Post-Exhibition Press Release
Hamburg, Germany – October 2025 — The exhibition “From Huangpu River to Elbe River” concluded this month at Pashmin Art Gallery in Hamburg, marking a milestone in the 40-year sister-city relationship between Shanghai and Hamburg. Bringing together six leading artists—Professor Li Lei, Lu Lan, and Jiang Hai Cang from Shanghai, and Natalja Nouri, Michael Knepper, and Lionel Machris from Hamburg—the event became a living dialogue between East and West, between tradition and innovation.
Jointly organized by the Shanghai Foreign Culture Association and Pashmin Art in Hamburg, with the support of the Shanghai Municipal Administration of Culture and Tourism, the exhibition attracted notable guests from the diplomatic, academic, and cultural sectors. It officially opened on September 20, 2025, and remained on view until October 3, 2025.
A Meeting of Two Worlds
The opening ceremony reflected the spirit of cultural collaboration that has defined the partnership between Shanghai and Hamburg for four decades.
Mr. Nour Nouri, Director of Pashmin Art, welcomed the guests and introduced the participating artists and cultural partners from both cities, emphasizing the gallery’s mission to serve as a bridge between Eastern and Western artistic traditions.
Among the distinguished speakers were:
- JIN Songbao, Consul General of the People’s Republic of China in Hamburg
- Ms. Yang Yan, Director of the Science and Technology Department of the Shanghai Foreign Culture Association
- Ms. Parvati Vasanta, Advisor for Asia, City Partnerships Shanghai and Osaka
- Prof. Li Lei, Director of the Hai Museum of Art and Vice Chairman of the Shanghai Artists Association
- Ms. Lina Peng, Director of Shanghai Dawei Cultural Devcelopment and Partner of Pashmin Art in Shanghai
- Mr. Wolfgang Rudischhauser, former Consul General of the Federal Republic of Germany in Chengdu
- Dr. Davood Khazaie, International Curator of Pashmin Art
Each speaker reflected on the lasting bond between Shanghai and Hamburg, highlighting art’s unique power to inspire dialogue and mutual understanding. More than an exhibition, this project became a genuine cultural conversation — six artists bridging East and West through works that transcend borders, invite reflection, and affirm art as a shared language of beauty and connection.
Ms. Dan Dan, was the interpreter for all Chinese speakers throughout the evening, ensuring seamless communication and cultural connection.
Following the speeches, artists, diplomats, collectors, and cultural representatives from both cities gathered for the opening reception, engaging in lively dialogue amid the exhibited works.
Featured Artists
Professor Li Lei (Shanghai)
Renowned as “an outstanding representative of Chinese abstract art,” Li Lei fuses the philosophical essence of Chinese culture with international abstraction. Influenced by Hai Art and Jiangnan traditions, his Listening to the Voice of the Earth series — featured in this exhibition — translates Taoist balance and natural energy into vivid color, rhythm, and spatial harmony.
Lan Lu (Shanghai)
Rooted in the meditative traditions of Chinese aesthetics, Lan Lu’s Fish, Peach Tree, and Water Lily series harmonize nature and abstraction. Her layered compositions reveal the cyclical rhythm of life — balance, renewal, and stillness interwoven in luminous color fields.
Jiang Haicang (Shanghai)
Known as the “Formless Wave Man,” Jiang Haicang’s Yi-Image – Cosmic Mental Image series transforms Taoist and mystical philosophy into abstract expression. His swirling layers of color evoke unseen cosmic rhythms, balancing chaos and order in meditative equilibrium.
Natalja Nouri (Hamburg)
Nouri’s symbolic pictograms explore the unity of intellect and intuition. Her works Vitae – Unitas (2013), Self-Knowledge (2007), and Eternal Way (2005) bridge metaphysics and geometry, leading the viewer from chaos to clarity — from the primal force of Eros to the structural reason of Logos.
Michael Knepper (Hamburg)
Knepper’s paintings navigate realism, hyperrealism, and pop culture. Works such as MEI (美) (2025), Elephant Stamped (2024), and Medusa (2019) reinterpret myth and modern identity with psychological intensity and symbolic power.
Lionel Machris (Hamburg)
Machris’s photographic works on 24-karat gold leaf merge precision and transcendence. The Elements Cycle (2022) and UAE-inspired pieces such as Burj Khalifa and Dubai (2024) shimmer like alchemical icons — bridging the material and the metaphysical through light and reflection.
Art as a Bridge
Over the course of two weeks, visitors to Pashmin Art Gallery experienced not merely an exhibition but an evolving conversation between two cultural ecosystems. The collaboration reaffirmed both cities’ commitment to cultural diplomacy and artistic innovation.
As one visitor noted, “It felt like standing between two rivers — the Huangpu and the Elbe — and watching their currents merge into one flowing stream of understanding.”
Through these six artists and the vision of their curators, “From Huangpu River to Elbe River” transcended borders of geography and style. The exhibition illuminated the timeless human pursuit of meaning — turning art into a shared language of unity.
As Shanghai and Hamburg approach the 40th anniversary of their partnership in 2026, this exhibition stands as both tribute and promise: that art will continue to bridge worlds, renew dialogue, and reflect the living confluence of East and West.
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