Innocence, tranquillity and beauty are the main components of an exhibition opening tomorrow at the China Cultural Centre on the occasion of International Women’s Day.

St Thomas Bay, Malta, by Debbie Bonello

These elements are present in the works of both Feng Xiwen of China and local artist Debbie Bonello but their approach and style are very different. Visitors are invited to observe and reflect on their dissimilar worlds while noting the underlying similarities. The ultimate aim of the exhibition is, in fact, to create a dialogue.

Ms Feng, who studied the art of zen, expresses herself through a child-like and naive strip-cartoon technique. A little monk she calls ‘Carefree Sisi’ is the protagonist of most of her works.

He is portrayed as happy and peaceful and seems to feel at one with nature.

Dellijiet by Debbie Bonello. Right: The Blue Lotus by Xiwen Feng

Fans by Xiwen Feng

Among others, the monk is seen admiring falling snow flakes, staring at a mountain, holding a blue lotus flower, listening to the breeze and joyfully caressing a cat.

In most paintings, he is praying or meditating, very often in the company of his brothers. These scenes reminded the exhibition’s curator, E.V. Borg, of the mystic St Francis of Assisi.

Ms Bonello’s impressionist-style works are also inspired by nature but, while Ms Feng looks content in her ‘bubble’, she seems intent on exploring the world. This is evident from the various countries represented in her landscapes, including Malta, Sicily and China.

Through her brushstrokes, Ms Bonello also conveys different moods, from calm and serene to sad and miserable to bouts of hope.

Her flower series is specifically concerned with women. In her words, it deals with “the cycle of life, female sexuality and the challenges and opportunities faced by women in contemporary society”. In the introduction to the exhibition, Mr Borg compares the two artists and while pinpointing the differences between the “spiritual” Ms Feng and the “emotional” Ms Bonello, he highlights the common aspects of their works.

Pray for You, by Xiwen Feng.

He writes: “Both expressions are romantic, therapeutic, symbolic and yearn for tranquillity, serenity and peace. Both are lyrical and poetic… the empathy with nature is explicit in both.

“Both expressions convey or intimate a joie de vivre and an élan [energy, style and enthusiasm] vital in different doses.”

Innocence, Tranquillity and Beauty – Dialogue: Feng Xiwen and Debbie Bonello is opening tomorrow and runs until March 22 at the China Cultural Centre at 173, Melita Street, Valletta. It is open from Monday to Friday (except public holidays) between 9am and 12.30pm and from 2.30 to 5pm. Entrance is free.