Deepening Civilization Exchange and Mutual Learning, Chinese Intangible Cultural Heritage Goes Abroad to China and Abroad | China | Exchange

Figure 1: Young people in Yan'ejie Ancient Village, Tongxihe Town, Xupu County, Huaihua, Hunan Province sell intangible cultural heritage products overseas through bilingual live streaming sales.

Photo by China News Agency reporter Yang Huafeng

Figure 2: Actors perform Peking Opera at the Spring Festival Gala for Chinese International Students in London, UK.

Photo by Xinhua News Agency reporter Li Ying

Figure 3: At a Yuhang paper umbrella workshop in Hangzhou, Zhejiang, German designer Chris learned wet paste technology from Liu Weixue, the inheritor of Yuhang paper umbrella making skills.

Photo by Liu Zhen

On May 27th, the "Tea and the World · Yaji" event was held at the Freedom Square in the center of Minsk, the capital of Belarus. The picture shows people experiencing three courses of Bai tea at the event site.

Renkov Photography

Chinese civilization has outstanding inclusiveness, fundamentally determining the historical orientation of communication, exchange, and integration of the Chinese nation, the harmonious pattern of diverse coexistence of various religious beliefs in China, and the open mind of Chinese culture to embrace world civilization. Intangible cultural heritage is a treasure of Chinese culture. In the process of intangible cultural heritage going global, China has effectively promoted the creative transformation and innovative development of intangible cultural heritage. By telling good stories about intangible cultural heritage, it continuously enhances the cohesion of the Chinese nation and the influence of Chinese culture, and deepens cultural exchanges and mutual learning.

Integrated innovation

Increase the volume of intangible cultural heritage dissemination

Martial arts, mortise and tenon, dragon dance, shadow puppetry... Open some overseas social media websites, and under the theme of Chinese culture, video products with intangible cultural heritage as the theme are highly popular. The millions of views and millions of likes reflect the influence of China's intangible cultural heritage. In the comment section, netizens from various countries participate in interactions in different languages to express their love for Chinese intangible cultural heritage: "China has so many amazing cultural treasures." "This is the true art!"

In 2004, China joined the UNESCO Convention for the Protection of the Intangible Cultural Heritage. As of December last year, China ranked first in the world in terms of the total number of projects included in the UNESCO Intangible Cultural Heritage List. Expanding communication channels, innovating intangible cultural heritage brands, and updating expression methods, China continuously explores the path of sustainable development of intangible cultural heritage, making it a witness and narrator of cultural exchanges and mutual learning between China and foreign countries.

Place the rice sized clay on a micro drawing machine, pinch the shape of the vase with your fingertips, and then finely carve it with bamboo sticks and tweezers. After lightly coloring with a brush, insert a small flower into the vase, and a miniature ceramic work is immediately completed. The superb skills have made Wang Wenhua, a ceramic master from Jingdezhen, Jiangxi, famous overseas, and the cumulative overseas views of related videos have exceeded 100 million. "I hope that pottery can arouse foreign audiences' interest in intangible cultural heritage and bring more and more people closer to Chinese culture," said Wang Wenhua.

Last June, the report released by the Culture and Tourism Industry Index Laboratory showed that the total amount of Chinese intangible cultural heritage related content broadcast on overseas short video platforms had exceeded 30.8 billion, and the Spring Festival, Chinese medicine acupuncture and moxibustion, Peking Opera, etc. were among the top concerns. Some inheritors, cultural institutions, and enthusiasts of intangible cultural heritage share relevant content of Chinese intangible cultural heritage on many social media platforms overseas. These social media users have high participation and strong interactivity, resulting in an exponential increase in the impact of intangible cultural heritage videos.

