One of the replicas of 12 animal
sculptures from Yuan Ming Yuan, dragon. Photo taken at Ji Guge on
September 13. 

The twelve animal sculptures are the greatest representations of
the blend between Eastern and Western cultures. They stand on the
banks of Hai Yantang, one of the most famous sites inside Yuan Ming
Yuan. These hollow animal sculptures have water pipes protruding
from their mouths that project water every two hours. They consist
of a carved stone human body with an animal head made of
bronze.

From 2000 to 2003, four of the sculptures: the ox, the tiger,
the monkey and the pig were regained from various auctions at a
total cost of 37 million yuan (US$4.9 milion) and returned to
China. The whereabouts of the remaining animals are either unknown
or in the collections of foreign museums and individuals.

In order to share the past splendor and artistic triumph of
these works of art with the public, Ji Guge created replicas of all
12 animal sculptures based on extensive research from historical
records.

The replicas of 12 animal sculptures from
Yuan Ming Yuan were unveiled in Beijing. Photo taken at Ji
Guge on September 13.

(CRI.cn September 14, 2007)

Nearly 400 pieces of precious jade articles with a long history
of 100 years to 5, 000 years are on display at Beijing Botanic
Garden September 12, 2007. Many people are attracted to study
Chinese jade culture.

(China News Service September 13, 2007)

Doulos, the world\’s oldest active ocean-going passenger ship
recognized in the Guinness World Records, made its 8th and probably
last visit in Hong Kong Tuesday, welcoming the public on board to
the world\’s largest floating book fair.

Doulos arrived in Hong Kong Monday. The ship visited Hong Kong
in 2000 last time and will be berthed at Ocean Terminal, Harbor
City, from Sept. 11 to Oct. 7 this time,

The 93-year-old ship, at 130.35 meters long and 16.6 meters
wide, is recognized by the Guinness Book of Records as the world\’s
oldest ocean going passenger ship, and is planned to retire in
2010.

Since 1978, the ship owned by a non-profit charity organization
based in Germany, has visited more than 100 countries and welcomed
almost 20 million visitors onboard in Latin America, Africa,
Europe, Middle East, Asia and the Pacific, promoting good education
through its floating book fair and cultural exchange programs.

The book fair of Doulos has a selection of more than 6,000 book
titles, covering a wide range of subjects such as sports, cookery,
educational and children books.

Doulos is currently manned by a crew of 320 volunteers from more
than 50 countries and regions, including two members from Hong Kong
and one from Taiwan. Each volunteer must find a sponsor for their
daily life expenses and pass interviews before becoming a crew
member on the ship. Most of the crew members join the ship for two
years and also participate in various community activities when
visiting different countries.

(Xinhua News Agency September 12, 2007)

More than 100 photographers from China and other countries
contributed their works and the 150 photos on show were selected
from a pool of thousands.

They reflected the social and economic development of China and
the life, work, leisure and entertainment of ordinary people in
addition to highlighting the 5,000-year Chinese civilization and
the harmony among ethnic groups in China.

Li Yanfeng, vice director general of the State Council
Information Office of China, said that with the world\’s focus on
the 2008 Olympic Games in Beijing and Expo 2010 in Shanghai, the
exhibition recorded the changes that were taking place in Chinese
urban and rural life.

Franz Baumann, acting director general of the United Nations
Office in Vienna, who visited the exhibition, said the photos
reflected the diversity of Chinese history and culture.

The one-week exhibition is jointly sponsored by the State
Council Information Office of China, the Chinese delegation and
Permanent Representative of China to the United Nations and other
International Organizations in Vienna, as well as the United
Nations Office in Vienna.

Tang Guoqiang, China\’s Permanent Representative to the United
Nations and other International Organizations in Vienna, UN
officials and diplomats in Vienna attended the opening
ceremony.

(Xinhua News Agency September 11, 2007)

Artistic works from art galleries and by many top artists from
23 countries and regions will be displayed during the event,
running through to September 9. 

 

A man looks at a piece of artwork made from
Coca Cola bottle caps on Thursday.

A man views an art work on Wednesday during
the preview exhibition of the Shanghai Art Fair.

Photo taken on Wednesday shows an art work,
made with 33 tons of apples and a road-building machine.

A man views an art work on Wednesday during
the preview exhibition of the Shanghai Art Fair.

