RENMIN UNIVERSITY, 16 Sep. 2014 (Via RUC English News):From September 11th to 12th, the second FASIC Australian Studies in China conference was held in Renmin University of China, co-sponsored by the Foundation for Australian Studies in China (FASIC) and Australian Studies Centre at RUC. The Conference’s theme is “The Big Picture: Lives, Landscapes and Homelands in Australian and Chinese Art”. Over 120 Australian and Chinese artists, show planner, gallery curators, scholars and cultural thinkers participated in the conference. Yi Zhihong, vice president of RUC, Prof. David Walker, BHP Billiton Chair of Australian Studies in Peking University, and the Australian ambassador to China, Frances Adamson attended the opening ceremony. Yi Zhihong, David Walker and Frances Adamson remarked prospectively in opening speeches on the significance of culture and art in Sino- Australian relation. Yi pointed that as the bridge of mutual understanding and friendship between the two nations, culture and art play an important role in the relationship between China and Australia. As the convener, Prof. David Walker said that this conference aims at calling for the discussion on Australian and Chinese Art, which is rarely seen in Australian Studies in China and will increasingly raise the attention of the two countries. Frances Adamson stated that the tie between the two countries is not only embodied in economy but also in culture and art. During the two-day-session, the participants shared their insights on topics like artistic practices and exchanges, the role and function of the cultural industry and ever-changing perceptions of identity, place and senses of belonging. The conference takes on the form of group discussion, panel speech, interview, special performance and exhibition. The two panel speakers are Edmund Capon, former curator of Art Gallery of NSW (New South Wales), who was awarded the Order of Australia and the Order of British Empire, and Julianne Schultz, founding Editor-in-chief of Griffith Review and winner of the Order of Australia. Their respective speeches are on Understanding and Defining Australia through Art, and Uses of Culture. Also aired views Sasha Grishin，Djon Mundine，Suhanya Raffel，Aaron Seeto，Zhang Lansheng as well as Wu Di，PhD candidate from Australian Studies Centre at RUC. Focusing on Sino-Australian art relationship, this conference enjoys larger scale and more distinctive topics than ever, which further deepens Australian studies in China and enhances mutual understandings between the two nations. Australian Studies center at RUC is a research and teaching institution in RUC which focuses on the study of Australian society, culture, literature and language and has greatly promoted the cultural communications between China and Australia. (Transwritten by Hu Jia and Liu Danqing, reviewed by Long Yan.)