Remarks by Sarah Taylor at the opening event on August 10 Ladies and gentleman, good afternoon. I am Sarah Taylor, Chargé d'affaires, of the Embassy of Canada to China. I am delighted to be joining you this afternoon for the vernissage of this landmark exhibition of contemporary Canadian landscape artwork. Canada and China have enjoyed a long history of art and cultural exchanges. As some of you may know, some major Canadian art exhibitions have toured China, including a key exhibition of the Group of Seven. In addition, Canadian artists regularly participate in the annual Shanghai Art Festival and the Beijing Art Biennale and year on year these numbers are increasing. Canada is a country with great culture diversity, and each artist has their own perspective and interpretation of what the “landscape” means to them. Using the Canadian landscape as their language, this exhibition shows the viewer what these artists have perceived, imagined and created. Indeed this exhibition presents a diverse and dynamic collection of work that we hope will enrich the Chinese encounter with Canadian contemporary art. Fifteen of our top Canadian artists are represented in this exhibition – all of whom have all won numerous prestigious national and international awards. In 2012, when our Prime Minister – Stephen Harper – visited China, Canada and China agreed to hold a series of cultural activities in each other’s countries over 2013 and 2014, in an effort to raise our bilateral engagement to a new level. This exhibition is a wonderful expression of that commitment. We are very pleased to be partnering with the Xi’an Art Museum on this event, and I would also like to extend our thanks to Mr. Yang Chao, Director of Xi’an Art Museum, and Ms. Zhou Yan, the exhibition’s curator. Going forward, next year will mark the 45th anniversary of Canada-China relations and we are looking forward to having more Canadian culture on offer across China, including art exhibitions that can showcase to Chinese audiences our unique perspectives on life and the world.）