BEIJING: Taking illustration as the link, over 1,800 domestic and overseas artists gathered at the International Illustration Festival Shanghai for the first time from Friday to Monday, looking to spark new inspirations through cultural exchanges.
As part of the fifth Yangtze River Delta International Cultural Industries Expo, the festival, with a coverage of 26,000 square meters, consists of nine sections including markets, special exhibitions, art installations and forums. It aims to break the walls between illustration art and industries, promote cultural exchanges transcending boundaries, as well as to create a sustainable and innovative development environment for this art form, according to the organizer.
“Illustration art has been booming in China in recent years, and an increasing number of Chinese illustration works are drawing global attention. Research projects on illustration creation and the latest theories are continuously growing too … Thus, how to present the unique Chinese perspectives in global illustration art has become a new topic for the industry,” said Huang Liwei, curator of the festival. Huang added that the event focuses on providing a platform for illustrators to create, communicate and share, connecting both illustration artists and industries to explore new possibilities and markets.
“The new Chinese style shows that Chinese illustrators are now focusing more on Chinese traditional cultures and finding their positions in our own culture, which is critical. It demonstrates our growing cultural confidence in recent decades. China boasts a such long history, and we need to slow down our pace to read, experience, feel the daily life and accumulate,” said Hu. –The Daily Mail-China Daily news exchange item
