The 2005 IDAA exhibition opening at the Today Art Gallery in Beijing, China [November, 2005].

The gallery's namesake is seen in Chinese and English.

Left to right: Istvan Horkay [Hungarian artist], Australian new media artist [IDAA Committee Member], Tom R. Chambers [IDAA Committee Member], Steve Danzig [Director, IDAA], President of the Beijing Film Academy [BFA], Wang Honghai [BFA New Media Dean] and BFA New Media Professor.

Wang Honghai [BFA New Media Dean] delivers a speech. Tom R. Chambers is seen videotaping the proceedings. Xu Dawei [BFA New Media Tutor and Coordinator of the exhibition] is seen third from left. Xu Dawei and Tom R. Chambers initially met several months prior to arrange the exhibition between the IDAA [based in Australia] and the Beijing Film Academy.

Wang Honghai [BFA New Media Dean] delivers a speech. Steve Danzig [Director, IDAA] is seen to the left.

Xu Dawei [BFA New Media Tutor and Coordinator of the exhibition] delivers a speech.

Left to right: Istvan Horkay [Hungarian artist] and Tom R. Chambers [IDAA Committee Member]. Chambers is videotaping the proceedings. Chambers as the New Media Committee Member for the IDAA invited Istvan Horkay [collaborator with Peter Greenaway] to show his new media artwork, "Bolzano Gold (Tulse Lupin)" as a part of the 2005 IDAA exhibition. He also invited the artists, Mark Amerika, Joel Slayton, Jody Zellen, Michael Takeo Magruder and Mary Flanagan to show their new media art.

The audience ... mainly from the Beijing Film Academy ... listen to the proceedings.

Left to right: Wang Honghai [BFA New Media Dean], President of the Beijing Film Academy [BFA], Tom R. Chambers [IDAA Committee Member] and Xu Dawei [BFA New Media Tutor and Coordinator of the exhibition].
Through networking of both ends ... China and Australia ... Tom R. Chambers was able to bring the pertinent parties together for this international showing of Digital and New Media Art. The Beijing Film Academy and the IDAA (now affiliated with the QUT Museum in Australia) have now entered into an agreement to make this process an annual event.

Through Chambers' affiliation with the IDAA and his connection (conducted a retrospective seminar there, initially) with the Beijing Film Academy, he was also able to involve his art students at Zhaoqing University with those art students at the academy in a collaborative exhibition as a sidebar to the 2005 IDAA Exhibition. This aspect was more meaningful to Chambers in the sense that his students had an opportunity for greater exposure to the Arts at a prestigious gallery and in a metropolitan setting.

The 2005 IDAA Exhibition in China and its consequent annual, cultural exchange between this country and Australia is a credit to Chambers' wherewithal in bringing outside (namely, Western) artistic impetus to the art community (and others) in China for greater understanding and exchange of ideas. Since this exhibition, Xu Da Wei, his dean and another New Media Art professor at the Beijing Film Academy have had the opportunity to travel to Australia and be a part of the 2006 IDAA Exhibition which focuses on Chinese Digital and New Media Art.