WELLINGTON -- The "Silk Road Artists' Rendezvous" art exhibition, featuring 63 works created by 60 artists from 33 countries, kicked off in New Zealand on Friday.

Since 2009, hundreds of artists from nearly 100 countries have participated in "Silk Road Artists' Rendezvous" visits to China, which were organized by China's Ministry of Culture and Tourism.

Ye Su, minister counselor of the Chinese embassy in New Zealand, said at the opening ceremony that hosting the exhibition in New Zealand would help deepen the friendly relations between the two countries and foster mutual understanding between the two peoples.

Xia Shangzhou, deputy director of the Museum of Contemporary Art of the China Academy of Art, said that when artists bring their artistic experiences to China, the colors of different cultures blend on this land, making every gathering a bold brushstroke in the picture of cultural and artistic exchange that the exhibition aims to paint.

Kate McLeod, a female painter from Christchurch, New Zealand, shared her wonderful experience of participating in the "Silk Road Artists' Rendezvous" in Zhejiang, southern China, in November 2023.

The exhibition will be held in Wellington from Sept 20 to Oct 5, and in Auckland from Oct 25 to Nov 25.