Works of Chinese artists, calligraphers shown in Manila exhibit

About a hundred works of Chinese calligraphers and painters from Shandong province have been shown in Manila for three days exhibit .

Mr. Carlos Chan, chairman emeritus of Liwayway Marketing Corporation , maker of the famous Oishi snack food products, organized the exhibit titled " Cultural China- Artworks of 8 famous calligraphers and painters from Shandong , China".

Mr. Chan organized the exhibit along with the Shandong Overseas Exchange Association and the Shandong Overseas Exchange Association and the Shandong Overseas Calligraphy and Painting Institute .

Mr. Chan , who is also the President's special envoy to China, said the exhibit hopes to add to the cultural exchange between two countries.

"We hope that these artworks would add to the Filipino's awareness of the Chinese culture ," Mr. Chan said.

These artworks are exhibited at the Yuchengco Museum in RCBC Plaza in Makati from March 18 until March 20.

The Participating Chinese artists and calligraphers include Qiu Zhenliang, honorary president of the Shandong Cultural Industry Vocational College , Han Wei, professor af the Institute of Fine Arts of the Shandong Normal Universty, Wu Yougfu, professor at the Shandong University of Arts and Design , Xu Kang, of the Shandong Art Museum , Wu Jianjun, deputy secretary -general of the Shandong Artists Association , Wang Pande ,creative director of the Shandong Academy of Painting, Dong Haiquan, director of Oil Painting and Watercolor Painting Workshop at the Shandong Academy of Painting , and Wang Yijun , vice president of the Shandong Carved Porcelain Cultural Studies Association.

Nature is the prevalent theme in most of the art pieces including Xu Kang's Spring in the World, Spring Breeze, Fragrance of a flower , and Spring Scenery , Wu Yungfu;s Bamboo , Summer Lotus Flower , and Bamboo Brings Safety ; Qui Zhenliang's Listen to the Rain in Banana Forest , The purple air comes from the East, Purple Rattan, and Red Orchid; Wu Jianjun's Cliff , Early Spring and Warm Winter ; Han Wei's Mist and Ripples , Clear Day in Autumn , and Delicate and Charming Flower Blossoms ; Wang Pande's Pick Lotus Flower Seeds, Automn in Meng Mountain, Golden Autumn and Top of the Mountain ; and Dong Haiquan's Summer ,Spring , Autumn and Winter.

The Philippines has had relations with China's Shandong province as early as the 1400s.

A Filipino chieftain , Sulu Sultan Paduka Batara was buried in Dezhou City in Shandong when he died during a friendly expedition in 1417. The tomb of the Filipino sultan is a protected historical and cultural site as declared by China's State Council.

Liwayway's Oishi is a famous snack food brand in China, now with  15 factories all over China following the Filipino company's entry into the Chinese market in the early 1990s.