Cultural Diversity and Creativity Shared by All--The 1^st ASEM Festival was successfully concluded in Beijing

The 1^st ASEM Festival took place in Beijing from September 2 to 8, presenting a one-week magnificent art gala to the audience, With the theme of ＂cultural diversity andcreativity shared by all＂, this festival highlighted various forms of culture and arts, including music, dance, drama, film and publication. Some 500 artists from more than 40 ASEM member states staged fascinating performances and concerts and officials, scholars, professionals and artists from these countries gathered in Beijing to conduct dialogues on civilizations and share each other＇s practices and experience in artistic creation and cultural cooperation.     

Olympic Philatelic Exhibition Closed in Beijing

From August 8 to 18, the Beijing 2008 international Olympic Fair was held in Beijing Exhibition Center. As part of the fair, the Olympic Philatelic Exhibition was on display, attracting many visitors and adding more cultural richness to the Olympic Games.     

CURIO MARKETS IN BEIJING

Beijing enjoys a long history as the capital of six dynasties in ancient China. Historical and cultural legacies accumulated over the sweep of history have made it possible to develop a booming private collection market. So far the city. sees the largest number of curio and antique markets in China,     

China-Africa Cultural Exchange Embraces a New Era

The Beijing Summit of the Forum on China-Africa Cooperation, held in 2006, represents a landmark for the country＇s cultural exchange and cooperation with the African Continent. In Beijing Action Plan declared at this historic event, cultural interactions have been upgraded as an important dimension equaling to the political and economic cooperation that both sides believe will considerably enrich the new type of China-Africa strategic Dartnership. In the Plan,     

From Lausanne to Beijing--A Glimpse of the 5th International fiber Art Biennial Exhibition

Fiber artworks record existence experiences and cultural evolution of human kind. They carry inherent life logics and bear cultural continuity and richness of life evolution.Their connotations are highly individualized and closely related to human ideals, reflecting value commonality and humanitarian concern. Recently, “From Lausanne to Beijing： the 5th International Fiber Art Biennial Exhibition” was held in the art school of Tsinghua University, a one-month event co-hosted by the art school and the fiber art committee under China Art and Design Society.     

China,Arab States to Co-build the Belt and the Road in Cultural Field

The China-Arab States Forum of Cultural Ministers under the framework of the 3rd Arab Arts Festival took place at the National Mu- seum of China in Beijing on Septem- ber 10. The participants from the offi- cial cultural delegations of China, 10 Arab states and the League of Arab States conducted discussion and ex- changed views on such topics as increas- ing cultural exchange and cooperation, co-building the Belt （the Silk Road Eco- nomic Belt） and the Road （the 21st-cen- tury Maritime Silk Road） in the field of culture, and enhancing people-to-peo- ple communication. Chinese cultural minister Cai Wu and cultural ministers of the 19 participating Arab States ad- opted the Beijing Declaration.     

＂Tailored Culture＂： a Solution to Supply- Demand Contradiction

Governments at various levels promote cultural development at the grassroots by planning and launching cultural projects. But it has remained a problem .for these cultural projects to effectively meet cultural demand of the general public. Therefore, we need to design tailored cultural projects as a solution to solve the contradiction between supply and demand.     

Cultural Diversity Manifested in Coins and Stamps--2009 Asia-Europe Philatelic and Numismatic Exhibition Displayed in Beijing

“Colorful Diversity： the 2009 Asia-Europe Philatelic and Numismatic Exhibition” was recently held in the Capital Library in Beijing, as an important event of the 1st ASEMCulture and Arts Festival. This exhibition displayed some 400 pieces or sets of coins and stamps and 50 sets of postcards of musical themes from 43 participant states of the 7th AsiaEurope Meeting [ASEM], providing an excellent opportunity for Chinese viewers to appreciate diversified cultures of Asia and Europe. Officials from Chinese Cultural Ministryand ambassadors and cultural attaches from 30 embassies in Beijing attended the opening ceremony.     

Stamps released to celebrate successful bid of Grand Canal for World Cultural Heritage

The Culture and Finance Club was officially founded on June 16 in Beijing, an association co-established by China Society for the Promotion of Development-based Finance and China Society for the Promotion of Press and Culture. At the inauguration ceremony, CPPCC Vice Chairman Chen Yuan said that cooperation between culture and finance provides a key engine to drive the fast, sound and sustainable development of cultural industries in China.     

Beijing Olympics-Themed Gala Stages in Hollywood

On March 3, just before the Chinese Lantern Festival, some 500 performers from Beijing staged a large paradein the Hollywood Boulevard in an ettort to snowcase traditional Chinese culture to the American public and promote the 2008 summer Olympics,which will be held in Beijing next year. The parade, as part of the cultural event entitled “Experience Beijing Culture in Los Angeles”, attracted much local media coverage. The World Journal reported that “The art and culture from China look so integrated and well coordinated with the Hollywood Boulevard, a svmbol of America＇s film and TV industry.” Recently, the staff reporter had an interview with the event＇s chief director Mr. Li Jicheng.[第一段]     

