Ｑｉｎｇｈｅｆａｎｇ Ｃｏｎｎｅｃｔｓ ｗｉｔｈ ｔｈｅ Ｗｏｒｌｄ

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Qinghefang used to be a prosperous shopping center in downtown Hangzhou in ancient dynasties. Since its historical status was restored in the new century after a large-scale refurbishment project, it has been a great attraction to tourists. The street offers folk artists and craftsmen a great opportunity to showcase their arts and sell their goods as souvenirs to tourists and local residents. It is now has international influences.

Malaysia

Qinghefang first established its overseas reputation at the end of 2007 when Mr. Chen from Malaysia-China Friendship Association came all the way to Hangzhou to invite artists and craftsmen at Qinghefang to attend cultural exchange events in Malaysia. It turned out that Mr. Chen had signed a contract with a Japanese supermarket to invite Chinese artists to promote cultural exchanges in major Malaysian cities. The management of Qinghefang agreed to participate. A delegation of 32 artists from Qinghefang went to Malaysia and staged China-Malaysia cultural activities for a month.

The Chinese artists were warmly welcomed. The word of mouth spread their presence and outstanding arts and crafts rapidly. The artists displayed traditional Chinese crafts such as stone sculpture, paper-scissoring, painting, art glass, weaving, calligraphy, embroidery, clay sculpture, hand-painted silk, porcelain, and on the spot painting. The arts and crafts products brought in by the artists from Qinghefang sold fast. Buyers and collectors opened their eyes to the excellent Chinese artworks. A Mr. Liu in Kuala Lumpur, a man with a passion for porcelain, has a large collection which almost occupied the whole of his 2-storied house. He invited the visiting Chinese experts to examine his collection. It turned out that few in his huge collection were antiques and most were fake things made in modern times. While he listened, he knew he had run into masters. At his invitation, the visiting Chinese experts gave a lecture to local collectors. The lecturers from Qinghefang talked about the celadon salvaged from shipwrecks in South China Sea and in the Malacca Straits, which could be seen in large quantities in Malaysia. The lecturers also introduced the local collectors to the celadon produced in Longquan, Zhejiang Province.

The Qinghefang delegation visited most important arts and crafts centers in Malaysia and signed contracts with businesses there for further exchanges.

Qinghefang-Insadong

In the early 2008, Zhu Bingren Bronze Sculpture Art Museum, located in Qinghefang, asked the management of Qinghefang for help, for it intended to stage an exhibition of national arts and crafts masters in conjunction with Korean Crafts & Culture Academy. The Korean government sent three delegations to Hangzhou for the exhibition and listed the event as a national project for cultural exchanges. It was designed to have three separate activities: an exhibition for Chinese and Korean arts and crafts masterpieces, a China-Korea cultural show and the sister relationship between Qinghefang and Insadong. When the implementation plan was presented to the Korean Consulate in Shanghai, the cultural counselor was more pleased to see the arrangements. It turned out that the counselor had studied at Zhejiang University for two years and was highly familiar with the art street in Hangzhou.

The event kicked off in September, 2008. Artworks by Chinese and Korean masters were on display at the Zhu Bingren Bronze Sculpture Art Museum. More than 100,000 people visited the exhibition. Ten Chinese masters and ten Korean masters attended the event. It was a sensational success. Long before the event, a delegation from Qinghefang had visited Insadong in Seoul. The field study there gave the managers of Qinghefang insight into how to make Zhongshan Road into a commercial success. A refurbishment project for Zhongshan Road in Hangzhou is now in full swing. The old downtown street in the neighborhood of Qinghefang is designed to merge with Qinghefang to form a larger art region that showcases the good old days of ancient Hangzhou.

Qinghefang-Istanbul

In November 2008, Istanbul hosted the general assembly of the International Council of Folklore Festival Organizations (CIOFF). Representatives from Qinghefang, Hangzhou attended the general assembly at the invitation.

CIOFF is a non-governmental organization in consultative relations with UNESCO. It has more than 70 members in six sectors such as Asian and Oceanian Sector, Central European Sector, Latin American Sector, Northern American Sector, Northern European Sector, South European and African Sector. China is a member state of its Asian and Oceanian Sector. Qinghefang was invited to attend the annual congress because its performance tallied with the aims of CIOFF, it had made brilliant contribution to folk arts, and it had shown its determination and confidence to go international.

Qinghefang was chosen to host the 2009 meeting for the Asian and Oceanian Sector. In the spring of 2009, representatives from 16 sector members will meet on the West Lake. □