Chongqing- The art of calligraphy and painting is the essence of Chinese culture, an artistic treasure that forms the emotional bond running through the Chinese nation.

In order to promote and inherit traditional Chinese culture, as well as to perform cultural exchange between the youth of Chongqing, Hong Kong, and Macau, the 6th Bauhinia Cup was organized by the Hong Kong and Macao Affairs Office of Chongqing Municipal Government, the Information Office of Chongqing Municipal Government, the Chongqing Education Commission, the Chongqing Federation of Literary and Art, and Hong Kong Bauhinia Magazine.

The Bauhinia Cup Cross-Strait and Hong Kong and Macau Youth Painting and Calligraphy Competition (Chongqing Division) were held simultaneously in 12 sub-districts including the districts of Jiulongpo, Nan'an, Yubei, Bishan, Tongliang, and Liangping.

It is a large-scale cultural exchange event for public welfare across regions, cultures, and academic stages. The Chongqing competition area featured the largest number of participants, the scale of organization, variety of activities, and the highest standards of work.

The event lasted 3 months and saw the participation of over 100,000 young people from more than 200 primary and secondary schools, as well as kindergartens.

Thousands of teachers gave up time from their summer holidays to explain poems, savor characters, and admire paintings with the children as they experienced the great charm of Chinese traditional culture through brush and ink.

A major consideration of the Bauhinia Cup this year was the optimal way to strengthen identity with Chinese culture among the children and teenagers of Hong Kong and Macao.

With this objective in mind, organizers decided to promote cultural exchange across various disciplines through the appreciation and cultivation of traditional Chinese painting and calligraphy. This way, it is hoped the seeds of patriotism can be sown in the hearts of children at a subconscious level.

Cross academic stages – 100,000 young students participate as bonds take root in the fertile soil of Chinese culture.

A nation can only remain strong and achieve progression through the character of its youth. Therefore, it’s vital to foster the spirit of patriotism from an early age through a rich variety of educational activities centered on traditional folk culture. The hope is that children will embrace the country more deeply as adults, and also have confidence in their culture.

Since the competition was first established in 2011, the Bauhinia Cup has been held successfully on five consecutive occasions at two-year intervals. It has enjoyed far-reaching influence as students come from either side of The Straits have taken part in great numbers.

In July this year, the sixth Bauhinia Cup Cross-Strait, Hong Kong, and Macau Youth Painting and Calligraphy Competition (Chongqing Division) was officially launched. During the event, young people carefully observed the beauty of nature and recent changes in society. The themes of epidemic control, harvests, landscapes, friendship, and other elements featured in their works of calligraphy and painting.

Paintings and calligraphy have allowed children to explore traditional Chinese culture, and experience the core socialist values of prosperity, democracy, civilization, and harmony, in order to allow these cultural treasures to take root in their young hearts. The competition also focused on the concept of Internet +, which greatly expanded the competition’s influence both at home and abroad.

When the 6th Bauhinia Cup events concluded, a total of 3240 works were entered into the Chongqing area finals and were all displayed online.

The official Shangyou News mobile application developed a display platform especially for the event and invited netizens to like the artwork and conduct interaction. As soon as the work went online, millions of netizens both home and abroad browsed the application as it quickly became a hot topic for tens of millions of people, and spurred society as a whole to engage in Chinese culture. In total, the number of likes reached 14,496936.

Activities included a wide range of educational classes that spanned multiple academic stages, from nursery and primary school children to junior and high school students. No matter the age group, young contestants were able to actively participate

On October 12th, 540 works were selected for the first, second, and third place awards over nine categories in the Chongqing competition finals. They went on to participate in the Hong Kong finals where they competed for gold, silver, bronze, and merit awards with works from other Chinese cities and provinces, Hong Kong, Macao, and Taiwan.

Huang Huanran is a 4-year-old student from the Boya Primary School Kindergarten in the Liangjiang New District of Chongqing, who became the youngest winner in the competition this year. When his turn came, he bounded onto the stage to accept the award and waved both hands to the audience’s delight.

Although young Mr. Huang appeared slightly bemused at the situation, he kept smiling as everyone offered their warm applause. ‘I’m really happy to win a prize,’ he responded.

