Multicultural Calligraphy Exhibit 多元文化書法展
Presented by Vancouver Asian Heritage Month Society
Hosted by Chinese Cultural Centre of Greater Vancouver
“I AM NEITHER OF THE EAST NOR OF THE WEST, NO BOUNDARIES EXIST WITHIN MY BREAST.” – RUMI
This year’s Opening of the Vancouver Asian Heritage Month featured the calligraphy of China, India, Japan, Korea, and Persia along with translations in both English and French. The scrolls will be on view in the foyer of the Chinese Cultural Centre Museum, 555 Columbia Street, Vancouver for the month of May.
Museum hours: Tuesday – Sunday 11am-5pm. Closed on Mondays and statutory holidays.
Admission: Free on Tuesdays. Wed – Sunday $3/adult, $2/senior, students. Free for CCC members and children under six.
“Asia is the world’s largest and most populous continent. With 9 % of the earth’s surface, Asia has more kinds of people, more kinds of land, and more kinds of climates than any other continent. It also contains some of the oldest civilizations of the world.
For Canada, Asia does not exist “over there.” It is, has been, and will continue to be, right here, contributing to and shaping our country. Embracing Asia in Canada is a calligraphic portrait of the beauty that multiculturalism brings to a country. Seven calligraphers from different backgrounds were invited to produce a special exhibition to celebrate Asian Heritage Month. The message was simple and clear, to show the beauty of Asian culture through written language. The exhibit shows the power of belonging either here, or there. It is about being humane; it is expressing the universal value of freedom through a code that others may understand. Seven cultures, seven scrolls with a quote that embraces multiculturalism. “I am neither from the East nor the West; no boundaries exist between my breasts” Rumi
Katharine Scarfe Beckett, Joanne Frewer (English and French), Kazuko Ikegawa (Japanese), Massoud Karimaei (Persian), Angela Leung (Chinese), Sarbjit Kaur Randhawa (Punjabi), Chyung Kun Seo (Korean). These talented artists teamed up to translate a valuable quote from Rumi that expresses the ideal of being one with the world, and to produce artistic scrolls showing the beauty of each calligraphic system.” – Leticia Sanchez, Curator