Wearing the Lion Awakening VR headset allows you to immerse yourself in lion dancing and perform difficult steps on plum blossom stakes. Zhao Weibin, a representative inheritor of Guangdong Xingshi, a national level intangible cultural heritage project in China, has collaborated with an animation technology company to develop VR and AR lion awakening mini programs and digital collections, as well as incubate a lion awakening robot. With the support of digital technology, "Zhao Family Lion" has held multiple performances overseas, and online teaching has also received enthusiastic responses;

One click generation of AI images for Tai Chi, providing a one-stop understanding of the history, genres, and other cultural knowledge of Tai Chi. The Henan Provincial Department of Culture and Tourism has launched a "Tai Chi One Picture" with Tai Chi and digital technology, allowing enthusiasts to easily acquire relevant knowledge of Tai Chi;

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The popularization and widespread application of technologies such as 5G, VR, and AR have allowed digital technology and ancient techniques to collide with each other, endowing intangible cultural heritage with more diverse and fashionable expressions. With a long history, Chinese intangible cultural heritage is flourishing worldwide.

Expand channels

Add application scenarios for intangible cultural heritage

In early summer, strolling along the rural path of Qingshan Village in Yuhang District, Hangzhou City, Zhejiang Province, amidst the bamboo forest, one can see the intoxicating greenery. German designer Chris has just completed the series design of the "Zhuangzhou Mengdie" showcase art installation here. In the warm yellow shop window, bamboo panels surround, forming galaxies, with leather butterflies dancing gracefully in them, like a beautiful dream.

Chris has been associated with Chinese intangible cultural heritage for a long time. In 2011, he was attracted by Yuhang paper umbrellas and came to a local workshop to learn the craft of making oil paper umbrellas. The common dream of lighting up traditional Chinese intangible cultural heritage with innovative design has brought Chris and Liu Weixue, the inheritor of Yuhang paper umbrella making skills, together. Under their close cooperation, Chinese intangible cultural heritage works with a modern design sense have appeared at international exhibitions such as Milan Design Week and Athens Museum, showcasing the magical craftsmanship of Chinese intangible cultural heritage products to the international design community.

Chris also incorporated the structure of paper umbrellas into derivative design, creating many products that can be applied in daily life. Nowadays, the products he produces in his studio in Yuhang are exported overseas, and each product contains elements of Chinese intangible cultural heritage. "Chinese traditional culture has profound connotations, and intangible cultural heritage is a treasure in this treasure trove. The creative inspiration drawn from it adds vitality to our works," Chris said.

In the past, China's porcelain, silk, and other goods were transported to various parts of the world through the ancient Silk Road, and the superb skills of Chinese craftsmen were unanimously recognized. Using commercial activities as a carrier, cultural exchanges are flourishing along the ancient Silk Road;

Nowadays, inheritors of intangible cultural heritage embrace new designs, platforms, and markets, opening up channels for intangible cultural heritage products to go global and striving for more application scenarios, so that Chinese intangible cultural heritage can better integrate into the lives of people around the world.

Last June, at the "Global Village Carnival" held in Amiens, France, the cultural and creative product "Intangible Cultural Heritage Doll · Silk Dance Flying" caused a sensation upon its debut. The French girl at the scene exclaimed, "It's so beautiful! I'm glad to have the opportunity to see such a touching creation."

At the beginning of this year, over 100 categories and over 2000 intangible cultural heritage products from more than 40 intangible cultural heritage workshops in Gansu Province were met with global users online. The "Fish Leaping Dragon Gate" tiger hat was sold to Germany, and the Jade Rabbit sachet was sold to Malaysia, Thailand, Singapore

In April, during the tea picking season, Chinese tea companies welcomed orders from all over the world. In order to better feel and understand the Chinese tea culture, Ivetta from the British tea company came to Mount Wuyi City to attend the opening ceremony of spring tea

Nowadays, there is an increasing number of cultural exchanges and commercial activities with Chinese intangible cultural heritage as the theme: at Milan Design Week, you can enjoy the fragrance of non heritage clouds and gauze; You can taste authentic jasmine tea at Michelin restaurants in Paris; Through cross-border e-commerce platforms, Chinese companies can purchase rattan baskets tailored for foreign users... Fashionable and diverse intangible cultural heritage products are entering thousands of households overseas.