(CRI.cn September 7, 2007)

Huang Xiuying, vice-curator of Anhui Museum,
explains one of Pan Yuliang\’s self-portaits to visitors.

In a biopic released in 1994, Gong Li played Pan Yuliang, the
late female painter known in China more for her legendry life than
her artistic achievements. The scene that she sketched in a public
bathroom caused a big stir in China then. Nine years later, another
beautiful actress, Michele Lee, brought the painter to life again
in a TV drama.

But Pan, who started from a brothel and wound up in Paris as a
lonely painter haunted by impoverishment and nostalgia, is not as
pretty as many assume, at least not in her self-portraits. Through
November 15, 200 of her works, including 10 self-portraits, will be
on exhibition in the Capital Museum. Half of them have never been
publicly shown before.

As soon as viewers enter the exhibition hall, they are faced
with one of her most famous self-portraits. The painter has long
and thin eyes, thick lips and a nose like lion. By Chinese or
Western standards, she is not a typical beauty. In black cheongsam
with a golden dragon pattern, she sits beside a vase with
crimson-colored flowers against a light yellow background – decent,
quiet and a bit melancholy.

A visitor to the Capital Museum in Beijing
enjoys another self-portrait of Pan Yuliang. 

She painted the piece in France in 1940, when her motherland was
invaded by Japanese troops.

According to Huang Xiuying, vice-curator of Anhui Museum, which
collected almost all of Pan\’s works, most of Pan\’s self-portraits
reflect her sadness.

Pan Yuliang\’s original family name was Zhang. Born in 1895, she
was sold to a brothel at 13, where she later met Pan Zanhua, a
customs official. Pan bought her out and married her as a
concubine. Out of gratitude, she changed her family name to
Pan.

She started learning painting from their neighbor Hong Ye, a
teacher at Shanghai Art Institute, then one of the most avant-garde
art schools in China.

Liu Haisu, a friend of Pan Zanhua and headmaster of the school,
appreciated Pan Yuliang\’s talent and encouraged her to apply for
his school. Later Pan became the first female student of the
school.

She loved to paint nude portraits, which was still a taboo in
China then. She had to go to public bathrooms to do sketches.

Dozens of works in the exhibition are Pan\’s portraits of human
bodies, most of which are women.

\”When she was a prostitute, her body was others\’ tool; there is
no soul,\” says Huang. \”But in the artistic world, the body is a
respected artwork. It\’s not hard to understand her complicated and
deep feelings for human bodies.\”

A nude painting by Pan Yuliang. Dozens of
works in the exhibition are Pan\’s portraits of human bodies, of
which most are women.

In 1921, Pan left for Paris to further her painting studies.
Nine years later, she came back to China as a professor of Liu\’s
school.

But in 1935, she had to leave China again due to something that
happened during her fifth solo exhibition. Someone tore up a piece
depicting a strong man moving a stone to let a small flower under
it grow up, and wrote: \”This is a prostitute\’s carol to a
whoremonger\”.

Although she had been so devoted to art, there was someone who
had not forgotten her early experience as a prostitute. In 1938,
she left China again.

Most pieces in the exhibition were created during her stay in
France. She boldly tried a combination of Chinese water and ink
painting, and the composition of oil painting. She used colored
water and ink spots and lines as the background, while the main
characters are drawn using oil painting techniques.

In some works, such as Kite Flying and Fan Dancing, there are
also elements of traditional Chinese New Year pictures, sculptures
and engraving.

Critics say that her works combine both oriental and Western
painting styles, and are full of her own spirit. She has
contributed much to modern art with her depiction of the world with
hints of Chinese calligraphy and painting.

In Paris, she was known as \”Three No\” lady, which means no
French nationality, no lover and no contract with the galleries.
She wanted to be an independent artist, although she suffered from
poverty and loneliness.

Many works in and after the 1950s were in colored-ink. Huang of
Anhui Museum says that Pan did not have enough money to buy
materials for oil painting, so she used relatively cheap water ink.
Sometimes she even had to use the same paper several times.

But these works should not be underestimated, says Huang, who
believes that they are unique.

In her last days, Pan missed her homeland bitterly. Every time
she wrote a letter home, she would express her yearning to return.
But the French government did not allow her to take her works with
her, while poor health and the \”cultural revolution\” (1966-76) in
China postponed her journey again and again. In 1977, she died in
an attic in suburban Paris, leaving about 4,000 artworks
behind.

