Ｅｘｈｉｂｉｔｉｏｎ ｉｎ Ｃｏｍｍｅｍｏｒａｔｉｏｎ ｏｆ Ｄｒ． Ｎｏｒｍａｎ Ｂｅｔｈｕｎｅ Ｈｅｌｄ ｉｎ Ｃａｎａｄａ

To commemorate the 70th anniversary of internationalist fighter Dr. Norman Bethune’s aid-China medical mission， the Exhibition of Fine Arts Works and Stamps in Commemoration of Dr. Norman Bethune co-sponsored by the CPAFFC and the Canada International Cultural Exchange Centre (CICES) was held in the museum of Chilliwack City of British Columbia Province of Canada from October 18 to November 8， 2008. The CPAFFC collected a number of representative fine arts works from China and the CICES many good paintings and other fine arts works from Canada to be displayed at the exhibition. Many Chinese stamps provided by the Canada China Friendship Society of Ottawa-Gatineau (CCFSOG) were also displayed at the exhibition. My colleague Zhang Yaqin and I were fortunate to come to Canada to make preparations for the exhibition and attended its opening ceremony， which has left me happy memories.

Chilliwack is a small scenic city with a population of over 70，000 and surrounded by green mountains and rivers in British Columbia. It is only about 100 kilometres from Vancouver. October 18 was Saturday. The early winter sunshine warmed this enchanting small city. Artists， professors and scholars as well as over one hundred viewers came to the city museum one after another. Sharon Gaetz， candidate of the city’s new mayor; Ron Denman， curator of Chilliwack Museum; Hoi Sai Wu-Brandt， president of the CICES; C.K. Ng.， president of the CCFSOG; and William Ma， vice president of the Vancouver-Guangzhou Friendship Society (VGFS)， were invited to the museum to cut the ribbon for the exhibition. At 12 o’clock at noon， the opening ceremony formally began. Prof. Ian Fenwick， on behalf of the Canadian sponsor， first spoke at the ceremony， welcoming friends from far-away China and from eastern Canada and Vancouver as well as the local people. In his speech Ron Denman said， he was very happy to see so many important and first class arts works were displayed in their museum， it was a great honour to the city， the museum and the citizens.

The Chinese and Canadian sponsors spent 3 years in preparing for this exhibition. I know how hard the work was. It was particularly not easy for the CICES， a spontaneously formed mass organization， and its president Ms. Hoi Sai Wu-Brandt who not only offered money but also worked hard to prepare this excellent exhibition as there was short of hands. Therefore， in my speech besides expressing my thanks to the municipal government， the museum and the artists for all they had done for this exhibition， I specially extended my thanks to Ms. Hoi Sai Wu-Brandt for her tireless work. In order to help viewers to know about Bethune， I especially talked about his touching deeds related to the exhibits. For example， Bethune as a doctor had a high sense of responsibility and noble medical ethics. He studied medical techniques assiduously and constantly improved and innovated medical apparatus and instruments. With his deep sympathy for the labouring people， he regarded curing patients’ illness as his own duty and finally sacrificed his precious life for supporting the Chinese people’s fight against foreign aggression. Bethune’s noble medical ethics and great internationalist spirit of dedication have touched the Chinese people and won respect and love from them. The name of Bethune has long been known to every household in China. Thanks to Dr. Bethune， the Chinese people are particularly friendly to the Canadian people.Bethune has long become a tie of friendship between the Chinese and Canadian people. Many viewers were deeply moved after hearing my speech. They said they felt proud that they had such a fellow countryman as Bethune， and meanwhile the distance they obviously felt in their hearts between them and China and the Chinese people immediately shortened.

The works displayed at the exhibition were rich in contents and the artists of these works came from various circles and places. The exhibits from China mainly came from the Bethune Military Medical College and the Bethune International Peace Hospital of the PLA. Those early works in traditional ink and wash vividly reproduced the then war scenes and Bethune’s spirit of self-sacrifice and selflessness in healing the wounded and rescuing the dying， and the will of the Chinese and Canadian people fighting hand in hand against the enemy. The viewers showed great interest in those large Chinese paintings， calligraphic and sculptural works.

The Canadian artists showed great enthusiasm for the exhibition.Painters in Vancouver and Chilliwack created a large number of works， among which over 20 were selected to be displayed at the exhibition. Most of them were either oil or water colour paintings， and some exhibits were novel paper sculptures and cloth-pasted pictures. These works vividly portrayed Bethune at different periods of times and his firm character. The works by the overseas Chinese painters from Vancouver showed the painters’ unique perspectives and understanding and embracing of both Chinese and Canadian cultures. All the Canadian artists said， through creation of those works， they came to know better about their fellow countryman Norman Bethune.

I feel that this exhibition， different from ordinary painting exhibitions， is not only rich in contents， but also vivid and diverse in form. To help the Canadian people know better about China， the sponsors showed ingenuity in displaying the Chinese stamps from 1990 to 2005 presented by the CPAFFC to the CCFSOG two years ago. These stamps were also rich in contents. Some of them were specially issued by the China Post in commemoration of Dr. Bethune. Others with the themes of China’s sceneries， fauna and flora， historical figures， the twelve animals used to symbolize the year in which a person is born， folk customs， literary stories， etc. showed the colourful Chinese culture and social changes. Many viewers lingered in front of the exhibiting boards， looking at the stamps with great interest. Those Canadian who had never been to China said they wanted very much to visit China to see with their own eyes the mysterious oriental country. I saw some pupils and students of primary and middle schools looking at the exhibits very carefully， and thought that the words “China” and “Bethune” would remain in their memories for a long time. Some of them would， perhaps， become successors to the cause of friendship between Canada and China. I sincerely wish the friendship forged by the older generation including Bethune will pass from generation to generation and last forever.