24 hours with Renaud Donnedieu de Vabres
As you can imagine, my days have been far from typical during [French President] Jacque Chirac's visit to China. I've been getting up at 7am and going to bed at 1am because, apart from the official programme, I like to be as involved as possible with the cultural events. I still have to do my official correspondence, which I do in the morning, but the rest of the day I am involved in promoting the relationship between French and Chinese culture.
As minister, it is my job to promote French values overseas and to help build the confidence of the French people, who have a great deal of natural curiosity about other cultures. It is our belief that through promoting French values, culture and way of life we are able to connect with other cultures.
It seems the spread of information through the internet has created a double element: on one hand, people have become more curious about other countries; at the same time, they want their own culture to be acknowledged. We admire the greatness of the Chinese people and we are fascinated by Chinese history. Many French people have an in-depth knowledge of Chinese history, art and cuisine.
In France, we have respect for cultural diversity and that is something we want to promote. In no way are we looking to impose French culture on anybody. Considering the gravity of the current international situation, you have to approach culture and diversity with an open mind. Take the decision by the Pompidou Centre to get involved in the West Kowloon development project. You won't have a big French flag flying from the top of any art museum. We just want to be involved in a boiling, bubbling, exciting artistic exhibition. It is going to be an important symbol of French-China co-operation. I'm sure it will be a huge success for Hong Kong and I believe it has the potential to become the leading institution of its kind in Asia. It will also make a bold statement of the French desire to develop ever-closer ties with China.
I was lucky enough to pay a quick visit to Parentheses in Central. Did you know it is the only French bookshop in China? I bought a copy of Le Livre des Proverbes Chinois. Before I was Minister of Culture and Communication I used to like to go to bookshops a lot, but since I have become minister it is quite paradoxical. I have to deal with the issue of books, libraries and other types of culture, but I'm unable to get to bookshops any more. It was nice to be able to browse the shelves and talk to the staff. Then it was back to the hotel for a short briefing from my colleagues and a glass of white wine.
I presented the Ordre des Arts et des Lettres [Order
of Arts and Letters] to 13 local personalities for their contributions to furthering the development of French arts and culture in Hong Kong and China. We had a small cocktail reception before the presentation that allowed me to meet some of the many Hong Kong people who are helping to strengthen the ties between our two countries. Afterwards we had a Chinese meal in one of the hotel's function rooms. Hong Kong is such an exciting city but unfortunately, due to work commitments, I don't have time to look around. It's a pity because I haven't been here before and I would like to get a feel for what gives it such a buzz. I'll be back later in the year, so perhaps I'll be able to see more of it then.
At the end of a working day, I sometimes like to sit in a small cafe and drink a cup of coffee or have a glass of wine. And I'm not a snob. I don't only drink French wines. There are many good wines coming out of the new world, including China. I was at this huge banquet in Beijing and I think they were serving Great Wall wine. The reds were very good.
I'm travelling to Shanghai to take part in a seminar to promote international diversity through art and culture. Our goal is to get to know current Chinese artists. In the past, many great artists would move to France. This included many famous Chinese names from film and literature, but they are now moving back to China. We went to a former industrial zone just outside Beijing and there were a lot of artists with paintings, sculpture and video [installations] and I found it very creative and energetic. If you can create in art, you can create in industry.
The French want to help support Chinese culture. We have a long history together, which you can see from the French concession in Shanghai. I love to visit that part of the city when I'm there. Shanghai is exciting - somehow it reminds me a lot of New York.
You have to have an open mind when you're a politician dealing with culture. It is about history, sculpture, paintings and buildings, but it's also about governments, trade, health and all the other political issues. Politics is based on the transmission of energy and, in some ways, I have been able to recharge my batteries on the strength of the creation I have seen in China. I don't feel I'm only arguing for artists and creative people. I actually feel I'm dealing with political issues as well. To care for each and everybody is important.
