Paintings by children and young people from five different continents have gone on display at the Vienna International Centre (VIC) as part of the exhibition "One Family: My Family and the Family of Peoples", organized by the United Nations Information Service (UNIS) Vienna in cooperation with the Confucius Institute at the University of Vienna, on 2 September 2011.
The art project "One Family" was launched as an initiative by the Confucius Institute at the University of Vienna, the UNESCO Club Vienna and the artist Yusheng Zhao.
Marking the end of the International Year of Youth, the exhibition shows art works from children from Austria, Australia, Hawaii (USA), Madagascar and Peru and reflects the children's concept of their family and cultural identity, wishing and engaging for a world of constructive peaceful coexistence.
In his welcome remarks UNIS Vienna Acting Director Janos Tisovszky pointed to the role of youth as an equal and important partner for change, innovation and development. He also referred to the UN General Assembly High-level Meeting on Youth which was held in July this year on the theme "Youth: Dialogue and Mutual Understanding".
Ambassador Cheng Jingye of the Permanent Mission of the People's Republic of China to the United Nations in Vienna, who participated in the opening of the exhibit, expressed his appreciation for the art project.
Professor Richard Trappl, Director of the Confucius Institute at the University of Vienna, briefed on the overall arts project and referred to its intention to inspire children about cultural diversity through their own creations, evoking a feeling of belonging to the world family.
Kari Kehaulani Noe and Amanda Lee Nelson, two young women from Hawaii who participated in the art project, talked about how they felt part of a world family and expressed their appreciation to be part of the project.
The opening was accompanied by musical performances from the "Chinese Bridge Chorus" of the Youth Department of the Confucius Institute at the University of Vienna, and by a piano and vocal performance of 16 year old Andri Joël Harison, winner of Prima la musica 2007 to 2011.
