I am Raz Barfield, and I am Associate Head International, at the School of Art & Design, University of Salford, in the UK. I want to say a few things, and share a few thoughts about my good friend and colleague, Dr Wang Qijun, whom I have known for 7 years.
 
　　I first met Qijun in my previous job, working for the Glasgow School of Art, one of the world's great art schools. We were thrown together from opposite sides of the world and tasked with developing something new, innovative and very special in the field of Higher Education. Together we built and delivered a new and revolutionary international education programme at the Central Academy of Fine Arts in Beijing. Our programme was widely recognised even at the time—rightly, I believe—as an important sign of things to come, an early prototype perhaps, of a civilised, enlightened, human form of cross-cultural and transnational education. It is no surprise, therefore, that right at the heart of an innovation so progressive and humanistic, you would find someone like Qijun. From what I know of the man, this principle, this ideal is fundamental to his being, to his life, and to his work.
 
　　Wang Qijun is rightly celebrated as a world-leading authority in his field. He is a genuine scholar, erudite and learned, yet humble before his subject, and always inquisitive, which is the most important attribute for any creative person to possess. It is quite touching to see such a well-respected expert in his field so genuinely enthusiastic when talking about his subject, and to become so excited, just like a young boy, when striding off towards some ancient building. In Qijun's company, in the past, what, to me, looked like a broken-down pile of old bricks and rotting timbers has often become a fascinating site for discovery, and a window into another time and place, as he brought it to life through his explanation, in the way he pointed out the tiniest detail, and by so doing made it live and breathe – he made it human.
 
　　And that is the sign of a real teacher.
 
　　Also of an artist – that is what art does; show us the world in new was, and ultimately, show us ourselves, humanity, in new ways. Great art does the simplest and most magical thing: it holds up a mirror to the viewer and says "this is you, and this is me; this is what we are." And at this time, with a world changing as never before, with cultures aligning, intersecting, colliding, this world is fortunate to have men like Qijun—who has seen and knows both sides—holding up that mirror.
 
　　Qijun is rooted in the deepest traditions of Chinese culture, yet he is genuinely an international man, at home anywhere, and this is reflected in the breadth of his practice. He can move effortlessly between the formal and idiomatic conventions of Chinese and Western art, with a supreme technical mastery in both, across an enviable range of mediums, and he can fuse them, with each informing the other. He remains true to both traditions, whilst innovating, and enriching one with another.
 
　　For me, despite the length of time I have known Qijun, this is the first time I have seen so many of his works together in one place, and so it is a special pleasure to be here to see it. I am especially honoured to have been asked to speak today, and to share a few thoughts, and my appreciation of my good friend, and highly accomplished scholar, educator, author and artist, Wang Qijun.

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