Cultural Evening Hosted in Honor of African Diplomatic Envoys in Beijing

The Ministry of Culture hosted a cultural evening and reception in honor of African diplomatic envoys in Beijing in the auditorium of the Chinese People’s Polltical Consultative Conference on August 1.Ambassadors and cultural attaches from 32 African countries attended the event,In her welcoming remarks,vice minister of culture Madame     

Art Information

China-Russia Cultural Fair to be celebrated in NE China The third China-Russia Cultural Fair will be held from August 18 to 24, according to the Chinese Ministry of Culture. With the theme of "promoting cultural trade, cultural exchange, friendly cooperation and prosperous development", the cultural festival will include such various events as people-to-people exchanges, cultural products fairs, performances,     

Paint on the Great Wall, Embrace the Olympics

Early in August, on Badaling Pass of the Great Wall in the northern suburb of Beijing, 500 children from Hong Kong and 200 children from Beijing participated in the opening ceremony of “Paint on the Great Wall, Embrace the Olympics”, a large-scale cultural exchange event jointly sponsored by Chinese Cultural Ministry, Beijing Municipality and Hong Kong Civil Service Bureau.     

Cai Guoqiang： I Want to Believe

For Cai Guoqiang, August 2008 means a time full of not only challenge but also grace. As the chief designer of fire display for the opening ceremony of the 2008 Beijing Olympics, Cai demonstrated his aesthetics of gun powder in front of more than 4 billion viewers from across the world. Also in this month, his solo exhibition Cai Guoqiang： I Want To Believe＂ was opened in Beijing, which was co-presented by the National Art Museum of China, Guggenheim Museum in New York and the Center of International Cultural Exchange. Beijing was the second leg of this globa tour. Its exhibition tn Guggenheim in the first half of this year was acclaimed as one of the important cultural events in the world. From February to May,Gugcjenheim moved out all the exhibits, including Picasso＇s, and all its three storeys of exhibition space were used to display Cai＇s works created over the past two decades.     

＂City of Museums＂： a New Brand for Qujiang,Xi＇an

Modern museums are striving to keep pace with the rapidly evolving modern art and the changing needs of audience. Accordingly, the concept of museum has developed and trans- formed. Imagine the future of Xi＇an as a city of museums. It will be a city immersed in a profound artistic atmo- sphere, embracing broader space for exchanges, exhibiting higher educa- tional value, thus truly demonstrating the cultural background required for an international city. This is exactly what we have been hoping for a city＇s cultural inheritance.     

Polish Olympic Stamps and Chopin Posters Displayed in Beijing

The exhibition ＂Olympic Stamps from Polish Chopin＇s Hometown＂, a major event of Culture Festival, was held from May 18 to June 2 in Boyi Gallery in Beijing. This exhibition, in celebration of the 2008 Olympics and ever-growing cultural ties between China and Poland, was coorganized by Chinese Cultural Ministry and Polish Ministry of Culture and National Heritage, in partnership with the Center of International Cultural Exchange, China ＆. World Cultural Exchange magazine and Adama Mickiewicza Institute.     

＂New Beijing, New Olympics＂ Displayed in Sydney

The annual Sydney Royal Agriculture Exposition took place in the Olympic Park last April, one of the large-scale public events organized by Sydney Municipal Government which attracts hundreds of thousands of visitors every year. At the exposition this year, the exhibition ＂New Beijing, New Olympics＂, co-organized by the State Information Office of China and the Information Office of Beijing Municipality, was displayed, which added much glamour to the event.     

CULTURAL HERITAGE CONSERVATION CALLS FOR GREATER PUBLIC AWARENESS AND INTERNATIONAL COOPERATION

A 36-person delegation from the US President＇s Committee on the Arts and the Humanity paid an official visit to China from June 5 to 13 at the invitation of Chinese Cultural Ministry. On June 10, the delegation attended a seminar on the conservation of world heritage sites in Suitcase House in Commune by the Great Wall,a resort hotel in the suburb of Beijing.At the seminar Shan Jixiang,Director-General of the State Administration of Cultural Heritage of China,delivered a presentation on the trends of cultural heritage conservation in China as wall as China-US exchange and cooperation in the field of cultural heritage conservation.     

A Fascinating Journey to the Old Town of Yuzhou

Yuxian County, called Yuzhou in ancient times, enjoys unique terrains and old traditions. As it borders with the northern province of Shanxi, it shares many cultural and business similarities with Pingyao, an old town of Shanxi inscribed in the World Heritage List. Since it is not far from Beijing, Yuxian has become a frequent destination for travelers from Beijing. The Extraordinary Art of Paper Cut In a paper cut workshop of Yuxian County, I was fortunate to see the whole production …     

Wuyutai Launches ＂Green 100 Action＂

＂Tea quality control is implemented in every stage and every process of our tea making and our test standards are even more rigid than those issued by the state,＂ said Sun Danwei, President of Wuyutai, a century-old tea brand name in Beijing. At the launching ceremony of ＂Green 100 Action＂ taking place in the end of last year, representatives from 140 chain shops signed ＂Green Alliance Contract＂ at Wuyutai＇s flagship shop, pledging to guarantee all the tea products Wuyutai sells are 100% up to the national standard. While food safety accidents happened time and again in China, Wuyutai, as a time-honored enterprise, demonstrates a strong sense of responsibility for the society.[第一段]