BeiJing , China – The ten-episode micro-documentary World Cultural Cities·Celebrity Interviews has recently gone live worldwide on the official Facebook and YouTube accounts of Beijing Radio & Television Station (BRTV). From a unique “Ten Cities, Ten Museums” perspective, the series sets the stage for the 3rd Beijing Cultural Forum, which will open this September.
Ink Rhythms: East Meets West highlights the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York, featuring an interview with Max Hollein, Director of the Metropolitan Museum of Art, Maxwell K. Hearn, Douglas Dillon Chairman of the Department of Asian Art at the Museum, and Wu Hongliang, Director of the Beijing Fine Art Academy. This episode takes Dong Qichang’s idea that “brush and ink transcend nature” as its starting point, exploring the vitality of calligraphic brushwork in Chinese painting and the way “integrating calligraphy into painting” elevates ink painting into an expression of the mind. Through a dialogue across time and space, it highlights the enduring spirit of art as a bridge between East and West.
Journey Alongside the Ancients highlights the Museum of Fine Arts, Boston, featuring an interview with Christina Yu Yu, Matsutaro Shoriki Chair of Asian Art at the Museum, and Wu Hongliang, Director of the Beijing Fine Art Academy. Beginning with Wu Changshuo’s inscription “Befriending Predecessors,” the episode examines its contemporary relevance and, through the “Letters from Baishi” initiative, employs cross-temporal correspondence to promote cultural exchange and artistic resonance.
Paddle spotlights Venice, Italy, with the Venice Biennale as its focal point. The episode brings together Biennale President Pietrangelo Buttafuoco, Italian curator Fabio, and Wu Hongliang, Director of the Beijing Fine Art Academy, for a cross-temporal dialogue. It examines the artistic interplay between the ancient civilizations of China and Italy, demonstrating how art can serve as a “universal language.” From the canals of Venice to the digital revival of Beijing Central Axis, art continually deconstructs boundaries and reconstructs resonance.
Beijing, this ancient capital of the East, is a symphony of ancient wisdom and modern science and technology, and serves as a window through which the Eastern spirit embraces the world. This golden autumn of 2025, we invite the world to gather in Beijing to embrace diversity and foster mutual understanding, and to join a grand cultural celebration of “harmony in diversity.”