Luo Yuan from Chongqing No.29 Middle School won first prize in brush calligraphy for her age group. She was born in a family with a strong cultural atmosphere, as her grandfather is a calligrapher, her grandmother loves to write poetry, and her mother is a teacher.

Unsurprisingly, Luo Yuan has been fond of calligraphy since he was a small child and has already studied this art form for 8 years.

Luo Yuan described how learning calligraphy could strengthen knowledge of aesthetics whilst fostering patience and endurance. ‘Chinese culture has been passed down for thousands of years and possesses an endless charm that flows through our veins. I think it’s really important to learn and inherit our traditional culture.’

Mr. Chen Daiwei, the headteacher of the Affiliated Primary School of Nanan District Teachers Training College, stated, ‘This calligraphy and painting competition is a kind of training and promotion in traditional culture and artistic accomplishment for youths from both sides of the strait, Hong Kong and Macao.

The competition has set up a platform for students to hone their skills and refinement through the inheritance of art and culture, as well as to encourage more young people to take interest in traditional Chinese culture.’

‘Patriotism doesn’t form spontaneously. It must be nurtured from an early age, especially in this new era. Teenagers either side of the strait needs to cultivate their sense of identity with the country from an early age, as well as to enhance their sense of belonging and social cohesion.’

Cross-cultural activities – Famous literati instill a love for Chinese culture among young students.

Chinese culture is extensive and profound, and the three art forms of poetry, calligraphy, and painting capture its essence.

Beginning in August, the 6th Bauhinia Cup held 5 summer charity gatherings as part of a series called Masters invite you to Nanshan, themed on ancient city nostalgia and producing art in picturesque bamboo gardens.

During the event, 3000 young people attended to create sketches of Chongqing, the beautiful city of mountains and rivers, and captured the far-reaching impression of Chongqing through their writings.

The top Chinese grape painting master Fang Fengfu, Lu Xun Literature Prize winner and famous contemporary poet Fu Tianlin, as well as the calligraphy educator Li Zhonghua and painter Qian Kun, came to provide young people with professional guidance.

Zhou Xingyu, a young actor from the Chongqing Sichuanese Opera Theater, shared traditional Chinese culture such as poetry and drama with students. She acted as a charity ambassador to the Bauhinia Cup Painting and Calligraphy Competition and is a current Sichuan opera actress who has studied the tradition for 16 years.

During the judging process, she found that almost every competition area featured elements of Sichuanese Opera. What impressed her the most was the western style take of operatic face changes painted by the children from the Chongqing High-tech Zone.

The work was full of creativity, and featured a variety of face masks which were pasted onto the paper base, and could be flipped quickly like a book. Turning a face mask felt just as interesting as watching a live performance.

She went on to state, ‘It can be seen through the facial makeup that the children have a certain understanding of Sichuanese opera itself. The costumes, headwear, and makeup are all very meticulous and elegant and have restored the true characters of Sichuan opera. These works truly catch the eye.’

Teenagers also experienced the philosophy of how art originates from true life as they discovered the beauty of Chinese culture and landscape through poetry recital and landscape painting.

Over September and October, the Beautiful Lavender Poetry and Calligraphy charity trip to Huangshui in Shizhu County were held to promote rural tourism. Organizers also arranged the Dazzling Calligraphy and Painting charity visit to Guanba County to donate books and materials as part of cultural exchange.

The calligraphy and painting competition was also held in famous public welfare lecture halls, where tens of thousands of young people were able to experience poetry, calligraphy, sketching, fans, happy gardens, and the sharing of friendship seeds.

At the awards ceremony, cultural figureheads gathered together as part of a star-studded event which included Qi Gang, vice chairman of Chongqing Federation of Literary and Art Circles, and chairman of the Chongqing Calligraphers Association.

There was also the renowned painter Fang Fengfu, famous poet Fu Tianlin, national first-class actor and Chongqing Hou school cross-talk inheritor Qiu Xiaobao, and other big names from across the literature and art circles of Chongqing who attended the ceremony and awarded prizes to the contestants.

Following the event, they spoke highly of the scale, impact, and far-reaching scope of activities of the competition, and expressed sincere hope that such a competition will continue in the future.

