Shaping the Future- Now!
Opening Date / 21st April 2023
Location / Canton Orichid Garden at No.901, Jie Fang Bei Road, Yue Xiu District, Guangzhou
Artist / Elena Kristofor, Marc Schmitz, Yuan Shun
Organizers / the Austrian Embassy in Beijing, InterCulture
Supporters / the Consulate General of Switzerland in Guangzhou, the Consulate General of Germany in Guangzhou, the Society of Entrepreneurs and Ecology (SEE) Pearl River Project Center, the Konrad Adenauer Foundation, Shuhua Fine Arts
Foreword /
On 21st April 2023, the Austrian Embassy in Beijing and InterCulture co-organised an art exhibition and symposium on the theme of "Shaping the Future - Now!" at Canton Orchid Garden. The event was supported by the Consulate General of Switzerland in Guangzhou, the Consulate General of Germany in Guangzhou, the Society of Entrepreneurs and Ecology (SEE) Pearl River Project Center, the Konrad Adenauer Foundation and Shuhua Fine Arts. Consuls General, representatives of Guangdong and Guangzhou governments, artists, scholars and members of foundations and social organizations attended the event to discuss climate change and environmental protection, specially the roles of arts and of businesses in this field.
The exhibition is divided into three parts, to be enjoyed on a walking tour through the inspiring park :
The first part showcases photographs and outdoor art installations by artists from Austria, Germany and China, exploring how Chinese and international art presents creative inspirations for the use of landscape, focusing on the close relationship between nature and mankind. The exhibition halls are located near the Fragrance Pavilion and Luting Bower.
The second part, located in the Luting Bower, showcases how Switzerland is proposing environmentally innovative solutions in the areas of climate change, ecosystem degradation and pollution, so as to realize a sustainable future.
The third part, exhibited in the third orchid laneway, displays children artists' ecology-related paintings provided by the Society of Entrepreneurs and Ecology (SEE) Pearl River Project Center and Shuhua Fine Arts.
01 /
The use of landscape
02 /
"Can Tech Save the World?"
by the Consulate General of Switzerland in Guangzhou
03 /
Our Blue Planet under Climate Change
04 /
Symposium
During the symposium, H.E. Mr Riecken, the Austrian Ambassador to China, stated that "Climate change is already affecting every country, and all countries have to work together to fight climate change and take measures to mitigate its effects. This not only requires people to practise it in their daily lives, but also companies to develop environmentally friendly products". Mr. Zhou Lei, an environmental activist, and Dr. Simon Vitecek, a biologist from the University of Vienna in Austria, and other scholars discussed water conservation and the impact of biodiversity on human society.
As the discussion moved forward, guests also had deep feelings and thoughts about climate change and science and technology. Art and science complement each other, since art is the expression of science, and science is at the core of climate change. A combination of the two means to express the theme of environmental protection, in a way which is both aesthetically pleasing and easy for people to understand.
Since its launch, the exhibition has been receiving positive feedback from visitors. To appreciate the audience’s attention, and to provide more time for those who have not yet had an opportunity to visit, the exhibition has been extended, so we welcome you to come and enjoy it.
Our Partners /
Austrian Culture Forum Beijing
The Austrian Culture Forum Beijing was officially opened in autumn 2004.The ACF is part of the Austrian Embassy in Beijing and its work is centred on:· Promoting and implementing cultural projects in cooperation with Chinese institutions.presenting Austria's cultural heritage and building a modern and inclusive image of Austria.· Promoting cultural and scientific exchange between Austria and China.· Supporting projects of Austrian artists and scientists in China.· Presenting important aspects of contemporary Austrian culture and promotes current Austrian cultural projects.· Supporting the EUNIC (European Union National Cultural Associations) programme.
Konrad Adenauer Foundation
Konrad Adenauer Foundation is headquartered in Berlin and St Augustine near Bonn. Since 1964, it has been named after Konrad Adenauer, the first Chancellor of the Federal Republic of Germany (Chancellor from 1949 to 1963). As a non-governmental organisation, Konrad Adenauer Foundation's partners in China focus on think-tanks, government or university research institutes. Thanks to its unique problem-solving skills, Konrad Adenauer Foundation organises its cooperation projects in China in different areas and in most cases implements them together with its Chinese partners.
Canton Orchid Garden
Canton Orchid Garden integrates orchid culture and Lingnan garden, with an area of about 5 hectares (including a water area of about 9,000 square metres), and sets tranquility, beauty, charm and elegance as the main characteristics, with fish ponds and flower pavilions, winding paths and corridors, and water pavilions stacked with stones, revealing elegance everywhere, and it is the only Lingnan garden in South China that has the theme of orchid cultivation and ornamental orchids.
Society of Entrepreneurs and Ecology (SEE)
The Society of Entrepreneurs and Ecology (SEE) was founded on 5 June 2004 by nearly 100 entrepreneurs in China on the shores of Moon Lake in Tengger Desert, Inner Mongolia. It is the first social organisation in China that takes society as its responsibility, entrepreneurs as its main body, and ecology as its goal.
Shuhua Fine Arts
Shuhua Fine Arts is the largest art education chain in South China, and also the most deep-rooted educational institution of art education in Guangdong Province. Founded in 1999, Shuhua Fine Arts is an educational institution that focuses on the basic training of art, and it is one of the large-scale and powerful educational institutions in the field of art training in China.