The 9th Beijing Biennale, themed “the Light of Life”, eulogizes the value of life and highlights the dignity, power and glory of life. The 3rd session, held in 2008 as an official cultural activity, was themed “Colors and the Olympics” and helped promote the cultural atmosphere of the 2008 Beijing Olympic Games. This time, as a city cultural activity for the Olympic Games as well, the 9th Beijing Biennale showcases the diversity of art and focuses on Olympic and pandemic-fighting spirits. To facilitate your understanding, we provide 14 keywords related to the theme: the Olympic history; Summer Olympics (including sports); Winter Olympics (including sports); Olympic Games host cities; Olympic stadiums; figures in the Olympic Games; Beijing (a city that hosts both Summer and Winter Olympic Games); Olympic symbols, flags, mascots and posters; Olympic flame and torch; Olympic uniforms, medals and bouquets; People’s Olympics; and exercise and health.
Sandra Ackermann(Germany)
Die Springer / 2006 / oil on canvas / 200cm×150cm
Work from the 3rd Beijing Biennale
Zhubaniyazov Umirbek(Kazakstan)
Kures / 1989 / oil on canvas / 80cm×77cm
Work from the 3rd Beijing Biennale
Key Word: Summer Olympics (including Sports)
The first summer Olympics was held from April 6th to 15th in 1896 in Athens, Greece, the birthplace of the Olympic Games. 311 athletes from 14 countries, namely Australia, Austria, Bulgaria, the United Kingdom, Hungary, Germany, Denmark, the United States, France, Chile, Swiss, Sweden and the host Greece took part in the event. The first Olympic Games had 43 events in 9 sports, including athletics, cycling, fencing, gymnastics, shooting, swimming, tennis, weightlifting and wrestling. The Summer Olympics is held every four years according to ancient Olympic rules. As the first modern Olympics was held in a leap year, the following sessions are also held in leap years. Even when it cannot be held as scheduled because of war and other force majeures, every leap year is considered a session.
Stadium of the First Modern Olympic Games-- Panathenaic Stadium
Athletics in the First Modern Olympic Games
Poster of the First Modern Olympic Games
Until now, altogether 31 sessions have been held. Among them, the 1916 Berlin Olympic Games was canceled because of the outbreak of the First World War; the 1940 Tokyo Olympic Games and the 1944 London Olympic Games were interrupted due to the Second World War; and the 2020 Tokyo Olympic Games was postponed as a result of the coronavirus pandemic. Others have been held as planned.
Olympic Fire and Flag at the Seoul 1988 Olympic Games
Opening Ceremony of the Rio de Janeiro 2016 Olympic Games
Summer Olympic Sports-- Weightlifting
Summer Olympic Sports-- Basketball
Summer Olympic Sports-- Volleyball
Summer Olympic Sports-- Table Tennis
Summer Olympic Sports-- Boxing
Summer Olympic Sports-- Canoeing
Summer Olympic Sports-- Archery
Summer Olympic Sports-- Taekwondo
Summer Olympic Sports-- Gymnastics
Summer Olympic Sports-- Athletics
Summer Olympic Sports-- Cycling
The 14 key words will be published one by one. Look forward to your interest and participation in the Beijing Biennale.
(Notes: Please strictly follow copyright laws and relevant regulations in and outside China when referring to captions, photos and other information in your creation. Plagiarism is unacceptable. Copyright-related legal issues should be taken care of by artists themselves.)