 Special Supplement: A grand show on which the curtain never falls
By Zhao Shijun (China Daily)
Updated: 2008-08-20 08:17
Sculptors from all over the world are once again gathering in Changchun, capital of northeast China's Jilin province, to contribute their original works with the aim of building the city into an art center with national and even global reputation. The Ninth Changchun International Sculpture Symposium, which began on July 26, is being held in the Changchun International Sculpture Park and will last till September 5. Artists from 39 countries and regions around the world, including the United States, Canada, France, Belarus, New Zealand, Serbia, the Czech Republic, Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates and Oman are now busy working on their sculptures. All of their works will be unveiled on September 5. Just a day after the exhibition closes, most of the sculptors will get together to share their insights and inspirations at the Second Changchun International Sculptors' Conference, which will end on September 7. Since 1997, Changchun has hosted nine sessions of the International Sculpture Symposium, drawing sculptors from 172 countries and regions.
Changchun Mayor Cui Jie describes the exhibition as "a grand show that never sees its curtain fall", because all the sculptures created by the artists on the site are permanently displayed at Changchun International Sculpture Park, leaving a valuable treasure for the city and its people. Sculptures are the most outstanding expression of a city's cultural and artistic atmosphere, Cui said. "We are so happy that Changchun has become a grand showcase of the arts and cultures of the whole world," the mayor said proudly. "Over the past decades, Changchun has achieved great social and economic progress, allowing us to promote the city's cultural undertakings to a new height," said Cui. "Culture and arts are so essential in improving people's taste and the city's image." Changchun is famous for its exhibition industry not only in northeast China but the entire country as well. Its famous exhibition brands include the Changchun Auto Show - among the top three shows in the industry in China - and the Changchun International Movie Festival. Compared with other shows, the sculpture exhibition is a pure cultural event, free from any utilitarian purpose, said Cui. "Of course it is only natural that the show has become a bridge between Changchun and the world and has indirectly boosted the tourism industry. This is something we are glad to see," he added. At present, about 400 sculptures created by artists from more than 170 countries and regions are permanently displayed in the Changchun International Sculpture Park. With an area of 918,000 sq m, the Changchun International Sculpture Park was built in 2002 and completed in 2004. It is the nation's only theme park featuring contemporary sculpture created by artists from all over the world. A sculpture museum, with a floor space of 12,000 sq m, stands in the west of the park and is used to exhibit the most outstanding works of various styles from across the world. At the center of the park stands the 23-m-high thematic sculpture called "Friendship, Peace, Spring". Created by five Chinese sculptors, this sculpture features figures of people from the five continents of Asia, Europe, Africa, Oceania and the Americas. In 2006, the Changchun Sculpture Park was listed among the first batch of 20 national key parks, alongside such centuries-old parks as the Summer Palace in Beijing and the Humble Administrator's Garden in Suzhou.
 (China Daily 08/20/2008 page19) |
