1300 YEARS OF CHINESE IMPERIAL EXAMINATION SYSTEM

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 ＂Imperial Examination System＂ by Shanghai Chinese Imperial Examinations Museum won this annual award.[第一段]     

THE TIME-HONORED ART OF CHINESE PUPPET AND SHADOW PLAY

Puppet and shadow plays are two old artistic expressions that integrate painting, engraving, carving and performing. Their history in China can date back to at least more than 2500 years.     

A GLIMPSE OF OVERSEAS CHINESE HISTORY MUSEUMS IN CHINA

Overseas Chinese history museums are cultural institutions specialized in the colleCtion and exhibition of hiStory, artifacts and references of overseas Chinese. In recent years, overseas Chinese history museums have risen as an important dimension of China＇s museum development, thanks to eye.increasing ties between overseas Chinese and their motherland, upgrading of China＇s comprehensive strength and ever-deepened studies about overseas Chinese. So far, there are eight overseas Chinese history museums in China.     

PAN YUANSHI AND HIS COLLECTION OF CHINESE NEW YEAR PRINT

Pan Yuanshi, an art teacher in his early years and a renowned print artist, enjoys high respect among southern Taiwan＇s art circle. In his professional career as the CEO of Chimei Foundation, he remarkably enhanced its public exposure and abilities to organize events, making it the most important cultural and art foundation in southern Taiwan.     

KUN QU OPERA： A LIVING FOSSIL OF CHINESE THEATRIC ART

Kun Qu Opera is one of the oldest and most influential forms of Chinese opera. It is still performed in many places around the country today. The opera is usually composed of 24 episodes, featuring arias, sophisticated story lines and minor plots involving both man and god, Performed by twelve persons, the opera combines song and recital as well as a complex system of choreographic techniques, acrobatics and symbolic gestures, Kun Qu songs are usually accompanied by string , wind and percussion instruments.     

AN EXHIBITION OF CARVED STONE PIERS TO WELCOME CHINESE NEW YEAR

From January 24 to February 14, 2009, an exhibition on carved stone piers from Beiiing and Tianjin was held in Beijing International Sculpture Park, displaying nearly 300 pairs of traditional carved stone piers of the Yuan, Ming and Qing dynasties from the collection of Zhang Lianzhi, director of Tianiin Porcelain House Museum. It is the first time that an exhibition on carved stone piers has ever bean held during Spring Festival temple fairs. This largest ever exhibition on stone piers, together with the photo exhibition on stone piers by renowned photographer Cao Lijun attracted local viewers to appreciate folk traditions as a way to celebrate Chinese New Year.     

CHINESE CEREMONIAL DRESS

China is gaining the world＇s attention to its 5000-years civilization as it will host the 2008 Olympics. But how do we demonstrate the charm of the Chinese civilization today？ China＇s luxury brand name, NETIGER, has found the solution from Confucian values.     

CHINESE ARMORIAL PORCELAIN

China-Europe trade was first launched by Portuguese fleets which began to navigate in Chinese seas in the 16th century. Numerous Chinese commodities were shipped to Europe, among which Chinese porcelain was particularly favored by European noblemen and merchants as a sign of fortune. In the 17th and 18th century, the fever on Chinese art, triggered out by the French court, brought China-Europe trade growth to an unprecedented height.     

CHINESE LACQUER ART

Chinese lacquer is one of the three most famous handicraft arts of China -- the other two are pottery and silk. Chinese people produced and used lacquer in primitive time. The earliest lacquer ware ever found in China is a wood bowl unearthed from the site of Hemudu Culture dating back to 7,000 years. During the Shang and Zhou dynasties, techniques of lacquer production reached a quite high level and diverse types of lacquer were innovated, thus laying a solid foundation for the development of lacquer making in following dynasties.     

CHINESE LANTERN FESTIVAL

The fifteenth of the first lunar month is the lantern festival in China.The lantern festival was called the prime festival in ancient times,because it falls at the first fullmoon night of a new year.The tradition of hanging and appreciating lanterns started in the Eastern Han Dynasty （25-220AD） when Buddhism was imported into inland China form India.     

CHINESE ACROBATICS FASCINATES BENINESE

On the evening of October 27, despite heavy, rain and muddy roads, people were heading in an endless stream for the Sports and Arts Palace in the center of Cotonou, capital city of Benin, hoping to catch the last performance by Tianjin Acrobatic Troupe from China. The troupe＇s Benin tour is part of the China- Benin Cultural Cooperation Program 2006-2009, following its visiting performances in Senegal.     

