Visitors at the Li Zijian Art Museum explore an oil painting exhibition titled "The World in Mikhail's Eyes" in Changsha, Hunan Province, on June 4, 2024. Photo: VCG

A 19-year-old Russian young artist, Mikhail Kalyuta, raised his paintbrush after carefully studying a Chinese model in a red dress in Changsha, the capital of Central China's Hunan Province. He sketched the outlines, mixed colors, and applied them to the canvas. The piece was finished within a couple of days, and has been donated to the Li Zijian Art Museum, also based in Changsha, as part of its permanent collection.

Mikhail's 105 oil paintings, themed "the world in Mikhail's eyes," has just concluded a one-month exhibition at the Li Zijian Art Museum and will be displayed at an art gallery in Beijing 798 Art Zone next week. It is also the first time that Mikhail's works have been shown in China. 

Li Zijian, a well-known Chinese artist and founder of Li Zijian Art Museum, told the Global Times on Thursday that the exhibition has been a huge success and has provided Chinese art enthusiasts with the opportunity to appreciate the creative works by Russian youth. 

"It also epitomized the closer people-to-people exchange and cultural link between China and Russia under the Belt and Road Initiative (BRI)," Li stressed. 

In May, China and Russia issued a joint statement on deepening China-Russia comprehensive strategic partnership of coordination for a new era, Xinhua News Agency reported. 

This year also marks the 75th anniversary of the establishment of China-Russia diplomatic relations and the opening year of the China-Russia Years of Culture. Industry insiders pointed out that enhanced cultural exchanges are vital in enriching overall China-Russia relations and will further consolidate the friendship and amity between the people of the two countries. 

As the potential of bilateral cultural cooperation is further brought into focus through a series of cultural exchange programs, such closer ties will also serve as an example of mutual learning and respect between two friendly neighbors, observers said, adding to more bright spots of BRI fruitful cooperation at its 11th year of development. 

Influencing each other 

A number of Mikhail's paintings with elements of Chinese culture have attracted huge crowds, including an oil painting themed around the Chinese Year of the Dragon and a self-portrait of the artist in traditional Chinese attire.

Yury Kalyuta, the father of Mikhail and an honored artist of the Russian Federation, told the Global Times that he believed that the art and cultural exchange between China and Russia has been "elevated to a new height," and such cultural integration is quite beneficial as it has created new art forms and brought the countries closer together. 

"Mikhail has developed a strong interest in Chinese culture. He has been reading Chinese books and visited a lot of Chinese culture exhibitions. He also deeply admires the free style of Chinese painting that utilizes silhouettes and pure colors. This light and liberated approach to creation has had a direct impact on Mikhail's works," Yury explained. 

He added that Chinese culture is becoming increasingly popular in Russia, which undoubtedly influenced artists in Russia and Mikhail is no exception.

Using himself and Mikhail as examples, Yury said that a number of Chinese renowned artists have a significant influence on Russia peers, and he in particular named Qi Baishi, who is famed for paining in the expressive xieyi style.
"It's not just about the free control of brushstrokes; it embodies a relaxed and free emotional attitude. We're deeply enamored with this form of art, even though he might not be able to articulate it directly, the feelings it evokes have profoundly moved us," Yury said. 

Yury's first exhibition in China dates back to almost 25 years ago, and over the past decades, he has held multiple exhibitions across Chinese cities including Beijing, Shanghai, Hangzhou of East China's Zhejiang Province and Guangzhou of South China's Guangdong Province, as well as Changsha. 

Last year, Yury himself also held an individual exhibition at the Li Zijian Art Museum, showcasing a retrospective of 120 oil paintings he had created over the years. 

To date, the Li Zijian Art Museum has held four Russian artists exhibitions, and is planning to organize more, to "make the friendship between the people of China and Russia blossoms here," Li said. 

"Bilateral cultural exchange is deeply rooted. For example, Russian visual arts and Russian realism art have had a significant impact on us as Chinese artists," Li noted. He added that as artists from China and Russia often draw inspiration from each other's works, he believed that art communication can provide a unique bridge for exchanges between China and Russia.

BRI links

In May, Chinese and Russian leaders jointly attended the opening ceremony of the China-Russia Years of Culture and a special concert celebrating the 75th anniversary of China-Russia diplomatic relations. The two countries pledged to organize a series of colorful cultural exchange programs to further unleash the potential of bilateral cultural cooperation and jointly open up a new future of China-Russia cultural exchanges.

"BRI plays a crucial role in facilitating mutual understanding of culture and art between Chinese and Russia. Within the BRI framework, numerous international art activities have been held, such as large-scale exhibitions in major museums in both China and Russia," Yury said. 

He stressed that in complex times, this cooperation is particularly important as it helps solidify the friendship between Chinese and Russian people. Mutual respect and understanding also provide the foundation for all nations wishing to rebuild global order on an equal footing to move toward a brighter future, according to Yury.

Observers are looking forward to the cultural communication between China and Russia growing in parallel with their burgeoning economic ties. This is expected to further enrich bilateral cooperation under BRI and create new milestones in bilateral relations. 

Chinese industry insiders have predicted that people-to-people exchange will expand to more fields, such as higher education cooperation, as well as joint creation of music, theater and drama. 

"In the coming years, as China-Russia relationship develops and strengthens, the exchanges between the people of the two countries will become closer, and cultural and artistic cooperation will reach new heights. I'm honored to be an ambassador for such exchanges," Yury said.