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More than 70 valuable exhibits, showcasing the culture and landscape of the American West, will be on display at the Hong Kong Heritage Discovery Centre from tomorrow (November 16) to December 31.
Entitled "Out West: The Great American Landscape", the exhibition is jointly presented by Meridian International Centre of Washington, DC, USA, and the Antiquities and Monuments Office of the Leisure and Cultural Services Department with the full support of the US Consulate General in Hong Kong and Macau.
The exhibition was officially opened today (November 15) by the Deputy Commissioner of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the People's Republic of China in the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region, Mr Zhan Yongxin, the Secretary for Home Affairs, Mr Tsang Tak-sing, the Consul General of the United States of America in Hong Kong and Macau, Mr James B Cunningham, the co-curator of this exhibition, Ms Pamela Bailey, and the Vice-President of Arts and Cultural Affairs of the Meridian International Centre, Ms Nancy Matthews.
It is the second part of a joint cultural exchange project organised by Meridian International Centre and the China International Exhibition Agency, with endorsement by the Ministry of Culture of the People's Republic of China. The project began with the exhibition "Ancient Threads, Newly Woven", featuring art from the Silk Road region of western China, which opened in Washington, DC, in February 2004 and successfully toured the US for more than two years. As a reciprocal programme, "Out West" started its China tour in Beijing in March 2007, and visited Urumqi, Xi'an, Shanghai, Qingdao and Guangzhou before coming to Hong Kong.
Featuring valuable works from museums, galleries, collections and individual artists across the western states, the exhibition showcases the diversity and richness of American culture and heritage. Through a selection of oil and watercolour paintings, mixed media works, movie posters and lobby cards of some well-known American Western films, the exhibition focuses on an expanded definition of "landscape", incorporating aspects of the cultural, artistic and personal approaches of the artists. The vast skies, mountains, cowboys, Native Americans and grand animals who share this land are all presented in the works.
The exhibition is accompanied by a photographic exhibition, "Under the Big Sky: Images of the American West", produced by the National Geographic Museum of Washington, DC. It features many well-known photographers and showcases the landscape of the western regions.
Located at Kowloon Park, Haiphong Road, Tsim Sha Tsui, the Heritage Discovery Centre opens from 10am to 6pm from Mondays to Saturdays, from 10am to 7pm on Sundays and public holidays, and from 10am to 5pm on Christmas Eve. It is closed on Thursdays (except public holidays). Admission is free.
For details of the exhibition, guided visit and other activities, please visit the Antiquities and Monuments Office website at www.amo.gov.hk or call 2208 4400.
Ends/Thursday, November 15, 2007
Issued at HKT 16:00
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