On June 2, Ban Ki-moon, the Chairman of the Boao Forum for Asia (BFA), his wife Yoo Soon-taek, Secretary General Li Baodong and his wife Lyu Hailin cordially met with 10 representative artists who participated in the “Group Exhibition of 20 Chinese Cultural Figures Celebrating the 20th Anniversary of the Boao Forum for Asia,” including Jin Shangyi, Su Shishu, Wang Linxu, Xu Li, He Jiaying, Xu Qinsong, Gong Hanlin, Wang Baosheng, Zhao Jiancheng, Jiang Baolin.
Chinese Cultural Figures reporters Su Qing, Zhang Lidong/Photo Report



Ban Ki-moon, the Chairman of the Boao Forum for Asia and the eighth Secretary-General of the United Nations, said at the symposium that the Boao Forum for Asia attaches great importance to culture and hopes that more cultural workers and artists can participate in the activities of the Boao Forum for Asia.



Li Baodong, Secretary General of the Boao Forum for Asia, said at the symposium that the exhibition of your works at the Boao Forum for Asia is a spur and an incentive to the participants and has made important contributions to enhancing Asian unity and global cooperation.



Lyu Hailin, former President of the UN Women's International Forum, presided over the symposium. She reviewed the successful holding of the first Cultural Roundtable and the first “Group Exhibition of 20 Chinese Cultural Figures” on the occasion of the 20th anniversary of the Boao Forum for Asia, and spoke highly of the achievements of the artists.



Jin Shangyi, Honorary Chairman of the China Artists Association, Member of the Standing Committee of the 9th,10th, 11th, and 12th CPPCC National Committee, former President of the China Central Academy of Fine Arts, former Chairman of the China Artists Association and former Vice Chairman of the China Federation of Literary and Art Circles, speaks at the symposium.



Su Shishu, Member of the Standing Committee of the 10th, 11th, and 12th CPPCC National Committee, deputy director of the Painting and Calligraphy Office of the CPPCC National Committee, and Honorary Chairman of the Chinese Calligraphers Association, speaks at the symposium



Xu Li, Member of the 13th CPPCC National Committee, member of the 10th National Committee of the China Federation of Literary and Art Circles, Vice Chairman of the 9th Chinese Artists Association, secretary of the Party Group, and Secretary General, speaks at the symposium.



Ban Ki-moon, the Chairman of the Boao Forum for Asia, his wife Yoo Soon-taek, Secretary General Li Baodong, and Lyu Hailin, former President of the UN Women's International Forum, had a discussion with representative artists such as Jin Shangyi, Su Shishu, Wang Linxu, Xu Li, He Jiaying, Xu Qinsong, Gong Hanlin, Wang Baosheng, Zhao Jiancheng, and Jiang Baolin to discuss in depth the significance of cultural exchanges to world peace and development.



Ban Ki-moon, the Chairman of the Boao Forum for Asia, his wife Yoo Soon-taek, Secretary General Li Baodong and his wife Lyu Hailin cordially met with 10 artists who participated in the “Group Exhibition of 20 Chinese Cultural Figures Celebrating the 20th Anniversary of the Boao Forum for Asia,” including Jin Shangyi, Su Shishu, Xu Li, He Jiaying, Xu Qinsong, Gong Hanlin, Wang Baosheng, Wang Linxu, Zhao Jiancheng, Jiang Baolin, at the Boao Forum for Asia Secretariat in Beijing and took a group photo with them.



Chairman Ban Ki-moon and Secretary General Li Baodong of the Boao Forum for Asia present an honorary certificate to Jin Shangyi, Honorary Chairman of the China Artists Association, Member of the Standing Committee of the 9th,10th, 11th, and 12th CPPCC National Committee, former President of the China Central Academy of Fine Arts, former Chairman of the China Artists Association and former Vice Chairman of the China Federation of Literary and Art Circles.



Chairman Ban Ki-moon and Secretary General Li Baodong of the Boao Forum for Asia present an honorary certificate to Su Shishu, Member of the Standing Committee of the 10th, 11th, and 12th CPPCC National Committee, deputy director of the Painting and Calligraphy Office of the CPPCC National Committee, and Honorary Chairman of the Chinese Calligraphers Association.



Chairman Ban Ki-moon and Secretary General Li Baodong of the Boao Forum for Asia present an honorary certificate to Wang Linxu, Member of the Standing Committee of the 11th, 12th, and 13th CPPCC National Committee and a national cultural and artistic expert with outstanding contributions.



Chairman Ban Ki-moon and Secretary General Li Baodong of the Boao Forum for Asia present an honorary certificate to Xu Li, Member of the 13th CPPCC National Committee, member of the 10th National Committee of the China Federation of Literary and Art Circles, Vice Chairman of the 9th Chinese Artists Association, secretary of the Party Group and Secretary General.



