Wu Wei Art Exhibition
Saturday, 24 February 2007
Last night I had the privilege of opening a new exhibition at the Taylor-Jensen Fine Arts gallery in George Street. Called Brushstrokes from the East, this is the first solo exhibition in New Zealand of paintings by Chinese artist Wu Wei of Guangzhou, China.
The exhibition consists of approximately 15 to 20 paintings in both traditional Chinese calligraphic style as well as works in more Western mode. Wu Wei was born in China in 1960. He is a graduate of the Tsinghua University College of Fine Arts (now the Central Academy of Fine Arts, Beijing). He has worked in a number of art and design environments but his real love is painting. His paintings are highly regarded in China and many have been exhibited in prestigious museums and art galleries.
It was a real pleasure to meet Wu Wei and members of his family. I had been planning to attend the opening in my private capacity and was pleased to be able to represent the Mayor at the last minute. I did not, however, realise that I would be opening the exhibition and making a speech. I wish to extend my thanks to members of our local Chinese community who gave me a short, 5-minute lesson in Mandarin so I was able to open my welcome speech to Wu Wei in his own language.
The exhibition runs until 14th March and is well worth viewing (and buying - there are some stunning paintings!)
