A celebration of Chinese art and culture took place at ISLAND Arts Centre this weekend for the opening of the ArtEast exhibition ‘East-West Magic Brush’

February 6, 2023

(L-R Jieyu Li, Wenli Zhang, Cllr McIntyre, Jean Jing, Lili Li)

Saturday 4 February marked the opening of ISLAND Arts Centre’s most recent exhibition: ArtEast, East to West Magic Brush 2023. It displays works by artists: Jean Jing, Lili Li and Wenli Zhang and is open until 1 March 2023.

The exhibition preview was enjoyed by all who attended and included fantastic spectacles of traditional Chinese music and dance from Belfast based performers from within the Chinese community. We were delighted to welcome Consul Zuo and Consul Ang, Mr Danny Wong MBE, Chairman of Chinese Welfare Association NI, Mr William
Olphert Managing Director of Chinese Welfare Association, and Dr Katy Radford MBE, along with Councillor Aaron McIntyre, Leisure & Community Development Chairman.

The galleries are free to visit and open daily Monday – Saturday. Exhibition worksheets, perfect for primary school children, are available to make it a visit for all the family.

Councillor Aaron McIntyre welcomed the artists to the centre and said “We were delighted to host the 2023 East to West Magic Brush Exhibition featuring works by artists from ArtEast. The group aim to showcase, and increase appreciation, of Chinese art and it is very fitting that the ISLAND Arts Centre has been able to support the group as we begin the Year of the Rabbit.

“It was wonderful to see such a large attendance of people from diverse backgrounds coming together to support the artists in our arts centre and enjoy the beautiful spectacle of traditional Chinese dancing and live music in the gallery. We hope many more residents and visitors are able to visit over the next month, with free admission it is the perfect opportunity to experience a large, fine collection of Chinese artworks.”

ISLAND Arts Centre continues to nurture, showcase and celebrate arts in all forms, offering a varied programme of courses, workshops and shows for all ages. To find out more information about upcoming events and exhibitions visit www.islandartscentre.com