H.E. Cai Wu discusses the artwork with Ambassador Holliday in front of the gathered crowd
On Thursday, September 22, Meridian International Center and Ren Jian Ci Hua Company (Jingdezhen, China), with support from the Ministry of Culture of the People's Republic of China, hosted members of the diplomatic, international arts, and journalistic communities at a private opening reception for a unique Chinese porcelain painting exhibition, the first of its kind to take place in the United States. The exhibition is now open to the public here at Meridian.
His Excellency, Cai Wu, Minister of Culture of the People’s Republic of China enters Meridian House with Meridian President and CEO Ambassador Stuart Holliday
This presentation is the sixth in a series of exhibits organized over the last decade by Meridian's Art for Cultural Diplomacy program with Chinese partners. It is also the first exhibition developed through the much-celebrated Memorandum of Understanding between Meridian International Center and the China International Culture Association. This Memorandum has created a new framework for the expansion of bilateral U.S.-China cultural exchanges, further strengthening and improving relations between the two nations.
From L to R: Former Secretary of Labor Elaine Chao converses with Ambassador Holliday and H.E. Cai Wu in the exhibition hall
The 56 works of porcelain art, curated by Meridian's Senior Vice President for the Arts, Dr. Curtis Sandberg, in conjunction with Chinese partners, created the perfect setting to showcase Chinese culture, which included a performance by famed Mongolian chorale Anda Union, savory hors d'ouevres, and one of a kind hand-painted porcelain spoons from Jingdezhen for each guest. Members of the international arts community in attendance to greet H.E. Cai Wu, Minister of Culture of the People's Republic of China and Madame Luo, founder of the Ren Jian Ci Hua Company, included, former Secretary of Labor Elaine Chao, Ambassador Stuart Holliday, President & CEO, Meridian International Center, Ambassador Sharon P. Wilkinson, Senior Vice President & Deputy, Meridian International Center, Alicia Adams, Vice President of the Kennedy Center for Performing Arts, Candace Katz, Deputy Director, President's Committee on the Arts and the Humanities, Ping Chen, President, National Center for the Performing Arts, People's Republic of China, Meryl Chertoff, Meridian Board of Trustees, and Tom Hamm, Public Diplomacy Coordinator for the Office of Chinese and Mongolian Affairs, Department of State.
This is the first time an exhibition featuring Chinese painted porcelain from Jingdezhen has been presented in the United States. The display brings together artists of different backgrounds and philosophies, linked by their common appreciation of the ancient ceramic capital of China. Jingdezhen remains an exciting center of innovation for artists exploring ways to transform ancient traditions into art that is relevant in the 21st century.
The display will be free and open to the public from September 23, 2011 - January 15, 2012, Wed-Fri, 2pm-7pm; Sat & Sun, 12pm-6pm, in the Cafritz Galleries of the White-Meyer House, located at 1624 Crescent Place, NW.
Please visit exhibition website - www.meridian.org/chinatown
