Printmaking, as a crucial category in visual art, is of great significance in current international art exchange in light of its inclusiveness and extensiveness. Chinese printmaking,handed down since Han and Jin Dynasties, developing in Tang and Song Dynasties, and finallypeaking in Ming and Qing Dynasties, highlights itself as a prominent representation in Chinese excellent traditional culture. Furthermore, Chinese original woodcut turns into a quintessence of Chinese culture through hundreds of years of inheriting and evolution.

Chinese National Academy of Arts, as the highest academic institution integrating artistic research, education and creation in China, focuses itself on practice and theoretical innovation of various artistic categories and fields over the years, and gives great support to academic research and creative promotion of printmaking.

Guanlan is the hometown of Chen Yanqiao, a pioneer in Chinese emerging woodcut movement, prestigious printmaking artist, art theorist and educator. With this background, Shenzhen government planned ahead to build the Guanlan Original Printmaking Base, rolling prints creation, making, exhibiting, collecting, exchanging, educating, researching, training into an organic whole. After years of improvement, the Base has formed high-end internationalized operating pattern, complete industrial chains, strong academic research strength, demonstrating great vigor and vitality.

In order to further promoting printmaking research, practice, education and transmission, and constructing a state-level printmaking platform, Chinese National Academy of Arts and Guanlan Original Printmaking Base co-established“Chinese National Academy of Arts & Guanlan Original Printmaking Base Creation and Education Base” and launched“Belt and Road·International Printmaking Exchange Project”, in which printmaking artists from 65 countries along the Belt and Road gather together to conduct diversified and uniquely beautiful artistic creation.The first exhibition was exhibited onSilk Road (Dunhuang) International Cultural Expo and toured to Today Art Museum,in Beijing. endeavoring to fulfill the deepening of“Belt and Road” strategy and making contributions to cultural exchange of the countries along the Belt and Road.

For the construction of cooperation base, we hold strong expectation and confidence that, through joint efforts, greater achievements will be bound to gain in the near future. I wish this exchange project a complete success!

Lian Ji

President of Chinese National Academy of Arts

Director of Preservation Center of the Intangible Cultural Heritage in China

June 27th, 2017