Cultures converge in Irish Wave project

Artists from Ireland and China find parallels in their lives and art in a series of exhibitions. Belle Taylor follows the Irish Wave.

An exhibition bringing together artists from Ireland and China not only sparks a dynamic visual conversation but also demonstrates the global bond between artists.

Convergence is one of several exhibitions being staged in China as part of the Irish Wave project, which in turn is part of the Irish Festival that comes to Beijing and Shanghai every March. The exhibition was opened by Irish Ambassador Paul Kavanagh in Beijing on March 11 and was attended by a delegation from Hefei in Anhui province-the city is twinned with Belfast in Northern Ireland.

At first glance, Ireland and China could not seem more different-the European nation has a population of fewer than 5 million and is barely the size of a Chinese province. But the participating artists say that, culturally, the two nations share much common ground.

"I think there is a lot in terms of family orientation, in terms of philosophical structure of how we live," says head curator and artist Fion Gunn from Ireland. "The Chinese and Irish do share quite a bit ... I feel very at home (in China). I feel quite well integrated with how things work."

Some of the ideas in Convergence could have been born in either nation. Internal Compass, an abstract painting by Irish artist Deirdre Walsh, was inspired by the urbanization of Dublin, the artist describing it as a "modernist idyll imposing itself on a traditional city", a concept that could easily have been applied to any of China's rapidly evolving cities.

Gunn's piece Beijing Poem, a multimedia work exploring the conflict between material wealth and spiritual values, was inspired by her trips to China.