Intangible cultural heritage as a medium

Promote mutual understanding and communication among the people

The beautiful and delicate lyrics, as well as the graceful and melodious melody, immerse the audience in the charm of Kunqu opera's "graceful and charming, singing and sighing" through the song "Peony Pavilion · Garden Tour". At the beginning of this year, Kunqu opera, Pingtan, and Suzhou embroidery all made their debut at the Singapore Chinese Cultural Center, attracting many local audiences to come and experience Chinese intangible cultural heritage. Not long ago, the 2023 Drama Stage hosted by the Singapore Academy of Drama kicked off, allowing opera enthusiasts to once again enjoy professional performances.

Opera is not only an art form, but also a bond that connects people's emotions. Zhang Li, the artistic director of the Singapore Academy of Chinese Opera, told our reporter that Singapore's opera culture cannot do without Chinese elements. Through joint cultural and artistic exchanges, joint directing of plays, and other activities, the Singapore Academy of Chinese Opera and its Chinese art colleagues have enabled the people of the two countries to understand each other and get close together through the sound of opera.

Chinese intangible cultural heritage has witnessed exchanges and mutual learning between Chinese and foreign civilizations. The Overseas Chinese Cultural Center showcases Chinese intangible cultural heritage within the framework of activities such as the China Tourism and Culture Week; Peking Opera, Paper Cuttings and other intangible cultural heritage appeared in the Confucius Institute classroom; Chinese and foreign museums jointly hold intangible cultural heritage exhibitions... In the Hundred Flowers Garden of World Civilization, the brilliant charm of Chinese intangible cultural heritage blooms, promoting mutual appreciation among people from different cultural backgrounds——

Pei Dian, from France, was deeply attracted to the Liuqing bamboo carving works when he first saw them. He knocked on the door of the Bai Family Liuqing Bamboo Carving Museum in Changzhou and studied bamboo carving under the guidance of Bai Jianren, a provincial-level representative inheritor of Liuqing Bamboo Carving. He said, "Art knows no borders, and through bamboo carving, one can better understand the charm of China, this great Eastern country."

A Lebanese boy becomes a "Beijing Opera trainee", a French girl becomes a volunteer to promote Chinese tea culture, and a Colombian photographer promotes Cantonese opera culture online... From understanding and accepting intangible cultural heritage to appreciating and experiencing, stories of people to people are constantly written.

Cultural heritage, symbiosis and sharing. The joint application with Malaysia for the "Farewell to the King Ship" and Mongolia for the "Mongolian Changdiao Folk Song" has promoted international cooperation in the protection of intangible cultural heritage.

Sun Jing, Associate Professor of Quanzhou Cultural Heritage Research Institute in Fujian Province, is one of the witnesses to the successful application of "Sending the King Ship" for World Heritage. She presented a thick collection of papers to our reporter, which gathered the research results of Chinese and foreign scholars on "Sending the King Ship". She said that after the successful joint application for World Heritage, relevant institutions held a series of special seminars, forums, and so on. "The application for the 'Sending the King Ship' World Heritage Site is a vivid example of the dissemination and integration of different civilizations on the 21st century Maritime Silk Road. This common intangible cultural heritage connects scholars at home and abroad."

Nowadays, using intangible cultural heritage as a medium, the cultural landscape of mutual exchange and harmonious coexistence between Chinese and foreign civilizations is slowly unfolding. Marcella Musabeliu, Executive Director of the Albanian Institute of Globalization, told reporters that China is telling the world exciting stories of intangible cultural heritage. The export of intangible cultural heritage enhances the pride of the Chinese nation and shapes a more attractive image of China. "China's inheritance and promotion of intangible cultural heritage also helps to protect the cultural treasures of all mankind, reflecting China's continuous pursuit of cultural exchange and mutual learning values."