PHOTOGRAPHY FESTIVAL OF DIVERSITY AND HARMONY

Highlights of the FestivalWith more than 80 exhibitions and 8000 displays, this photography festival is larger in scale than the previous ones, focusing on the artistic personality of photographers to create a diversified atmosphere and demonstrate a harmonious artistic flavor. One of the highlights of the festival is the photo collection of nearly 350 pieces taken by 30 photographers and brought to the exhibition by 15 photographers from Contact Press Images led by its president Mr. Robert …     

China through Camera Lens

In the end of April, a photography exhibition “China in the Eyes of a Beninese Photographer” was opened in China Culture Center in Benin, displaying photographic works by Beninese freelancer photographer Yves Kofi, This exhibition is part of “Beautiful Nations” series which aims to attract Chinese and Beninese photographers to shoot historic sites, traditions and customs, natural landscape and social progress of Benin and China, This annual photo exhibition series saw its first session in the end of 2007, which showcased nearly 100 photo works by more than 30 Beninese and Chinese photographers.     

RESCUE MEMORIES OF HUTONG ALLEYS

In the beginning of 2009, a photo exhibition entitled ＂Memories of Hutong＂ was held in the office building of the Ministry of Culture. The photos on display are shot by Lu Baohua,a 77-year-old retired ernployee of the ministry.     

CONSEKVATION OF UKBAN CULTURAL LANDSCAPE（ PAKT II ）

French conservationists initiated the concept of＂architecture, city and landscape heritage conservation zone＂ in 1983, putting historic quarters with cultural richness and natural landscapes with historical significance under protection, in following years, practices pertaining to the protection of urban cultural landscapes were gradually conducted in many countries around the world.     

HIDDEN ＂VALLEY OF FEMALE BEAUTY＂REDISCOVERED

Donnu Guo （＂Eastern State of Women＂） was an ancient kingdom governed by queens and existing during the Sui and Tang dynasties （approx. 6th-9th centuries AD）. Few historical records have been ever found about this mysterious matriarchic society until it was rediscovered one thousand years later in Danba, a county in western Sichuan Province adjacent to Tibet. Ancient watchtowers, unique terrains in the shape of plum blossoms and in particular beautiful women that have been insulated within the depth of mountains for hundreds of years,all have gained it a reputation as the ＂valley of female beauty＂.     

Experience Charms of BeiJing in Brussels

On the evening of September 1, 2009, the photo exhibition ＂Charms of Beijing＂ was opened in the headquarters of the European Commission in Brussels,Belgium. Chinese Ambassador Song Zhe, Vice Director-General of the Information Office of Beijing Municipal Government Meng Chunli, senior officials from EC as well as 200 distinguished guests from various circles attended the opening ceremony.     

THE ART OF BLACK AND WHITE

The ten national permanent museum exhibitions of the year were announced on the World Museum Day on May 18, co-organized by China Museum Association, Xi＇an Municipality and China Heritage News. The permanent exhibition ＂The Art of Black and White＂ in Cizhou Kiln Museum won this annual award.     

CHARM OF SUZHOU EMBROIDERY

On a sunny day in the end of 2007 I was invited for a visit to Suzhou Embroidery. Research Institute. Led by Ms. Zhang, the institute＇s artistic director, I entered through a moon-shaped gate in a traditional style and an elegant classical Suzhou-style garden was unfolded in front of me. Quiet paths, luxuriant plants, winding corridors, all are filled with fascinating charm, like a scene in a traditional Chinese ink painting. The garden is called ＂Huanxiu Resort＂ where the embroidery institute is based. At that moment,     

Collecting Arts,Gollecting Joys

Pu Guoyi, a well-known art collector in Chengdu, showed me around his deluxe residence where a considerable number of artworks are housed. His collections range from landmark creations by prestigious artists such as ＂Crossing the River＂ by Luo Zhongli, ＂The Green Dog＂ by Zhou Chunya, ＂The Five-pointed Star＂ by Len Jun, ＂The Superman＂ by Wei Jia, ＂Chairman Mao on the Beach of Beidaihe＂ by Hou Bo, ＂Rescuing the Nation＂ by Luo Xiaoyun, ＂The Panorama of the World＂ by Li Zhanyang and ＂Dramatic Figures＂ by Jiao Xingtao, to outstanding oil, print, photo and sculpture works by emerging art students. Hanged on walls or displayed on the floor, these collections have witnessed Pu＇s fascinating career as an art collector.     

MUSEUM OF ANCIENT ARCHITECTURE

Innumerable ancient buildings used to stand within the vast territory of China. With the passage of time, however, many grand wooden structures faded away. Shanxi Province, though, thanks to its unique geographic conditions, is still home to many ancient buildings representing a wide variety of styles. Architecture from each dynasty and era can still be found in Shanxi, and therefore the province is known as the ＂Museum of Ancient Chinese Architecture＂.     

KITCHEN RANGE PAINTING OF JIAXING

Every household in Jiaxing＇s villages has a two-stove opening or three-stove opening kitchen range. Dazzling arrays of patterns and designs with text captions are painted on the surface of ldtchen ranges, which are called ＂kitchen range painting＂ by local villagers.     

