Connection & Coexistence:United Through Fiber

By Zhang Yifan

On January 16， 2021， the 11th “From Lausanne to Beijing” International Fiber Art Biennale opened online. The exhibition was jointly hosted by the China National Arts and Crafts Society and the Academy of Arts & Design， Tsinghua University. It quickly garnered widespread attention from Chinese and foreign mainstream media， gaining over 2 million views worldwide to date. Thanks to the support of the Academy of Arts & Design， Tsinghua University， “From Lausanne to Beijing” has firmly established itself in the global artistic landscape as a Chinese fiber art institution. It has successfully sparked conversations between the Chinese and in- ternational art worlds — an emblem of how open， inclusive， and diverse art can be. Since its founding in 2000， 11 editions of the“From Lausanne to Beijing” International Fiber Art Biennale have been held. Today， it is one of the most important exhibitions in international fiber art.

Even as COVID-19 ravages the world， artists across the globe have participated in this exhibition with unbridled enthusiasm. During our submissions window， we received a flurry of submissions from over a thousand artists and art specializeds worldwide in little over two months. As Professor Liu Jude， Biennale judge and professor of the Academy of Arts & Design， Tsinghua University， commented： “Despite the COVID-19 pandemic this year， over 1，000 artists participated in the 11th International Fiber Art Biennale. As humanity suffers hardships， they use art to help us get through dark times. This shows how powerful art can be...Even though its virtual， everyones hearts and minds are woven tightly together just like fibers.” Hailing from 56 countries across 6 continents， the pieces featured in this 11th Biennale not only represent the latest achievements of contemporary fiber art worldwide， but also symbolize the determination of international artists to come together， connect through fiber， and face hardships as one. Additionally， the panel of judges is arguably the largest and strongest in this Biennales history. The panel consists of 21 renowned experts and academics from 13 countries， two of whom are Chinese. Among the 336 short-listed works， the panel awarded 94 of them： 1 Gold Award， 4 Silver Awards， 11 Bronze Awards， and 78 Excellence Awards.

The theme of this edition of the Biennale is “symbiosis and coexistence”， referencing the ideals of symbiotic， collaborative relationships between humanity and nature， between people， and between countries. It is a call to create a common destiny shared by all of humankind. The COVID-19 pandemic has made us more attentive to the here and now， more attentive to the natural environment， and more attentive to life itself. The virtual exhibition closes the distance between hearts and minds across the world. The pandemic has made us reflect on our future survival， but more than that， we are also exploring the art and lifestyles of tomorrow. The virtual exhibition format has reshaped the relationship between fiber art and space， enabling viewers to experience the exhibition at any time， from any place. This virtual Biennale is an excellent founda- tion on which to make future exhibitions even more diverse.

Fundamentally， the “From Lausanne to Beijing” International Fiber Art Biennale has established itself as a globally influential academic organization because it both connects the present and creates the future. The success of this edition of the Biennale not only reflects our artistic vision “Connection & Coexistence： United Through Fiber”， but also our astute observation of the zeitgeist， courage to explore， and international inclusivity. In the future， artists of every nation will come together as one to create a home in fiber art.