HNA Group Hosts Exhibition of Chinese Painting and Calligraphy at the Paris Pagoda

Celebrates the Work of Renowned Scholar and Artist Jao Tsung-i as Part of Paris International Week

PARIS, June 28, 2017 /PRNewswire/ -- HNA Group, a global Fortune 500 company focused on tourism, logistics, and financial services, yesterday announced that it is hosting "Glamour of Jao's Lotus: Exhibition of Lotus-themed Artworks by Professor Jao Tsung-i" at the Paris Pagoda. The exhibition features thirty-eight paintings and calligraphies by renowned Chinese scholar and artist Professor Jao Tsung-i, and marks Professor Jao's first exhibition in France. The event will run from 27 June to 2 July 2017 and is invitation-only.

The exhibition is being held as part of HNA Paris International Week, a week-long series of events hosted by HNA Group to celebrate its global platform. The events are being held in Paris, France, in conjunction with HNA's title sponsorship of the HNA Open de France. 

Lu Ying, Vice Chairman of the HNA Group Board of Directors, said, "HNA Group is delighted to introduce the important works of Professor Jao to the people of Paris. Professor Jao is one of the great minds and talents in China today; we are proud to share his artistry and to help foster an appreciation for Chinese art and scholarship with the rest of the world."  

Mr. Ying continued, "As one of the few truly global companies with Chinese roots, and in keeping with the 'One Belt, One Road' initiative, HNA Group is committed to promoting cultural exchanges across our businesses, management, and philanthropic activities, while also preserving and celebrating our heritage. Our commitment to giving back, to bringing the world closer together, and to being good global citizens is deeply embedded in HNA Group's corporate fabric, and we are pleased to have this opportunity to support the arts and encourage a dialogue between East and West."

Since its founding, HNA Group has made approximately $1.5 billion in charitable contributions across a range of programs, and has donated more than $20 million to artistic and cultural organizations in China and internationally, including the National Center for the Performing Arts, the Palace Museum, the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO), and The Jewish Museum. In 2010, HNA Group established the Cihang Foundation as a way to broaden and further institutionalize its commitment to giving back.

About the Exhibition

The theme of the exhibition is centered around the lotus flower. In traditional Chinese culture, the lotus serves as a symbol of highly principled scholars. The works of Professor Jao convey the key ideals and principles of Confucianism, including the purity, beauty, and tranquility of the state of mind and the pursuit of noble character.

Professor Jao is a world-renowned Chinese scholar, artist, poet, and modern authority of Confucianism. Over the course of his 70-year study of sinology, Professor Jao has published over 100 books and over 1,000 articles across a wide range of disciplines.  He is a highly regarded artist and has created his own style of painting and calligraphy developed from internalizing the essence of Chinese masterpieces. He has been affiliated with a number of prestigious universities around the world, and has received many distinguished honors over the course of his career, including the Prix Stanislas Julien by the College de France, the Life Achievement Award from the Hong Kong Arts Development Council, and the Grand Bauhinia Medal from the Hong Kong S.A.R Government. Professor Jao currently serves as the seventh President of the Xiling Seal Art Society and the Associate Foreign Member of the Academie des Inscriptions et Belles-Lettres of the Institut de France.

About HNA Group

HNA Group is a global Fortune 500 company focused on tourism, logistics and financial services. Since its founding in 1993, HNA Group has evolved from a regional airline based on Hainan Island in southern China into a global company with approximately $145 billion of assets, over $90 billion in annual revenues, and an international workforce of 410,000 employees, primarily across America, Europe and Asia. HNA's tourism business is a fast-growing, vertically-integrated global player with market-leading positions in aviation, hotels and travel services. HNA operates and invests in nearly 3,200 hotels with over 380,000 rooms across major markets, and has 1,250 aircraft carrying nearly 100 million passengers to 270 cities worldwide. HNA's Logistics business is a leader in logistics and supply chain management with capabilities in shipping and equipment manufacturing, maritime transportation, third-party payment platforms and project finance. In financial services, HNA is China's largest non-bank leasing company, and a leading provider of a diverse set of businesses in equipment leasing, insurance, asset management, investment banking and credit services.

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