Showcasing the Spirit of the Olympics through Art

The exhibition of ＂Olympic Fine Arts 2008＂ opened in Beijing International Exhibition Center on August 11 in celebration of the 29th Olympic Games. The event was initiated by the International Olympic Committee and co-organized by the Chinese Ministry of Culture and the Organizing Committee of Beijing Olympic Games. With the theme of ＂China and the world＂ and the slogan of ＂Art makes Olympics better＂, this international gala for art precisely expressed and continued the spirit and concept of ＂Olympic Contest for Sports and Art＂, an event that was held in Sydney and Athens respectively,     

TEN ARCHEOLOGICAL DISCOVERIES OF CHINA IN 2006

＂2006 Ten Archeological Discoveries of China＂ were co-released by China Heritage News and China Archeology. Society on April 8, 2007. Launched in 1990 the annual event saw nearly 600 nominations this year. According to Tong Mingkang, Deput.v Director-General of the State Administration of Cultural Heritage, the event has become a famous brand name and many sites which won this annual award have been given special care by local governments. Tong also highlighted three major criteria for assessing candidate discoveries： their value and importance pertaining to academic study; application of new technologies and approaches; protection measures adopted during and after excavation.     

HOMETOWN OF SAGE OF MEDICINE

Qizhou, a historical town in the west border of central Hubei Province, is the hometown of great medicine scientist Li Shizhen,acclaimed as ＂sage of medicine＂, who wrote the medical canon ＂Compendiura of Meteria Medica＂.[第一段]     

THE BEAUTY OF THE OLD VILLAGE OF GUODONG

Guodong Village is located at the foot of the mountain of primitive jungles, 10 kilometers to the south of Wuyi County, Zhejiang Province. In the village, ancient architectures in the styles of the Ming and Qing dynasties are available everywhere. And with a combination of both artificial and natural sceneries, the village, like a retreat away from the world, is famous for its accomplishments in education and culture as well as numerous virtuous and talented figures emerging from the village…     

The Composite Art of Muqam UNESCO PROCLAIMED XINJIANG UYGHUR MUQAM AS ＂HERITAGE OF HUMANITY＂

UNESCO proclaimed the art of Uyghur Muqam of Xinjiang as ＂Masterpiece of the Oral and Intangible Heritage of Humanity＂ on Nov. 25, 2005 when it identified 43 new masterp ece entries across the globe, A ceremony was held in the Ministry of Culture of China on Nov. 28 where the Director-General of UNESCO, Koichiro Matsuura handed the certificate to Chinese Cultural Minister, Sun Jiazheng and the Director- General of Xinjiang Culture Department, Lu Jiachuan,     

FOUNDATION OF THE FORUM OF CULTURE AND ARTS OF UZBEKISTAN：BRINGING PEOPLE CLOSER

Foundation of the Forum of Culture and Arts of Uzbeldstan today is well known not only in Uzbekistan, but also abroad. Initially created for promotion of national arts and culture on international arena, the Foundation has developed a wide scope of activities in various directions of culture,     

TEMPLES OF MATSU IN GUIZHOU

Matsu, or the Goddess of Sea is widely worshipped in coastal areas of China and temples are built in these areas to enshrine statues of Matsu or Heavenly Queen. But it is quite interesting that there are quite a few Matsu temples in the inland province of Guizhou. Among these temples, the Heavenly Queen temple in Zhenyuan County is the largest, best-preserved and finest-built one and proclaimed as a site under the province-level protection.     

Magazine Review

Big Push to the Reform
35 years have passed since the policy of reform and opening up was launched in China. The magazine released the feature column of ＂Figures of Reform＂ in this issue, reviewing the practices and experiences of several key economists in the country＇s relbrm process. These featured economists include Du Runsheng, dubbed as ＂father of China＇s rural reform＂, Lin Yifu who proposed the development strategy of comparative advantage, Zhang Zhuoyuan who participated in the drafting of the Tenth Five-Year Plan, Mao Yushi, generally considered to be one of the most controversial intellectuals in China, and Cai Fang, widely called ＂economist speaking for the benefit of the poor＂. All these economists bear strong responsibility for the nation and the people and work hard to pursue truth.     

AGLIMPSE OF CHINESE MURALPAINTING

Mural painting enjoys a long history in China and numerous mural masterpieces .have been left over from ancient times.For example, Mogao Grotto Temples in Dunhuang house 492 caves with some 45000 square meters of mural painting. First built in 366 AD, Mogao Grotto Temples are the best-preserved grotto groups with the largest number of mural paintings in the world. In addition, there are more than 25,000 square meters of mural painting preserved in temples and tomb chambers in Shanxi Province. And mural paintings in Yongle Palace in Ruicheng, Shanxi and Fahai Temple in Beijing are considered classical masterpieces of Chinese mural art. The art of porcelain, lacquer, silk, cast copper, painted stone and brick in ancient China all have contributed to the diversity and excellence of mural painting skills. Since the 1970s, this art form has gained growing vitality, with a diversity of genres developed.[第一段]