front page in Chinese newspaper again

Dear Friedrich Zettl 狐胡,

You are very welcome. I would like to read the front page, but the image included in your post is too small for reading.

Yours sincerely,
SoundEagle

Dear Friedrich Zettl 狐胡,

The article entitled “听奥地利艺术家讲述中欧文化交流50年” is indeed both a dedication to and acknowledgement of your half-a-century contributions to bridging the oriental and the occidental through art and culture. Such a milestone is not to be trivialized, unheeded or forgotten. I would hereby like to celebrate your 50-year milestone and resonate with your friendly spirit and creative energy with the following statement by Robert Louis Stevenson:

We are all travelers in the wilderness of this world, and the best we can find in our travels is an honest friend.

https://soundeagle.files.wordpress.com/2017/10/we-are-all-travelers-in-the-wilderness-of-the-world.jpg

Like you, I hope that I have contributed in my own multidisciplinary ways to knowledge and wisdom, as outlined in the “About” page of my multifaceted blog, which you are very welcome to peruse and comment on.

Wishing you a productive weekend doing or enjoying whatever that satisfies you the most, whether aesthetically, physically, intellectually or spiritually!

Yours sincerely,
SoundEagle

Dear Friedrich Zettl 狐胡,

I have included herein this English translation of the article entitled “听奥地利艺术家讲述中欧文化交流50年” for the benefit of your English readers:

Listen to Austrian artists talking about 50 years of Sino-European cultural exchanges

The art exhibition with the theme of “50 Years of Cultural Exchange between China and Europe” will be held at the Museum of Contemporary Art in Beijing recently. Our reporter recently interviewed one of the invited artists for the exhibition, Austrian artist Friedrich Zettl 狐胡, known as “Lao Cai”.

  Lao Cai told reporters about his experience and experience in cultural exchanges between China and the West for many years. Lao Cai said that Austria and China have maintained friendly and pragmatic relations since the establishment of diplomatic relations. Although they have different views on some issues, the two countries have always handled their relations based on the principle of mutual understanding and respect. As far as he is concerned, the friendly relations between Austria and China have laid a good foundation for him to deal with China, especially in recent years, the Chinese people have gradually deepened their understanding of Austria, all of which can make him feel positive and happy. Engage in cultural exchanges in an atmosphere.

Lao Cai said that he has been interested in art, especially oil painting, since he was a teenager. He first studied Japanese art, but in the process of studying, he found that Japanese painting and calligraphy originated in China, which prompted him to study Chinese painting. . In the late 1970s, studying in China was almost unthinkable for Europeans. With the help of the Austrian embassy in China and after several efforts, he became the first European student at the Central Academy of Fine Arts in the early days of reform and opening up. In order to dispel the concerns of the Central Academy of Fine Arts, he said that in terms of life: “I only need a desk and chair, a bed, a bookshelf, and nothing else.” Although he was not used to getting along with his classmates and teachers at first, Lao Cai quickly adapted to the environment and actively devoted himself to learning. When the classmates had their lunch break, he was still diligently practicing the basic skills of traditional Chinese painting such as painting bamboo, which also laid a good foundation for him in traditional Chinese culture.

  In the 1980s, Lao Cai began to give lectures to the families of diplomats in China, introducing traditional Chinese arts such as landscape painting, and occasionally explaining cultural exhibitions in the Forbidden City and other places, which received a good response. At the same time, Lao Cai’s teachers and classmates were also curious about Western classical art, especially the field of painting they were engaged in, so Lao Cai explained to them Egon Schiele, Gustav Klimt and other Austrians. They often communicated all night and learned from each other about the knowledge of painters. Since then, he has forged an indissoluble bond with Chinese culture and embarked on a lifelong journey of devoting himself to cultural exchanges between China and the West.

After graduating from the Central Academy of Fine Arts, Lao Cai worked in the Austrian embassy in China for a period of time. The then Austrian ambassador to China, Wolfgang Wolte, was very supportive of the cultural exchange between Austria and China. It was precisely under the auspices of Ambassador Wolte that , Austria-China cultural exchange is booming, and the well-known Austrian film “Sissi” was introduced to China under this background. Lao Cai said that in order to give the Chinese people an intuitive impression of Austria, at first they drove a van to some colleges and universities to show movies on site. Later, the embassies of the two sides negotiated to introduce an Austrian film for release in major cinemas in China. The Austrian embassy in China invited staff from the Film Bureau, China Film Company and students from the Film Academy to watch a series of films. Princess”. Maybe such a job is not difficult now, but there were still many difficulties in the 1980s. After the unremitting efforts of both parties, Shanghai Film Studio finally introduced “Princess Sissi” in 1988, which was a great success. Lao Cai recalled that the premiere of “Princess Sissi” in China was at Beijing’s Xidan Cinema, which was packed, and many audience members shed tears after the film ended. Although this film shot in 1955 does not fully reproduce the real situation of the Austro-Hungarian Empire at that time, Chinese audiences still understand part of Austria’s history, culture, architecture and customs from this film. Luo, who plays Princess Sissi Romy Schneider has also become a household name in China. This film has not only become the most popular Austrian film in China so far, but also, like Mozart, Strauss and Hallstatt, has become the “Austrian business card” in the hearts of Chinese people. Today, “Princess Sissi” still has a large number of fans in China, and Chinese tourists even look for the footprints of Princess Sissi when they visit Austria.
In addition to introducing Austrian films into China, Lao Cai also actively introduced Chinese culture to Austria. In 1987, Lao Cai, who had completed his studies and returned to China, organized “China Week” activities in core areas such as the Danube Center and the Southern Shopping City in Vienna, displaying a variety of Chinese elements, which caused quite a stir at the time. In 1991, with the active efforts of Lao Cai, the Vienna Film Festival Viennale held the Chinese Film Review Week for the first time. A total of 41 Chinese films were screened. Lao Cai and his wife personally translated all the films into German, and they can still recall them like a treasure. The titles of the film – “The Road”, “Cross Street”, “Angel on the Road”, “A River of Spring Water Flows East”, “Lights of Ten Thousand Houses”, “My Life”, “Neighbors” and so on. These films stretched from the 1920s to the 1990s, which can be said to be a comprehensive review of Chinese films, which had a great influence in Austria.

Talking about his experience of engaging in cultural exchanges between China and the West for many years, Lao Cai said that he belonged to the “68 generation” after World War II in Europe. One of the most important characteristics of this group was their strong interest in foreign cultures. Some left-wing youth seem to be heavenly beings, but there are also quite a few people who hold the completely opposite view. Lao Cai believes that cultural exchange is the most important tool for maintaining world peace, and it is also the only way to broaden horizons and enrich life experience. For example, Lao Cai said that if a person who studies philosophy only studies the thoughts of ancient Greek philosophers such as Plato and Aristotle, while ignoring Chinese Buddhism and Taoism, it is tantamount to sitting in a well and watching the sky. In the field of art alone, the wealth of knowledge that Chinese traditional culture can provide cannot be learned in a lifetime.

   Lao Cai said that he was very satisfied with his limited ability to make a small contribution to the cultural exchange between China and the West in his professional field. Today, the young Cai is still active in the front line of cultural exchanges between China and the West. As one of the invited painters of the “50 Years of Sino-European Cultural Exchange” art exhibition, Lao Cai said that some of the works exhibited this time combined the techniques of traditional western oil painting and Chinese freehand landscape painting, vividly reflecting the cultural exchange between China and the West With the theme of integration, being invited to participate in this exhibition is also a great affirmation of his years of cultural exchange.

Yours sincerely,
SoundEagle