China Institute in America Presents: Lunar New Year Family Festival 2024

CAI Lijing 蔡丽静, municipal-level inheritor of intangible cultural heritage – Taishun Puppet Theatre. Cai learnt puppet modelling and wire-carrying performance from Ji Tianyuan (national-level inheritor of intangible cultural heritage) and then learnt carving and painting from Zhang Yuejian (provincial-level inheritor of intangible cultural heritage). Cai Lijing has participated in large-scale cultural evenings such as the East Asian Cultural Capital and the Beijing World Expo, and she also participated in the warm-up program “Puppet Welcomes the Asian Games” at the opening and closing ceremonies of the 2022 Hangzhou Asian Games and the Asian Para Games. Lin’s representative works are puppet folding theatre “Dream Life”, “Liang Zhu (the Butterfly Lovers)”, and “Jigong (the Mad Monk)”.

CHEN Jing 陈经, who styled himself “Bo Lun”, is a native of Pingyang, Zhejiang Province. He is now a member of the China Calligraphers Association, vice chairman and secretary general of the Zhejiang Calligraphy Research Association, director of the Zhejiang Calligraphers Association, a member of the Zhejiang Artists Association, specially appointed teacher and visiting scholar of the China Academy of Art, external instructor of the School of Art and Archaeology of Zhejiang University, art fund expert and senior professional title judge of the Ministry of Culture and Tourism of China, and research librarian of the Zhejiang Provincial Cultural Center.

DONG Xizao 董希造, Wenzhou arts and crafts master, provincial-level representative inheritor of intangible cultural heritage project “Rice Dough Sculpture Technology”. Dong learnt from Ye Chaoguang, a famous rice sculpture artist and the fourth-generation heir of Wenzhou’s Shoutao (longevity peach) culture. Dong Xizao has made great breakthroughs in the prevention of moth, mould and colour fading of rice dough sculpture works, which has been affirmed by the industry. Dong has travelled to Germany, Egypt, Switzerland, Kazakhstan, Qatar, and New Zealand, as well as domestic places such as Hong Kong, Macao and Taiwan to demonstrate the traditional art of rice dough sculpture.

FAN Junwen 范俊雯, inheritor of intangible cultural heritage – Hangzhou tea-whisking (Dian Cha), national first-class tea technician, national first-class tea appraiser, former Zhejiang Shuren University tea culture professional teacher, and the World Tea Federation director. In 2010, Fan was awarded the title of “Hangzhou technical talent”. Fan is one of the special guests invited to Geneva headquarters activities of the 2023 United Nations Chinese Language Day, a performer in the state banquet of the Opening Ceremony of the 2023 Asian Games in Hangzhou; one of the planners of the G20 Southern Song Dynasty Experience Pavilion, and the tea break planner of the H20 Embracing River Development Conference. Fan has been engaged in tea culture education and training for more than one decade and has planned many tea aesthetics spaces and activities.

HUANG Jiecheng 黄捷成, district-level representative inheritor of national intangible cultural heritage project Hangzhou engraving and printing techniques (Woodblock Printing). Huang studied painting since childhood and graduated from the China Academy of Art. Since childhood, Huang followed his father (Huang Xiaojian, a national-level inheritor) to learn traditional engraving and printing techniques, and has long been engaged in the inheritance, dissemination, collection and research of engraving and printing. He is a young and middle-aged arts and crafts professional of Zhejiang Industrial Arts Academe, a special expert tutor of the Youth and Children’s Palace in Xihu District, Hangzhou, a special tutor of Hangzhou Chorography Hall, and a special tutor of Hangzhou Elderly Cadre University.

HUANG Xingwei 黄兴伟, representative inheritor of the intangible cultural heritage of Quzhou City, Quzhou rural craftsman master, founder of Sugar Craftsman Huang brand. Huang Xingwei has been engaged in the traditional art of candied figures full-time since 2008. In 2016, Huang founded the brand exhibition hall of Sugar Craftsman Huang’s art of making sugar figures. In 2022, he founded the Sugar Craftsman food workshop. Huang has been engaged in the art of making candied figures for many years to form a unique charm of the works and has attracted a large audience’s favor and recognition by displaying exhibitions in various parts of China.

JI Tianyuan 季天渊, Representative inheritor of national intangible cultural heritage (puppet head carving), head of Ji’s puppet art studio, engaged in the design and production of puppet modelling, theatre stage props, and Taishun Wood Craft. The puppet heads carved by Ji Tianyuan have a strong national style and local characteristics, including bright lines, fine carving and bright colors. Ji uses the artistic techniques of exaggeration, condensation and refinement to shape different puppet characters and highlight the characters of the puppets.

JIN Xin 金鑫, Senior arts and crafts artist, master of Zhejiang Province arts and crafts, representative inheritor of the firing technique of the Southern Song Dynasty Official Kiln (ceramics).  Jin was born in a celadon family and has been engaged in the processing of raw materials, molding, kiln firing and other technical trades. Jin has participated in eight provincial and ministerial-level projects for the protection and development of the Southern Song Dynasty Official Kilns and has solidly mastered the basic techniques. In 2009, the Hangzhou Xiuneisi Guanware Institute was established, specializing in the research and restoration of celadon artifacts from the Southern Song Dynasty Official Kilns. It has been widely praised by the industry for its workmanship in the body, glaze, and support nails of the Southern Song Dynasty Official Kilns. It has participated in the design and production of gifts for major events such as the CIIE and the 19th Hangzhou Asian Games and has won more than 50 awards at various national, provincial and ministerial levels.

LIN Xia 林霞, Chinese master of arts and crafts, master of embroidery art, leading talent of traditional crafts in “Zhejiang Provincial Special Support Program for High-level Personnel Recruitment”, chairman of the board and artistic design director of Zhejiang TAISILK Fashion Co., LTD., representative inheritor of Taizhou embroidery intangible cultural heritage. Based on the traditional drawing, pulling and carving techniques of Taizhou embroidery, Lin breaks through the original two-dimensional attributes of embroidery and creates Taizhou embroidery’s own language and unique contemporary art style with more dynamic craftsmanship and the construction of light and shadow space.

Lin Xia has created several masterpieces such as “Original – Derivation”, “Descent”, “Spirit of All Things”, “Purple Mulberry”, “Source”, “Surge”, etc. Lin’s works have won more than 60 gold medals/awards at the international/national level, several of which have been collected by national-level museums.