Chairman Ban Ki-moon and Secretary General Li Baodong of the Boao Forum for Asia present an honorary certificate to He Jiaying, Member of the 9th, 10th, and 11th CPPCC National Committee, Vice Chairman of the Chinese Artists Association, librarian of the Central Research Institute of Culture and History, director of Huading Foundation on Chinese Studies, and doctoral supervisor of Chinese National Academy of Arts.



Chairman Ban Ki-moon and Secretary General Li Baodong of the Boao Forum for Asia present an honorary certificate to Xu Qinsong, Member of the 10th, 11th, and 12th CPPCC National Committee, Vice Chairman of the 8th and 9th Chinese Artists Association, former Chairman of Guangdong Federation of Literary and Art Circles, Honorary Chairman of Guangdong Artists Association and President of Guangdong Art Institute.



Chairman Ban Ki-moon and Secretary General Li Baodong of the Boao Forum for Asia present an honorary certificate to Wang Baosheng, Representative of Cultural Roundtable and Exhibition Organizer of the Boao Forum for Asia Annual Conference, President of Chinese Cultural Figures Magazine, and adjunct professor of the International Sinological Research Center of Shandong University.



Chairman Ban Ki-moon and Secretary General Li Baodong of the Boao Forum for Asia present an honorary certificate to Zhao Jiancheng, Director of the Art Committee of the China Painting Academy under the Chinese National Academy of Arts, doctoral supervisor, and member of the National Major Theme Art Creation Art Committee under the Chinese Artists Association.



Chairman Ban Ki-moon and Secretary General Li Baodong of the Boao Forum for Asia present an honorary certificate to Jiang Baolin, doctoral supervisor of the Chinese National Academy of Arts, member and research fellow of China National Academy of Painting, and Honorary President of Hangzhou Academy of Painting.



Chairman Ban Ki-moon and Secretary General Li Baodong of the Boao Forum for Asia take a group photo with Gong Hanlin, a member of the Culture, History and Study Committee of the 10th, 11th, 12th, and 13th CPPCC National Committee, a famous comedy performance artist and a national first-class actor.



Wang Baosheng, President of Chinese Cultural Figures Magazine, introduces Jin Shangyi, Su Shishu, Wang Linxu, Xu Li, He Jiaying, Xu Qinsong, Gong Hanlin, Zhao Jiancheng, Jiang Baolin and other artists who participated in the “Group Exhibition of 20 Chinese Cultural Figures Celebrating the 20th Anniversary of the Boao Forum for Asia” to Ban Ki-moon, the Chairman of the Boao Forum for Asia.

