American Paralympian Gregory Burns is holding a solo art show in Beijing, in support of the Olympics and Paralympics.
On show are a dozen abstract paintings and collages depicting athletes competing on sports grounds. Chinese icons like the Temple of Heaven and Bird's Nest are also prominent in his work.
The child of US Foreign Service parents, Burns contracted polio as an infant while living in Jerusalem in 1958 and has walked ever since with the help of crutches and leg braces.
Having learned to swim when he was just three, Burns became a top disabled swimmer by 18. At the 1992 Barcelona, 1996 Atlanta and 2000 Sydney Paralympics, he set four world records and captured half a dozen medals.
After taking home medals in three Paralympics, Burns retired from professional sport to concentrate in his second love, the fine arts. He now travels around the world painting, writing and acting as a motivational speaker.
He says Beijing now feels very different from his first visit here in the 1980s, when buildings seemed to be styled after square Lego blocks and gray or blue Mao-style suits were worn everywhere.
"Before, bicycles and buses ruled. Now there are cars," he says.
"The art I found in the small antique shops included inexpensive Chinese brush paintings or calligraphy scrolls. Today, we find contemporary oil paintings and installations in trendy boutique galleries where if you have to ask the price, you cannot afford it."
Having watched many events at the Beijing Paralympics, Burns is deeply impressed by the athletes and spectators from around the world.
"These Games have gone very well for everybody involved," he says. "Many world records were broken and the public now realizes that people with disabilities have strong bodies and spirits."
Burns will continue with his Athletes in Action painting series and use some of his sketches from both Beijing events as reference material.
He hopes to open an art studio in Songzhuang, suburban Beijing, late this year.
10 am-5 pm, until Sept 22
Creation Art Gallery, Ritan Donglu, Chaoyang District
8561-7570
(China Daily September 19, 2008)
