(Clearwisdom.net) On September 25, 2006, "Truthfulness-Compassion-Tolerance Art Exhibition" was held in Ceyrat, a city of Auvergne province in central France. La Montagne, the largest newspaper in Auvergne, Ceyrat Infos, a local newspaper in Ceyrat, and Info, a free newspaper with a circulation volume as high as 200,000 across Augergne, all carried reports about the art exhibition before the grand opening.

People viewing the paintings displayed in the "Truthfulness-Compassion-Tolerance Art Exhibition"

In an introductory article that appeared on La Montagne, it was mentioned, "The art exhibition depicts the real situation about the Chinese communist regime’s persecution against Falun Gong, a cultivation way based on the Buddha School. By revealing the torture and hatred that Falun Gong practitioners have endured, the exhibition delivers a strong appeal for hope and peace. The paintings impress viewers with noble sentiment and magnificent brevity." The newspaper also reminded readers that in Tuesday’s opening ceremony there would be a dancing performance by the Feitian Dance Troupe, followed by a lecture given by Mr. Wu Baozhang, former director of RFI’s Chinese branch, about contemporary human rights situation in China.

The art exhibition was held in a 600-square-meter ballroom at Espace Culture et Congrs Henri Biscarrat in Ceyrat. Falun Gong practitioner, Mathieu, who helped organize the exhibition, said the painting exhibition consists of four parts. The first part is to introduce Falun Gong and show the glorious cultivation tradition in Chinese culture. The second part is to describe the persecution that Falun Gong practitioners are suffering in China. The paintings reveal various forms of torture endured by Falun Gong practitioners and depict practitioners’ gestures of justice and non-violence in the face of the persecution. The third part is to arouse people’s sense of justice and introduce Falun Gong practitioners’ efforts worldwide, aiming to stop the persecution. The last part is the victory of justice. Through artistic work, artists express their perspectives about the future—justice will be restored and vicious people will be prosecuted once the persecution is stopped and the facts are clarified.

The 44 pieces of artwork displayed in the exhibition are creations by 17 Chinese and Western artists from different countries. They are all Falun Gong practitioners. Among them, four have been tortured in China. The persecution depicted in their paintings has truly happened in China.

One common characteristic shared by all of the exhibited art work is that the artists have infused their cultivation experiences and belief in Falun Gong into their creations to express the pursuit of Truthfulness, Compassion and Tolerance. People’s hearts were deeply moved by their artistic expressions.

There was a national bicycle race in Ceyrat one day before the painting exhibition. The race attracted more than two thousand participants and audience from all over the country. Mr. Herve Druaux, chairman of the French National Bicycle Race, invited Mathieu to the rostrum to introduce the painting exhibition after he understood the information to be delivered in the exhibition.

On the first day of the exhibition, a visitor left remarks on the guest book, "The power of expression of the displayed paintings is very strong. The message conveyed by the artists deserves our careful consideration."

A local resident of Ceyrat with painting background said she was shocked by the exhibition. She commented that she did not know of the persecution until attending the exhibition because the local media seldom mentioned it. She added that the paintings had outstanding power of expression because much of the information was represented realistically. The paintings were very touching—they were beautiful, but the persecution stories depicted by them were horrible. She specifically pointed out the brave facial expressions of the practitioners painted in the artworks and the hope aroused by artists’ utilization of light streams. The painting exhibition also awakened her conscience. She said she would think carefully what she could do to help stop the persecution.

The vice president of Ceyrat Family Association and a secretary said they felt distressed after seeing the paintings because they could not imagine such brutality still existed in the modern world. They said, "After committing such brutality and violence, the Chinese communist regime will still host the Olympic Games and they are trying to send astronauts to the Moon! This simply makes me feel extremely uncomfortable. The only word I can think of is ‘horrible’. I cannot imagine how our politicians could cut business deals with a regime like this. I can hardly imagine it. I am terrified."

The vice president said, "The Chinese communist regime thought they could weed out Falun Gong practitioners. But it is impossible to eliminate such spirits. It is still possible that we can make a change. We will see justice overwhelm evilness."