Awhile back, I wrote here about the Chinese artist He Qi. Near the end I mentioned that “there’s a chance we may be bringing his work to campus for an exhibition in the fall.” Several commented that they hoped it would come to pass.

Well, after a few months of hard work, it has become a reality. “Look Toward the Heavens: The Art of He Qi,” an exhibition of 43 artist proof giclee works, is now open on the Concordia Seminary campus. The exhibition is housed in the gallery of Concordia Historical Institute, the first building on the left on the Seminary Drive entrance into campus from Clayton Road. It is the first (only?) time He Qi’s art has been exhibited in the St. Louis area.

Moreover, He Qi (pronounced huh chee) will be here “in the flesh” on Thursday and Friday. His exhibition is a stunning collection,…

"The Risen Lord" by Dr. He Qi (www.heqigallery.com)

In recent weeks, I have been working hard on the Winter issue of Concordia Journal, the quarterly theological publication of Concordia Seminary. This week we received permission to use “The Risen Lord” (above), an artwork by prominent Chinese Christian artist He Qi (pronounced huh chee) for the cover. He Qi’s own personal story is remarkable, from growing up during Mao’s Cultural Revolution, to converting to Christianity, to becoming an artist of international renown.

Here is part of what I am writing for the editor’s note about the cover:

….His bold use of color and shape, his drawing on multiple art traditions, his faithful interpretation of biblical narrative—it all creates a total greater than the sum of its parts. Much like his older Japanese counterpart Sadao Watanabe (a familiar artist to those familiar with Concordia Seminary), He Qi draws deeply on the folk artistic and cultural traditions…

(1) The Olympics:The Wall Street Journal reports on China and religious repression:

Religious repression rears its ugly head again:

President Bush attended church in Beijing on Sunday, worshipping with Chinese Christians and singing “Amazing Grace.”

But what happened outside the church says more about the state of religion in China.

Earlier that morning, Hua Huiqi, the pastor of an illegal underground Christian church, was detained by police as he was biking to the service that Mr. Bush was to attend. His whereabouts are still unknown. Mr. Hua’s brother, who was briefly detained, said Mr. Hua only wanted to worship at the church where he was baptized.

China’s constitution allows freedom of religion, but in practice religion is tolerated only insofar as it is controlled by the state.

The only legal churches are those run by the State Administration of Religious Affairs.

Those who choose to attend “house” churches — roughly half of China’s Christians — face harassment or…

Late last week, a federal panel on religious freedom urged President Bush to boycott the opening ceremonies of the Beijing Olympics in August.

The U.S. Commission on International Religious Freedom said that “unless there is substantial improvement in respecting Tibetans’ religious freedom, including by opening direct and concrete talks with the Dalai Lama, the Tibetan Buddhists’ spiritual leader.”

Religion News Service ran a story about the panel’s statement Monday.

House speaker Nancy Pelosi had previously suggested Bush not attend the opening ceremonies to protest China’s crackdown on Tibet. Earlier today, the White House left an opening for Bush to back out of the ceremonies, but attend some of the events, according to CNN.