Accompanying the beautiful rhythms of "Swan Lake", the month-long 7th China Shanghai International Arts Festival came to a close on November 18 at the Shanghai Grand Theatre.

As an official state-level function, the annual China Shanghai International Arts Festival has been drawing back the viewing curtains since 1999, making last month its seventh outing. Aimed at presenting the best in world culture and promoting Chinese art, this year's festival gave us 65 different events from 24 countries and regions. 　　

Sun Jiazheng, the Chinese Minister of Culture, describes the festival as a grand gathering for exchanges in the field of art, as well as a carnival that everyone can enjoy. He also explains the original intentions of this festival. 　　

"In the year of 1999, China Shanghai International Arts Festival was held for the first time. The original intention of holding such a festival was quite simple. Art, after all, is a means of satisfying people's increasing demand for spiritual culture. Through this art festival, we have tried to accelerate domestic cultural life in China, and to make it prosperous and more familiar to the world." 　　Sun further explains the importance of such an art festival. 　　

"Art is a carrier of emotion. When people enjoy art, they're actually moving deeper into the inner worlds of other people. This Shanghai-based festival provides us Chinese with a broader reach into the rich and colorful lives of people in different countries and regions. It arouses our awareness towards a splendid and diversified world, to which we should all devote our love. In this way, a spirit of philanthropy can be cultivated, which is important and essential in order to make a more peaceful, brighter future for humankind."