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The World Food Prize Foundation has sent out a call to artists to create something to commemorate the historic visits of Chinese President Xi Jinping and his father, Xi Zhongxun.
The request for proposals, in any medium, is open to any artist living in Iowa, and the selected artwork will be displayed in the Iowa Gallery in the World Food Prize Hall of Laureates. The second-floor gallery is “dedicated to telling the story of Iowa’s remarkable agricultural and humanitarian heritage,” according to the new announcement.
The elder Xi visited Iowa in 1980 shortly after the normalization of diplomatic relations between China and the United States. At the time, he was serving as the governor of Guangdong Province and was the leader of a delegation of Chinese governors welcomed to Iowa by then-Gov. Robert Ray.
The younger Xi first visited in 1985 as a leader of Hebei Province, Iowa’s sister state, and then again in 2012, after he’d climbed the Chinese government ranks to become vice president. During both trips to Iowa he met with Gov. Terry Branstad, toured Iowa farms and visited Iowa families.
Written proposals for a new work of art should be sent by Nov. 2 to artwork@worldfoodprize.org. Meantime, artists can email any questions to the same address.