Chinese Cultural Figures (Reporters Su Qing, Zhang Lidong) On June 2, Ban Ki-moon, the Chairman of the Boao Forum for Asia, his wife Yoo Soon-taek, Secretary General Li Baodong and his wife Lyu Hailin cordially met with 10 representative artists who participated in the “Group Exhibition of 20 Chinese Cultural Figures Celebrating the 20th Anniversary of the Boao Forum for Asia,” including Jin Shangyi, Su Shishu, Xu Li, He Jiaying, Xu Qinsong, Gong Hanlin, Wang Baosheng, Wang Linxu, Zhao Jiancheng, Jiang Baolin, and others.
At the symposium, Lyu Hailin, former President of the UN Women's International Forum, reviewed the successful holding of the first Cultural Roundtable and the first “Group Exhibition of 20 Chinese Cultural Figures” on the occasion of the 20th anniversary of the Boao Forum for Asia, and spoke highly of it. At the same time, she also introduced the participants to Ban Ki-moon and his wife Yoo Soon-taek one by one. They are as follows: Jin Shangyi, Honorary Chairman of the China Artists Association, Member of the Standing Committee of the 9th,10th, 11th and 12th CPPCC National Committee, former President of the China Central Academy of Fine Arts, former Chairman of the China Artists Association and former Vice Chairman of the China Federation of Literary and Art Circles; Su Shishu, Member of the Standing Committee of the 10th, 11th and 12th CPPCC National Committee, deputy director of the Painting and Calligraphy Office of the CPPCC National Committee, and Honorary Chairman of the Chinese Calligraphers Association; Wang Linxu, Member of the Standing Committee of the 11th, 12th and 13th CPPCC National Committee and a national cultural and artistic expert with outstanding contributions; Xu Li, Member of the 13th CPPCC National Committee, member of the 10th National Committee of the China Federation of Literary and Art Circles, Vice Chairman of the 9th Chinese Artists Association, secretary of the Party Group and Secretary General; He Jiaying, Member of the 9th, 10th and 11th CPPCC National Committee, Vice Chairman of the Chinese Artists Association, librarian of the Central Research Institute of Culture and History, director of Huading Foundation on Chinese Studies, and doctoral supervisor of Chinese National Academy of Arts; Xu Qinsong, Member of the 10th, 11th and 12th CPPCC National Committee, Vice Chairman of the 8th and 9th Chinese Artists Association, former Chairman of Guangdong Federation of Literary and Art Circles, Honorary Chairman of Guangdong Artists Association and President of Guangdong Art Institute; Gong Hanlin, a member of the Culture, History and Study Committee of the 10th, 11th, 12th and 13th CPPCC National Committee, a famous comedy performance artist and a national first-class actor; Wang Baosheng, Representative of Cultural Roundtable and Exhibition Organizer of the Boao Forum for Asia Annual Conference, President of Chinese Cultural Figures Magazine, and adjunct professor of the International Sinological Research Center of Shandong University; Zhao Jiancheng, Director of the Art Committee of the China Painting Academy under the Chinese National Academy of Arts, doctoral supervisor, and member of the National Major Theme Art Creation Art Committee under the Chinese Artists Association; Jiang Baolin, doctoral supervisor of Chinese National Academy of Arts, member and research fellow of China National Academy of Painting, and Honorary President of Hangzhou Academy of Painting. At the same time, she also introduced their main achievements in different art fields.
During the discussion, Ban Ki-moon, the Chairman of the Boao Forum for Asia and the eighth Secretary-General of the United Nations, said that as the chairman of the forum, he had the honor to see the works of artists present during the forum, and the display of these works also brought a lot of encouragement and inspiration to the participants of the Boao Forum for Asia. He said he has met many people from the political and business circles, as well as several others in cultural and artistic circles. When he meets political leaders, everyone has different ideas. But when he meets people from cultural and artistic circles, the boundaries between countries vanish, and so do the political disputes. The only thing talked about is to appreciate art and culture. He said that it is because of your efforts that people are filled with peace and learn to appreciate culture and art. The maximum length of human life may be 100 years old, but your cultural and artistic works will be passed down from generation to generation and passed down for thousands of years. Therefore, he appreciates and expresses gratitude for the efforts the artists have made for mankind, peace, and love. Countries are different in political systems, development stages, wealth, history, religion, and cultural background, but artistic creation really transcends all these differences. The Boao Forum for Asia respects diversity very much and encourages various types of exchanges and cooperation. We believe that cultural and artistic exchanges and cooperation are important carriers to unite people. What can hold people together is not money or political power, but art, culture, and education. The purpose of the Boao Forum for Asia was to promote Asian economic integration, but five years ago, we also decided to further make an additional spectrum available for the topics discussed at the Boao Forum for Asia, including cultural issues. On the one hand, we are committed to discussing economic development and cooperation among Asian countries, and at the same time, we are dedicated to further enhancing mutual understanding among people of all countries through cultural discussions. Asia is the region with the richest historical and cultural diversity in the world, with China standing out to demonstrate how Asia is historically and culturally diversified. Given this, the Boao Forum for Asia also attaches great importance to culture. We also hope that more people from cultural and artistic circles can participate in the activities of the Boao Forum for Asia. We also depend on you to bring more people together through your work, your insights, and inspirations. Although the Boao Forum for Asia is named as it is, it boasts global influence, especially your names and the influence of your works are global. Thank you for your contribution to the progress of mankind as a whole.
Li Baodong, Secretary General of the Boao Forum for Asia, said that your participation in the Boao Forum for Asia Annual Conference and the exhibition of your works at the forum are a spur and an incentive to other participants. You have made important contributions to enhancing Asian unity and global cooperation.
Jin Shangyi said in his speech that besides international economic and political exchanges, culture is a very important aspect. Cultural exchanges can promote understanding between people of different countries and strengthen trust and friendship between them.
In his speech, Su Shishu recalled that Chairman Ban Ki-moon played a huge role in the promotion of Chinese characters during his tenure as Secretary-General of the United Nations. The United Nations has designated April 20th as the UN Chinese Language Day, which further expands the influence of Chinese as the language of the organization and enables more people to engage with and understand China's long-standing civilization and splendid culture.
Xu Li said in his speech that culture and art know no national boundaries, which can bring peace and beauty to people all over the world. Incorporating painting and calligraphy art into the Boao Forum for Asia not only adds a beautiful landscape to the forum but also enhances mutual understanding and friendship among people of all countries, and becomes a link for cultural exchanges among countries and ethnic groups in Asia. This emotional connection is very meaningful.
After the symposium, Chairman Ban Ki-moon and Secretary General Li Baodong presented honorary certificates to the representative artists who participated in the “Group Exhibition of 20 Chinese Cultural Figures Celebrating the 20th Anniversary of the Boao Forum for Asia,” encouraging them to actively participate in the activities of the Boao Forum for Asia and make positive contributions to the peaceful development of mankind.

(Editor: Zhang Yan, Liu Sheng)