Company members prepare a flower-themed exhibition at Shine Hills, a commercial zone in Beijing's northeastern Shunyi district. [Photo provided to China Daily]
Authorities are organizing celebratory events to enable the public to engage traditional heritage and creative innovations in such areas as art, design and music.
Cultural and creative fairs have gained popularity across the country. Modern and fashionable gift boxes containing delicate artworks, cabins that look like spaceships and vibrant urban houses decorated with flowers were scattered along the European-style streets of Shine Hills in early August.
The commercial zone in Beijing's northeastern Shunyi district was packed with visitors during a cultural and creative fair from July 31 to Aug 2.
"We received more than 100,000 visitors during the three days," says Li Hui, a senior officer with Shine Hills' marketing department.
Many were drawn to the intangible cultural heritage and traditional Beijing snacks, such as tie-dye and sugared haws, Li says.
Visitors taste sugarcoated haws on a stick for free at the Shunyi fair in Beijing. [Photo provided to China Daily]
Visitors could choose from various cultural and creative goods, make art and play interactive games.
New art-product releases and online broadcasts were also organized.
"The fair offers a place for cultural creators and companies to display and sell what they offer," Li says.
Over 70 businesses attended the fair, which was initiated by the Beijing government.
They promoted products ranging from home decorations to mobile games, picture books, educational puzzles, jewelry and accessories, film and television products, and food and beverages.
Some are winners of past sessions of the Beijing Creative Culture Competition, which was first staged in 2016.
"The results (of the fair) were good. This thematic event seemed to appeal more to the public,"Li says.
Customers look at tie-dye products at Beijing's Shunyi fair. [Photo provided to China Daily]
"A lot of visitors expressed strong interest in what's behind the… products."
The Shine Hills fair is the first of such several cultural and creative events the capital city will host to carry forward culture, encourage innovation and boost artistic consumption, the local government says.
It also offers opportunities to develop relevant industries.
"We received good feedback from exhibitors, who said they'd met 'seed users', who may become customers in the future," Li says.
Beijing staged another cultural fair in its downtown Wangfujing shopping area in August, after the Shunyi event. And more will be staged this year, Beijing authorities say.
As COVID-19 prevention and control continues to improve in China, a growing number of people are willing to leave their homes to re-experience the comfort and leisure of cities.
Several government bodies, including the Ministry of Commerce, recently proposed the promotion of small-shop businesses.
A live music performance at the Rhino Market in Shenyang, Liaoning province. [Photo provided to China Daily]
Tourist attractions and neighborhoods are encouraged to court visitors by offering unique, distinctive and historical local experiences. More support will be provided for food, bar, tea and culture streets.
Culture and tourism departments across the country have rolled out measures to offer quality cultural and creative fair experiences to satisfy public demand and boost industry recovery.
Shenyang, capital of Northeast China's Liaoning province, has also hosted various cultural and creative fairs. The city's Rhino Market resumed operations in early August, offering thousands of products.
The city inaugurated the fair in 2013. It offers catering, handicrafts and cultural displays.
"The number of booths at the Rhino Market has come to exceed 1,200, compared with 40 at the beginning," says Wang Han, an official with the 1905 Cultural and Creative Park, where the fair was held.
A drama script-reading event at the Rhino Market in Shenyang. [Photo provided to China Daily]
It has registered over 1 million visits to date, Wang says.
This year, the Rhino Fair focused on facilitating interactions between businesses and visitors. It offered novel cultural experiences, featuring art, operas, lectures and music.
Visitors watched operas at close quarters, while performers received audience feedback that could improve their creations, an official with the 1905 Mumu Theater says.
The fair invited over 200 independent cultural and creative brands, which is a sign of steady development in the sector amid the pandemic, the organizer says. It will be staged more frequently and present more content in the future.
"We'll continue to create new cultural scenes to build a broader platform for cultural creation and output," Wang says.
In Changsha, capital of Central China's Hunan province, about 90 cultural businesses brought over 200 products featuring Xiang embroidery (a local form of intangible culture heritage), crossover artworks and music performances at the Malanshan fair in July.
Most products were snapped up, the fair organizer reports.
A cultural-exhibition booth in Beijing. [Photo provided to China Daily]
In Chengdu, capital of Southwest China's Sichuan province, the Chunxi Road Culture Fair packed in nighttime visitors in July with paper-cut, floral-arrangement, painting and calligraphy displays, as well as Sichuan Opera performances and qipao (traditional Chinese dresses) showcases.
In Shanghai's Jing'an district, many time-honored brands impressed visitors with upgraded products at its cultural and creative fair.
For example, the producer of Butterfly sewing machines, which were popular in the 1970s, showcased its new Wi-Fi and intelligent add-ons.
The 400-year-old Shanghai Leiyunshang Pharmaceutical brand integrated tradition and fashion, and offered perfumed satchels and essential oils. Visitors also made their own satchels.
Nanjing Institute of Tourism and Hospitality associate professor Lyu Shengnan believes cultural and creative fairs can effectively boost the retail, catering, accommodation and leisure sectors, and inject new vitality into cultural and tourism development.
Lyu proposes the continued diversification of fairs' content to offer immersive experiences, such as developing facilities for the public to experience traditional arts.
Zeng Bowei, director of the China Tourism Economics and Policy Research Center of Beijing Union University, calls for more policy and financial support for such fairs, and continued efforts to mine local cultural resources and increase short-distance leisure-and-tourism consumption.
Li Hui from Shine Hills believes cultural and creative fairs offer slow-paced lifestyle experiences.
"You don't necessarily have to buy something while shopping. Just enjoy the process of trying things out and looking for good stuff," Li says.
The Beijing commercial zone will continue to host similar fairs, featuring domestic fashion, red wine and coffee during the National Day holiday, Li says.
