistic vitality.
Ambassador Schmidt praised the work. He said that Sino-Chilean cultural exchanges have a long history, and although the two countries are far apart, the Chilean people's enthusiasm for understanding Chinese culture and learning Chinese is increasing day by day. Over the past 50 -odd years since the establishment of diplomatic relations, people from the cultural and artistic circles of the two sides have actively participated in the cause of Sino-Chilean friendship and promoted the development achievements of China-Chile relations today. It is hoped that the art of Chinese painting can be used as a carrier to promote mutual understanding between the two peoples, deepen traditional friendship, further strengthen exchanges and cooperation between the two sides in the fields of people-to-people exchanges and cultural trade, and let the Chinese people better understand Chile, connect with each other, and build bridges between the two countries.
Ambassador Schmidt, who is serving as ambassador to China for the second time, has experienced the booming development of Beijing and China, and cannot help but recall that his university teacher said decades ago, "Don't underestimate China, this country has the potential to become a world power in the next century." Today, he often briefs Chilean compatriots on China, a big country in the East, and the great changes in China after the reform and opening up. He said that he was about to leave his post and return to China, and his heart was very unwilling, China was his second hometown, and no matter where he was in the future, he would do his best to promote the continuous development of bilateral relations between Chile and China.
After the visit, in order to express his good wishes for the friendship between China and Chile, the painter Liu Zhong presented Ambassador Schmidt with the parting work "The Friendship Between China and Chile lasts forever". The work depicts a lively and cute panda in the form of colored ink, symbolizing the hospitable Chinese people; the giant panda holds an olive branch symbolizing peace and friendship, and holds in its mouth the Chilean national flower red lily, which symbolizes friendship, and falls back at the top of the Andes Mountains, saying goodbye to the Andean condor, wishing for the eternal survival of Sino-Chilean friendship and praying for eternal peace and fraternity in the world! Finally, Mr. Ma Xiaoling, former Secretary-General of the Philatelic Association of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, together with everyone, held the unveiling ceremony of the commemorative envelope "Departure of Ambassador Schmidt of the Republic of Chile to the People's Republic of China" for Ambassador Schmidt.
Introduction to the painter Liu Zhong
Liu Zhong, born in 1969 in Beijing, China, holds a master's degree in plastic arts from the French Ministry of Education. He is currently a director of the China Artists Association, a researcher of the National Academy of Painting of China, a deputy secretary-general and executive director of the Chinese Painting Society, a senior member of the Youth Federation of central state organs, a former member of the Standing Committee of the Beijing Youth Federation, an honorary director of the "Panda Post Office" of Chengdu, Sichuan, an honorary director of the "Golden Monkey Post Office" of China Post Sichuan Mianyang, an honorary director of the "Great Wall Post Office" of Hebei Shanhaiguan, a publicity ambassador of The Great Wall Post of Hebei Province, a panda propaganda ambassador of Sichuan Ya'an, a panda blood publicity ambassador of the Beijing Red Cross Society, a propaganda ambassador of the mother water cellar, and a "I love giant panda" of China Post. He is the initiator of the International Children's Postcard Painting Competition and the initiator of the Panda Art Development Fund of the China Literature and Art Foundation, and is known as the "First Person to Paint Pandas in China". His works have been selected and exhibited in many countries such as the United Kingdom, France, the United States, Russia, Egypt, Canada, Spain, Italy, Norway, Singapore, Japan, Monaco, Switzerland, Finland, Latvia, Mongolia and other countries, and have won awards in domestic and foreign competitions for many times, and have been collected by many museums at home and abroad.