site.btaExhibition in Veliko Tarnovo Marks 75th Anniversary of Bulgarian-Chinese Diplomatic and Cultural Relations

An exhibition dedicated to the 75th anniversary of Bulgarian-Chinese diplomatic and cultural relations opened at the Boris Denev Fine Art Museum of Veliko Tarnovo on Thursday. It features 75 works by four Chinese and two Bulgarian artists who have worked in China in different genres: painting, graphics and traditional Chinese painting. Also displayed are 15 awarded drawings from an international competition titled "Bulgaria and China - Ancient and Unique Civilizations," organized by the Confucius Institute at the University of Veliko Tarnovo for more than 10 years in a row. The selected works meet the main criterion of the competition - they search for reference points for comparing the two cultures.

The exhibition is on until October 6.

The four Chinese artists are Wang Yifei and Zhao Zhe from the China Academy of Art in Hangzhou, and Peng Jing and Yang Zhi from the China University of Geosciences (Wuhan). The Bulgarian participants are Prof Plamen Legkostup and Petar Lazarov from the University of Veliko Tarnovo.

The exhibition was presented by the art gallery's Director, Martin Mitev. Veliko Tarnovo Deputy Mayor Neyko Ganchev briefly addressed the visitors in Chinese. He drew a comparison between Chinese and Western art, saying that the exhibition juxtaposes them. Deputy Regional Governor Yulia Mutafchieva stressed the role of artistic diplomacy in international relations.

The special guest, Chinese Embassy Counsellor Wamg Min, who is also Deputy Head of Mission, said cooperation between the two countries had deepened in the past 75 years and they have become important partners. Each of the works shows the artists' wisdom and creativity and transcends the barriers of national borders and languages, Wang said. She noted the importance of the Confucius Institute competition in stimulating young people's interest in the cultures of Bulgaria and China. Art is the language of the soul, it can cross a thousand mountains and bring people closer together, she said.

Yang Tian, head of Education Affairs at the Chinese Embassy, attended the opening.

The University's Deputy Rector, Nikolay Kanev, said the exhibition sent a message that the two cultures can be both ancient and young.

Prof Legkostup, who was the inspiration of an exhibition, recalled that Bulgaria is the second country in the world to have recognized the People's Republic of China 75 years ago, and talked about the the way the exhibition was organized and about past initiatives in Veliko Tarnovo involving the two countries.

The exhibition was organized by the Embassy of China, the Center for Language Education and Cooperation, Confucius Institute at Veliko Tarnovo University, the Boris Denev Art Museum and Veliko Tarnovo Municipality.