(China Daily September 5, 2007)

Dr David Caldwell, from the National Museums Scotland explains
how popular silver is in Scotland.

\”There has always been a tradition in Scotland of giving new
born babies a silver spoon, there is a saying, that if somebody is
well off or had a good start of life, then they were born with a
silver spoon in the mouth! For this reason, silver cups and silver
spoons are very much a part of our heritage, we see them as a
symbol of prosperity. People who are very well off will have silver
cups to drink out of, if you ever have the chance to drink wine out
of silver cup, it\’s wonderful.\”

Silver of the Stars, which has already been seen in London, New
York and St Petersburg, is a collaborative project between 10 world
famous celebrities and 10 leading silversmiths working in
Scotland.

Amongst the famous names involved are Sir Sean Connery, Billy
Connolly and Ewan Macgregor.

Michael Laing, deacon of the Incorporation of Silversmiths of
the City of Edinburgh, says: \”Silver of the Stars has opened to
huge acclaim around the world but nothing can match the excitement
of being the first ever exhibition of Scottish applied art to be
seen in China.\”

\”We hope it will help to foster interest in modern and
contemporary British art within China and help to build strong
links between the artistic communities in both countries.\”

Silver of the Stars will be at the Beijing World Art Museum,
China Millennium Monument, from the 3 to 21 of September before
moving on to Kyoto, Japan in October, and then returning to The
National Museums of Scotland from January, in time for its 550th
anniversary exhibition.

Fruit Bowl by Grant McCaig . Photo taken at
Silver of Stars.

Teapot by Sarah Hutchison . Photo taken at
Silver of Stars.

Claret Jug by George Paton. Photo taken at
Silver of Stars.

Absinthe Goblet by Graham Stewart. Photo
taken at Silver of Stars.

Photo taken at Silver of Stars.

(CRI.cn September 4, 2007)

The landmark building, clad with 400 million porcelain pieces,
which was completed months ago, officially opened on Monday.

The owner of the house, businessman Zhang Lianzhi, reportedly
spent US$65 million on decorating the building with his wares
collected over the past two decades.

A charity opening was held on Monday, at which items, donated by
well-known Chinese stars including Jackie Chan were auctioned
off.

The \”China House\” in Tianjin. The house
opened to visitors on Monday, September 3, 2007. 

 

The \”China House\” in Tianjin. The house
opened to visitors on Monday, September 3, 2007.

A close look at porcelain pillows used to
decorate the \”China House\” in Tianjin. The house opened to visitors
on Monday, September 3, 2007.

 

A close look at porcelain bottles used to
decorate the \”China House\” in Tianjin. The house opened to visitors
on Monday, September 3, 2007.

(CRI.cn September 4, 2007)

The rare collection from the Shenyang Imperial Palace Museumn
will include daily items from the Qing Dynasty such as military
instruments, costumes, accessories and table wares. The exhibition
is to allow people to get a glimpse into Chinese daily life
hundreds of years ago.

This is the first time such a collection of treasures to be on
show outside the Shenyang Imperial Palace Museumn . Many of them
are national-level treasuries.

Colourful cushions from the Qing Dynasty, on
display at the Shenyang Imperial Palace Museum.

Shoes of different heel height from the Qing
Dynasty, on display at the Shenyang Imperial Palace Museum.

A cooking bowl from the Qing Dynasty, on
display at the Shenyang Imperial Palace Museum.

(CRI.cn August 31, 2007)

Armless painter Zheng
Jieping shows his calligraphy skills at the Shanghai art show by
disabled artists on Aug. 22, 2007.

A painting exhibition by disabled artists opened its doors in
Shanghai on Wednesday for a five-day free show.

Held at the Shanghai Arts Center for the Disabled in Zhabei
District, the exhibition, whose theme is \”Embracing Life,\” boasts a
total of 134 Chinese paintings, calligraphy works, oil paintings
and other works created by disabled artists and children from
Shanghai, Guangzhou, Hong Kong and Japan.

Local artists contributed 33 works, organizers said on
Wednesday.

Run by the Shanghai Disabled People\’s Federation and Hong Kong
Center for Community Cultural Development, the exhibition aims to
make common people understand more about disabled people, and
understand their wish to pursue life.

(Shanghai Daily August 23, 2007)