Sweet Candies, Amiable Spring Festival

In the memory of every Chinese,the Spring Festival deposits abundant beauties:a lively scene with lanterns and streamers,an endless parade of delicious food,or a little toy of childhood memories.When I was a child,I visited a Sugar Painting Exhibition at Beihai Park in Beijing.I was amazed by the exquisitely made flowers and birds,and charmingly nave animals;and every kid was totally captured by a huge solid dragon settling in the central exhibition hall.Truly,that winter deeply impressed me with the vivid sugar dragon and the fragrance     

My Second Hometown Langde Village

I was born in Gouliang Village, Fenghuang County, Hunan Province, which is dubbed as the ＂First Miao People Village of Western Hunan＂. But I have been more fascinated by my second hometown, Langde Village in Leishan County, Guizhou Province, which is known as the hometown of folk arts of China and one of the 100 most unique museums of China. The village was proclaimed as a key heritage site under state-level protection in 2001, included in the candidate list for World Cultural Heritage nomination in 2006, awarded the title of ＂China Landscape Village＂ in 2007 and hosted Olympic torch relay in 2008. Over the past 25 years, I visited this beautiful village for more than 100 times.     

Shen Yunqing： Dancing with Iron

Coincidence becomes circumstances and circumstances become fact. In the story of Shen Yunqing, a gifted sculptor from Chengdu, it has been proven to be true again and again. Even though I‘d never previously met Shen Yunqing I felt as if I had. Presumably everyone does. She turned out to be a perfect hostess, dutifully making sure that both of us settled down comfortably with tea, nuts and plenty of snacks in the sun, just outside her studio which is one of the five in all shared by 6 scul…     

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,     

Wuyuan： the Most Beautiful Countryside in China

My traveling experiences have led me to more than half of China and countless beautiful places and moving stories have been recorded in my travelogues. But when I saw old villages in Wuyuan in the southern province of Jiangxi, I was totally intoxicated by its incredible beauty and realized that it was truly a fairyland. In a digitalized society today, urban dwellers are overwhelmed by concrete jungles of metropolises and access to history and traditions seems a luxury for them. But old towns…     

Living Well in the Loving and Peaceful Culture An interview with Kim Jingon,Director of Korean Cultural Center in Beijing

＂The most respected historical figure by Koreans is Mr. Kim Gu, great thinker and activist for the independent movement who went into exile in China and led the temporarv government during the occupation time by Japanese imperialists. In his diary, he wrote, ＇I hope the Republic of Korea would not conquer or wield the world by armed force or economic strength.     

A Life Destined for Calligraphy

I was born in the countryside. I had a colorful and joyful childhood although my peasant parents couldn＇t give me an affluent life at that time, My toys were all handmade by myself such as catapults and powder guns. Like many kids of the time, I also liked to dissemble and re-assemble clocks and radios as a means of entertainment. Once I noticed a small bottle of ink with a brush pen in it at the window and showed strong interest in them. Since then, my poor handwriting left over everywhere in my house. My father was tolerant and never scolded at my unrestrained scrawling. That was my first experience in Chinese calligraphy which led me to a life destined for this magic art.     

A Dreamy Journey into the Potala Palace

＂I＇ve been back to Lhasa; I＇ve been back to the Tangula Mountains. ＂ The popular song Back to Lhasa by rock singer Zheng Jun always lingers in my mind and I eventually decided to go to Lhasa, a city that I had dreamed of many times in my life.     

PEKING OPERA EIGURINES

My creation of Peking Opera figurines started in 1997. I was raised in Tianjin, a city with rich traditions of Peking Opera. My father, a Peking Opera lover, often took me to see Peking Opera shows. As a child, I didn＇t understand plots or arias but I was quite fascinated by brilliant facial makeup and costumes of performers. Back at home, I tried to use cloth leftover to make miniature Peking Opera figurines. Later I was enrolled in Beijing Handicraft Art School and Zhejiang Academy of Fine Arts. For several decades, I didn＇t have opportunities to spend time in my childhood hobby. But I have always been confident that one day I will again take up the art of sculpture.     

Liu Xiaoqing and Her Bird Paintings

In a chilling evening of early winter in Beijing, I met Liu Xiaoqing, a female painter, in a restaurant famous for its spicy crab. Our talk started with a popular verse line by Chairman Mao, which reads, ＂In the vast sky the eagles hover, In the clear water the fish swim, All creatures contend for freedom.＂ While the great leader expressed his political ambition, we can see from the verse mankind＇s admiration of birds＇ freedom over the sky. Birds are favored creatures by mankind. But humans＇ greedy exploitations over the nature have resulted in killing and extinction of more and more bird species.     

