Building the Dream of China-Africa Modernization Together —2026 “Colourful World” China-Africa Youth Painting Invitational Exhibition and “Youth Aspirations” Beijing Youth Art Biennale open at China Millennium Monument

Guided by the Chinese People’s Association for Friendship with Foreign Countries (CPAFFC), the BPAFFC hosts the 2026 “Colourful World” China-Africa Youth Painting Invitational Exhibition and “Youth Aspirations” Beijing Youth Art Biennale with the China Communist Youth League Beijing Committee, the Information Office of the People’s Government of Beijing Municipality, and the Beijing Federation of Literary & Art Circles. The goal is to implement the outcomes of the Beijing Summit of the Forum on China-Africa Cooperation, boost traditional friendship between Chinese and African youths, and work together on the shared path toward modernization. The awards ceremony and the opening ceremony took place at the China Millennium Monument on August 11. Over 150 people attended the event, including ambassador of the Embassy of Mauritius in China, the CPAFFC, the hosts, the organizers, and the co-organizers, representatives of Chinese and African winners, representatives of the directors of the BPAFFC, and African friends in Beijing.

Remarks by guests

Lu Xiangdong, Vice President of the CPAFFC, noted in his speech that 2026 marks the 70th anniversary of diplomatic relations between China and Africa, and is also the China-Africa Year of People-to-People Exchanges as agreed by President Xi Jinping and African leaders. More than 700 people-to-people exchange activities have been held in China and Africa. This painting exhibition will add youthful vitality to the China-Africa Year of People-to-People Exchanges. Lu called for cherishing the traditional friendship between China and Africa and bolstering the foundation for people-to-people bonds. He also stressed the need to deepen pragmatic cooperation, build consensus on modernization, and strengthen youth exchanges to write a new chapter of China-Africa cooperation.

Mr. Gaetan Siew, Mauritian Ambassador to China, extended warm congratulations on the successful opening of the exhibition. He noted that 23 young Mauritian artists had been awarded prizes, which is a remarkable achievement worth celebrating for an island nation like Mauritius. Art, he observed, is the most beautiful form of expression, and art transcends barriers and serves as a powerful vehicle for communication across different histories, traditions, and languages. He hoped that this exhibition would inspire even broader exchanges between China and Africa, and that young artists would continue to take up their brushes to not only create exquisite artworks but also portray a future of peace, mutual understanding, and shared prosperity.

Wang Yu, Party Secretary and Executive Vice President of the BPAFFC, said that the painting exhibition is an important measure taken by the BPAFFC to promote the China-Africa Partnership Action for People-to-People Exchanges under the framework of the China-Africa Year of People-to-People Exchanges, and it is also a concrete action to build a bridge of youth friendship and cultivate a new generation of young people who will carry forward China-Africa friendship. Through the lens of art, young artists from China and Africa demonstrate their artistic reflections and sense of responsibility of their generation. It is hoped that they depict the grand vision of China-Africa modernization, promote the spirit of friendship, and write a new chapter in China-Africa friendship through artistic exchanges.

Awards ceremony

Awards are presented to winner representatives from Africa.

Themed “Building the Dream of China-Africa Modernization Together,” the exhibition has received a total of 3,364 entries from 31 African countries and 27 provincial-level regions of China since it was launched in May. After expert reviews and a final review by the organizing committee, 172 award-winning works from Africa and 853 from China were selected, while 47 works were shortlisted for the biennale.

Awards are presented to winner representatives from China.

Additionally, 28 outstanding organizers were selected in recognition of the active participation of African embassies in China, friendship organizations, overseas Chinese associations, people’s friendship associations of various provinces and cities, schools, and art institutions. Chinese and foreign distinguished guests read out the list of winners and presented certificates to the representatives of the award-winning individuals and organizations from China and Africa.

Awards are presented to outstanding organizers.

The event also featured performances of African-style dances and songs by African friends and international students in Beijing. The Burundian folk dance Ngira Nivuge kicked off the event, showcasing a jubilant scene of singing and dancing in celebration of a bountiful harvest. African students from Beijing International Studies University presented a compilation of dance performances, whose vibrant movements brought to life the vitality of the African continent. the classic African song Karaoké Envole-moi – Génération Goldman gave voice to young people’s dreams and aspirations for the future. Mariatu Kargbo, known as the “Black Pearl,” founder of the Sierra Leone China Friendship Association and an ambassador of African culture, sang the song I Love Beijing and Africa, conveying through her music heartfelt wishes for the enduring friendship between China and Africa across generations.

Exhibition opening

At the end of the event, the guests together unveiled the 2026 “Colourful World” China-Africa Youth Painting Invitational Exhibition and “Youth Will” Beijing Youth Art Biennale, and took a tour of the exhibition.

The exhibition is undertaken by the Beijing Youth Art Development Promotion Association and Beijing Gehua Cultural Development Group Co., Ltd., and co-organized by the People’s Government of Beijing Municipality, the Center for Cultural Communication of China International Communications Group, and Chinese Headline New Media. Characterized by its diversity and professionalism, the exhibition is divided into two zones dedicated to the Colourful World” China-Africa Youth Painting Invitational Exhibition and “Youth Aspirations” Beijing Youth Art Biennale, respectively, featuring a total of nearly 1,200 outstanding artworks. In the Children’s and Junior categories, vibrant colors in watercolor, oil painting, crayon, and ink wash vividly capture childlike innocence, imagination, and vision of the future. In the Youth category, young artists articulate their artistic concepts and reflections on contemporary reality through a wide range of media, including traditional Chinese painting, oil painting, printmaking, sculpture, and digital art. These artistic practices spanning different nations, age groups, and media serve not only as a declaration of friendship inscribed by Chinese and African youths with their brushes, but also as an in-depth showcase of the contemporary ecosystem of Chinese youth art. They stand both as an artistic tribute to the fruitful outcomes of China-Africa cooperation and as a youthful response to the shared vision of “Building the Dream of China-Africa Modernization Together.”

The exhibition will run until August 16 on the second floor of the China Millennium Monument. You are welcome to explore this vibrant world of color and hope, and experience firsthand the declaration of friendship made by Chinese and African youths.