Chinese artisans demonstrate porcelain making at the Philadelphia Museum of Art Lunar New Year Festival in Philadelphia, USA on February 11, 2024 (Photo by Winston Zhou/Xinhua)
People and art are very important for communicating ideas. What better way than to have a craftsman or craftsman with whom you can personally showcase your art?
Xinhua News Agency reporter Yang Shilong
PHILADELPHIA, USA, Feb. 12 (Xinhua) — The Philadelphia Museum of Art (PMA) on Sunday held a full-day immersive Lunar New Year Festival packed with hands-on activities to explore Chinese culture.
Artisans from China’s Zhejiang Province occupied the museum’s Grand Staircase Hall and performed various demonstrations including tea whisking, sugar painting, rice carving, couplets, and puppetry.
Guests also had the opportunity to create their own woodblock prints, learn about the 12 animals of the Chinese zodiac, and receive a lucky red envelope.
A Chinese calligrapher writes a couplet to visitors at the Philadelphia Museum of Art Lunar New Year Festival in Philadelphia, USA on February 11, 2024 (Photo by Winston Zhou/Xinhua)
At least 1,000 parents and children are estimated to have attended Sunday’s five-hour celebration, said Hiromi Kinoshita, curator of Chinese art at the PMA.
“I think it’s very attractive that craftsmen come all the way from China and show us things that you wouldn’t normally see. The event was very popular,” she says.
Kinoshita, who has worked with PMA for 12 years, believes the event will help foster understanding between Americans and Chinese citizens, especially now that people usually get their information from the Internet and the news. Limited view.
“I think people and art are very important in communicating ideas, and I can’t think of a better way than having craftsmen and artisans who can personally showcase their art,” Kinoshita said.
“I think it’s important to have that personal connection,” she said.
Visitors admire embroidery works at the Philadelphia Museum of Art Lunar New Year Festival in Philadelphia, USA on February 11, 2024 (Photo by Winston Zhou/Xinhua)
Mr. Kinoshita also expressed his gratitude to the Consulate General of China in New York for its assistance and support in making the event a reality.
“This should be held more often. We need to know other cultures. If they had it, we would come back every year,” said visitor Coco Idani. A young Chinese craftsman.
“Chinese culture is ancient and very rich,” Itani said. “We should learn from cultures like this that have survived for many years.”
“I’ve always believed that through art and culture, we can build bridges, so I’m very happy to be a part of it,” said the man, who works in information technology and is married to a Chinese woman from Zhengzhou, China. Paul said.
“This event is great. We want to share Chinese culture,” said Paul, holding his two-year-old daughter Gina, who was wearing a Chinese New Year zodiac sign. “We want to share Chinese culture. We want artisans from China to come here. It’s great to see puppet shows and handicrafts.” head kit.
Women and children marvel in traditional Chinese dress at the Philadelphia Museum of Art Lunar New Year Festival in Philadelphia, USA on February 11, 2024 (Photo by Winston Zhou/Xinhua)
Kathy and Joe Jacobsen were planning to go to Philadelphia’s Chinatown to see the Lunar New Year parade, but they got lost and ended up attending a PMA event instead.
Still, they loved the event because it was inclusive, fun, and welcoming to everyone. “It’s a good time to celebrate our reunion,” Joe said, adding that the two had known each other since the 1970s but reunited in 2016 after 40 years.
The PMA event was the final leg of a 10-day visit to the United States by Chinese artisans to participate in Lunar New Year celebrations in New York and nearby areas. They have previously performed at the Metropolitan Museum of Art, Lincoln Center, and the China Institute.
“It was a big surprise to us that the locals were so enthusiastic about Chinese culture.We had to extend the scheduled performance time to accommodate the much larger number of visitors than expected. “Often we didn’t,” said Ruan Jing, head of the delegation and director. Zhejiang Provincial Cultural Center told Xinhua. ■