Rao Zongyi： The Revival of Chinese Culture in the 21st Century

Rao Zongyi, a master scholar in the studies o（Chinese culture and history, said that the 21st centu-ry sees the ever-increasing influence of Oriental academic ideas and artistic aes- thetics on the West. In fact, not long ago, professor Rao was conterred with the ti- tle of foreign academician by the French Academy, an event which stirred the cultural and arts community of Europe. As the first Asian scholar awarded with this honor, Rao said,“I am 97 years old. But I don＇t think I＇m old at all. Painter Liu Haisu climbed the Yellow Mountain at 93, and I will follow his suit.”     

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.     

Impression on Oil Painter Wei Kuizhong

On my way back to Beijing, I dropped into the art museum of Hebei Provincial Institute of Painting in the city of Shijiazhuang, where an exhibition on Wei Kuizhong＇s off paintings was on the display. I was so overwhelmed by those extraordinary works that I was eager to talk to the painter. Wei was a sincere and determined artist. He looked taciturn but when it came to his artistic pursuits and ideas, his eloquence surprised me. In the Chinese art market today when everybody complains about the lack of mainstream artworks, Wei＇s oil masterpieces with thrilling make him stand out as a leading figure.     

A Way of Life

"Life is like a card game: the cards you get are a matter of chance; how you play them is up to you." Philosophers and artists all over the world have produced thousands of analogies about the puzzles of life, but this epigram by Indian politician Nehru is especially noteworthy. Eventually, the cards in my hands will be played out. There is one card - life - that will be taken away without warning. Fortunately, it is still in my hands, and I am searching for the best way to play it. I will do so freely and handsomely; meanwhile, I'd like to share my pleasures with those who appreciate my game. This game needs a plan, as well as some dedication.- from Life is a Game by Fu Weici     

Chinese Tea Rich in Cultural Traditions

Chinese tea is not merely a beverage variety but also bears rich cultural traditions. Like pastries associated with Chinese traditional festivals, Chinese tea embodies cultural elements that bring it with lingering charms and added values. The famous modem drama ＂Teahouse＂ is a perfect example. Perhaps because I was born and grew up in Beijing, I like reading literature about Beijing, in particular, litera .ry works by Lao She. He is one of the greatest writers in modern China who was born of a poor Manchurian family in Beijing. He worked and lived in UK and USA for nearly ten years and committed suicide in 1966 when the Cultural Revolution broke out.     

Sydney Fascinated by Chinese New Year Parade

Every year Sydney celebrates Chinese New Year, the most spectacular event outside Asia. The 2008 celebration lasted three weeks, attracting nearly one million visitors. On the morning of February 10, nearly 100,000 local residents and foreign tourists crowded along George Street in the downtown of Sydney, waiting with eagerness for the grand parade by performers from the northwest province of Shaanxi, China. Yang Zhangying, a 71 -year-old lady who emigrated from Shanghai more than ten years ago, dressed in a red mandarin gown, arrived at the City Hall in the early morning. She said with excitement, ＂I wear this dress only on grand and commemorative occasions.＂ At 11 a.m., Clover Moore, Lord Mayor of Sydney, in a red Tang-style dress,     

Independence and Tradition：An Interview with Sixth Generation Film Director JiaZhangke

Jia Zhangke, a leading figure ofwhat is known as the “SixthGeneration” of film directors in China,seems to always remain undisturbedeither by favor or by ignorance. Inearly April this year, I met him at afilm show in a polytechnic universityin Nanjing. His films Pickpocket (XiaoWu) and Platform were on show but     

Dropping Everything for the Rood

With the map down loaded from www.travel-photograph.com, I had no difficulty in finding the north gate of National Library of China. Then, following the yellow signs on wire posts, I arrived in five minutes at Travel-Photograph, a book bar famous not only in the capital city but even elsewhere in the country.     

Farmer Print Painting of Qijiang County

Farmer printing first appeared in Qijiang County, Chongqing Municipality in the 1960s and 70s when the first print works, ＂The Party Branch＇s Secretary＂, was created by artists from Sichuan Artists Association, based on their experience in the county and characterized by the mix of revolutionary realism and romanticism. During the Cultural Revolution （ 1966 - 1976）, while traditional culture and classical Western culture were both labeled as ＂poisoned and collapsed＂, only print painting was encouraged by the communist government as it depicted realistic subjects of the time. Print exhibitions and workshops were launched in Qijiang＇s villages, which helped to give rise to indigenous print in the decades to come. Farmer printing of Qijiang County embraced heydays in the 1980s when the reform and opening policies were exercised nationwide, as a result of the influence by the print style of Jinshan.