It's an art form in which biennial gatherings are important for exchanging and debating new ideas. The gatherings help artists to keep connected and informed of new technologies, and to renew the vitality of the art. The first International Printmaking Biennial opened in Beijing on Saturday. Top contemporary printmakers from six nations were there to celebrate the rich diversity of their craft. The historical significance of China as the origin of paper making and woodblock printmaking makes the country the concluding stop for the exhibition's world tour. The exhibition now running at the Red Gate Gallery does not have a curatorial premise or theme, other than what appears to be a celebration of technical, artistic and cultural diversity. Prints by artists from Canada, China, Japan, South Korea, the United Kingdom and the United States celebrate the cultural diversity of visual art in their countries. And the interesting and provocative imagery excite, inspire or confront the viewers with an aesthetic experience of beauty and reflections on our place in the universe. Zhou Jirong, Chinese printmaking artist, said, "My works always revolve around the city and modernization. This print called 'Evolution Diagram' reflects on the relationship between humans and animals during the process of evolution, which I think is contradictory. It involves woodcut and serigraph techniques." Music is inspiration for Canadian lithography printmaker Rudolf Bikkers, and his prints in turn have inspired musicians like Yoyo Ma. Printmaking, one of the oldest forms of visual communication, is used by artists seeking to express complex ideas. Employing traditional and experimental techniques, they have found their needs met in the exciting, infinite possibilities that printmaking offers.But as the curator Peter Macwhirter noted, the art form is to some extent relegated to the shadows because of its copying nature.