2024 Utah Chinese Calligraphy and Painting Exhibit

Presented by Salt Lake City Public Library at Salt Lake City Public Library Main Branch

Opening reception for the 2024 Utah Chinese Calligraphy and Painting Exhibit. Artists include local students (Children's Gallery) and adults (Lower Urban Room). Exhibit runs Jan 29–Mar 15, 2024.

ARTIST STATEMENT:

The Salt Lake Eastern Art Club, Utah Chinese Association of Sciences and Technology (CAST-UT), and the University of Utah Asia Center jointly hold the 2024 Utah Tradition Chinese Calligraphy and Painting Exhibits. The exhibits celebrate the Chinese Lunar New Year, the most
important holiday for family reunion in Chinese culture. Traditional Chinese calligraphy and painting are two major art forms in Chinese arts. Both of them are fine and folk arts, and enjoyed by diverse populations in several East and Southeast Asian cultures. Students in China learn these art forms at young ages in school; some practice it continuously into their adult lives. The youth artists in the exhibits are Utah residents from many schools in several counties. They are K-12 students. They use special Chinese brushes, ink, colors and water to draw lovely animals, beautiful flowers, mountains, and harmonious scenarios. They use rounded brushes to write Chinese calligraphy in poems, famous sayings or
encouraging concepts in Chinese with English translation. All of the students’ artworks are displayed online in the City Library Biblioboard Children’s Gallery. The awarded art pieces are presented here.

The artists in the adult exhibits are mainly Utah residents as well; some of them are the members of the Salt Lake Eastern Art Club who live in other states or in China. Few of the participating artists are professionals of Chinese arts. The majority of us are amateur artists who
have learned and practiced these art forms for many years. Practicing Chinese calligraphy and painting are popular among Asian, especially Chinese Americans, since the practice not only brings artistic enjoyment but also has a health function – meditation for the practitioners. Many of us practice brush calligraphy or painting daily as one of our routine healthy activities. Several artists in the adult exhibit are 70 years old or above; the most senior artist is 91 years old. We sincerely appreciate the opportunity to share our Chinese artworks with all of you, especially during the Chinese New Year holiday session. Our artworks display beauty, present joy, share blessings, and express our good wishes to you, your families and communities for prosperous, safe, and happy lives in Utah in the Year of Dragon from February 10, 2024 to January 28, 2025.

This project is partially supported by the Salt Lake County’s ZAP Program.