The lounge, dining room and adjacent exhibition hall of the “Thai-House” in Dulliken provided the ideal setting for the art exhibition. The guests for the private view made themselves at home on the comfortable couches in the lounge, while being spoiled before the opening of the exhibition by the extremely friendly waiters with delicious refreshments and Thai delectables, prepared by the Thai-House staff.

Opening speech by Falun Gong Practitioner Dario Gazerro	Toni Macchianelli, member of the Swiss Friends of Falun Gong introduced the organisation and discussed the main projects
ISHR representative Silvan Fedier	Guests listen to the impressive explanations

After the opening speech, the guests moved to the adjacent exhibition hall. The speech exposed the cruel persecution of Falun Gong in China, provided information about the artists who lived throughout the world, of whom some were victims of the persecution. The pieces they produced depicted some of their experiences. Although some of the art work depicted torture and brutalities, every one of the paintings contains a message of sincere hope for an end to the persecution. This was, for example, brought about by the hope in the facial expression or by a beam of light. The paintings exuded the powerful message that Truthfulness, Compassion and Tolerance will survive the inhumanities. Mike from Canada was able to explain the feeling emanating from the paintings with deep empathy to the guests. He was able to express clearly the message the artists wanted to convey in their work.

To Honour a Vow by CHEN Xiaoping, DONG Xiqiang and Ru yi

Explanations of the paintings were translated for the guests by a local Falun Gong practitioner

The Swiss Friends of Falun Gong Association introduced itself after the viewing of the art exhibition, detailed its objectives and activities, as well as explained how the association can receive support. We gave special mention to the international support for Falun Gong orphans also victims of this inhuman persecution.

The Swiss ISHR speaker spoke emphatically about the need to address human rights violations in a number of countries, among them China. He appealed to the democratic nations that they advocate together for fundamental rights for the Chinese populace.

A number of guests shared that this exhibition was very thought provoking, while at the same time they were amazed about the hope and courage exhibited by the persecuted Falun Gong practitioners.
Out deepest thanks go to the owner of Thai-House, who despite being extremely busy had personally invited politicians, the media and artists from different fields to this art exhibition. Thanks to her commitment and the help of her entire team, which served the culinary delectables and drinks with heartfelt friendliness, the exhibition was a great success.

Subsequent to the viewing, the exhibition would be viewed by the general public in another six days. The guests could find on every table in the Thai-House dining room a colourful flier, which called attention to the art exhibition. This flier brought many people to view the exhibition. Some of the visitors had arrived from distant lands. The parents and older brother of a Falun Gong practitioner had driven a hundred kilometres, so as not miss this great opportunity. When discussing the exhibition at home they had only praise for the art, and the beauty and purity depicted by the pictures which left a deep impression.
A visitor who had deep knowledge about China’s culture and cultivation talked for a long time with a Falun Gong practitioner. He said that he was from out of the area and had some business at the market and had just had wanted to take a short break. He is deeply grateful that he found a way here and could view these one-of-a-kind pictures and that he could learn about the Falun Gong cultivation system.

Originally published in German at http://www.clearharmony.de/articles/200511/27461.html

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Published: Tuesday 6th December 2005