CHINESE CULTURE SHINES IN RUSSIA

Editor＇s words： Co-initiated by Chinese President Hu Jintao and Russian President Putin, the Year of Russia and the Year of China were launched in 2006 and 2007 respectively. This is the largest cultural event ever held in each other＇s country in the history of China-Russia exchange. In September, the staff reporter had an exclusive interview with Mr. Li Dongwen, Director-General of the Bureau for External Cultural Relations, Ministry of Culture of China, who gave a comprehensive review of the Year of China in Russia.[第一段]     

CHINESE BALLET Shines in America

The autumn of 2005 was a harvest season for Central Ballet of China, From September 13 to October 16, it toured the United States, staging 21 superb performances in ten major cities such as San Francisco, Los Angeles, Washington DC and New York and attracfing some 40,000 audiences, It was another successful tour abroad after the ballet＇s autumn tour in Europe in 2004,     

LEARNING CHINESE BECOMES NEW FAD

While English still remains the most widely used language for international communication in most countries around the Pacific Rim, Chinese is being taught in more and more schools in those countries. Chinese is playing an increasingly important role in daily lives and work of Asia-Pacific people. China’s dramatic rise to the world’s economic powerhouse and its rapidly growing international influence are driving the interest to learn its language. Chinese is becoming a new global language …     

SUDANESE DISCIPLES STUDY CHINESE ACROBATICS

Cultural exchange and cooperation between China and Sudan goes all the way back to ancient times. In particular, China began to train acrobats for Sudan from the 1970s as part of the country＇s cultural aid programs for Africa. Since 2005, a number of Sudanese students have been sent to Henan Province to learn Chinese acrobatic stunts in Zhengzhou Acrobatics Troupe, Puyang Acrobatics School and Puyang Acrobatics Center.     

CHINESE CONTEMPORARY ART IN HIGH FEVER

Chinese contemporary art witnessed high-profile exposure in the international art community in 2007. Both art exhibitions and art expositions taMng place in China attracted worldwide interest as its art market continued to grow. In fact, international art community has shifted their attention from Western countries to Asia and Middle East. ＂Apparently,     

GLOBAL MEDIA GIANT FAVORS CHINESE CONTEMPORARY ART

LTB Media, a prestigious global publishing group and on-line information provider on art, announced the opening of the Chinese edition of its website for world artists—www.myartinfo.com, in Beijing on November 27. It is the second foreign online art media that has accessed the Chinese market, following www. artnet.com. Luousie Blouin Macbain, founder and chairman of LTB Holding Co., Ltd. ＆ LTB Foundation, and Wang Guangyi,     

CHINESE ARTS SPARKS FEVER AT CERVANTES FESTIVAL

Cervantes International Festival, the largest cultural event in Latin America, embraced its 35th session on October 3 in the historic city of Guanajuato, Mexico. China was invited as the guest country of the annual festival this year and regaled the audience with diverse performances and exhibitions. At the opening evening gala taking place in the city＇s Frog Plaza singers and dancers from the Chinese province of Jilin staged fascinating programs, all with distinctive Chinese flavors and winning lots of ovations. Chinese assistant cultural minister Ding Wei, senior officials from Guanajuato as well as many other distinguished guests watched opening performances.[第一段]     

LEARNING CHINESE HAS BECOME ALL THE RAGE IN HUNGARY

Budapest,the capital city of Hungary,is praised as a pearl on River Danube which divides the city into two parts-Buda and Pest.Buda is situated mainly in the hills to the west while Pest lies on the vast plains to the east which extend to the country＇s borders with Romania and former Yugoslavia.Ninc magnificent bridges of diverse styles link the two parts together.     

NE·TIGER A RISING CHINESE LUXURY BRAND

China＇s booming market and growing consumers of luxury goods have attracted world luxury brand names to come for a new round of gold rush. Flagship stores and outlets of famous brands such as Louis Vuitton and Giorgio Armani are burgeoning in big cities across the country. In this intense struggle for market shares in the world＇s fourth largest economy with the biggest potential population of luxury consumers, a local Chinese brand name is growing fast to become an inevitable rival of those Western heavyweights. From Millionaire Fair to Extravaganza, it has been invited as an equal member to stand amidst world top-class brand names such as Rolls Royce, Cartier and Dior. It is NE.TIGER, a shining fashion brand founded in China and by a Chinese designer. ＂In fact, China has exported numerous luxuries to the rest of the world for hundreds of years, such as silk, porcelain and tea. In the contemporary time, NE.TIGER will continue this glorious tradition and try to be the best example of China＇s high-end brand names,＂ said Zhang Zhifeng, chairman and chief designer of NE·TIGER.