Wu Yuanxiu, a parent in attendance at the ceremony said happily, ‘The opportunity to have close contact with famous masters makes this event very special for the students. They will gain much enlightenment and will be well versed in traditional culture from a young age.’

‘The Masters Invite You to Nanshan’ activities have been very rewarding for children across the strait, and in Hong Kong and Macao. The Painting and Calligraphy Competition has given children there a deeper understanding of brotherhood and friendship between compatriots.’

Li Zhonghua, a member of the Chinese Calligraphers Association, and a famous calligrapher himself from Tongliang, Chongqing, participated in many activities and felt deeply moved.

‘Calligraphy and Chinese paintings are full of wisdom that embodies cultural genes. While poetry, calligraphy, and painting may seem distinct on the surface, they are actually three manifestations of the same concept. Poetry is a gene of Chinese culture that permeates through various fields.

Calligraphy is recognized as the most representative art form of Chinese culture worldwide, and it is unique to our country. Painting is the expression of inner and outward feelings, and is the best form of expression that makes Chinese painting distinctive from Western counterparts.’

‘The trinity of poetry, calligraphy and painting displays the integrity of Chinese culture. The more integrated people are, the higher the standard which can be achieved. These art forms are a window for young people to enter traditional culture in this new era.'

'Let young people on both sides of the strait, Hong Kong and Macao attain stronger cultural confidence whilst cultivating recognition and respect for Chinese traditional culture and ideological values.’

Cross-regional scope – Portray common unity and display the cultural essence of the homeland.

The Bauhinia Cup Cross-Strait, Hong Kong, and Macau Youth Painting and Calligraphy Competition (Chongqing Division) has inspired patriotism among the youth in Chongqing, Hong Kong, and Macau, whilst exhibiting flesh and blood connections between the compatriots.

Qiu Xuan, director of the Chongqing Liaison Office of Hong Kong Bauhinia Magazine, praised a Chinese painting created by the elementary school group. The overall tone of this painting is blue, and the main scene is a pot of blooming bauhinia and one of lotus.

In the background is the Hong Kong-Zhuhai-Macao Bridge, and related landmark buildings. Such a beautiful and harmonious scene will remain in the hearts of children and teenagers who embody the hopes and future dreams of the motherland.

This cross-regional cultural feast extended beyond the Chongqing Urban Area to involve 10 districts and counties, as well as the entities of Chongqing People’s Primary Education Group and Chongqing Bachuan International Education Group. A total of 200 schools participated in the sub-competition areas as part of cross-strait cultural interaction and exchange.

In a grand gesture to compatriots in Hong Kong and Macau, Nanshan Botanical Gardens in Chongqing sent lotus and bauhinia friendship seeds, Anju Ancient Town sent a special nostalgia postcards to invite them on a journey home, and the Liangping Bamboo Expo Gardens presented bamboo curtain calligraphy as an offering of peace.

In addition to these gestures of friendship, local children wrote personal blessings and invitations to young people in Hong Kong and Macao to visit Chongqing to learn and participate in exchange once the epidemic is over.

Following the event, paintings and works of calligraphy created by mainland students were displayed in Hong Kong and Macao, so that children can see the deep love their peers hold for their motherland, as well as to learn more about the history and cultural essence.

At the same time, young people from Hong Kong and Macao have also deepened their understanding of traditional Chinese culture through exploration. They have rooted their cultural beliefs and identity in their hearts at a young age and gained firmer ideals and a sense of patriotism.

Calligraphy and painting are silent works of art that can transform people at a deep level. Following the competition, many young people in Chongqing became more interested in traditional culture.

Sixth-year student Zhang Jing from Liangping Shuanggui Primary School in Chongqing said, ‘I have studied Chinese painting for two years, and calligraphy for three years. I have benefited a lot from the opportunity to learn from the masters in person. I feel very motivated, and can now write calligraphy and draw Chinese paintings better.’

Year 4 primary school student Wu Zhimo from the People’s Primary School in Liangjiang New District, entered the competition with the traditional style Chinese painting he named Bichun Mountain Residence.

'Chinese painting has the charm of a storybook and is worth the time to explore. How I hope children from Hong Kong and Macao can hold hands with us and explore the great rivers and mountains of the motherland together and depict a wonderful life.’

Chongqing Renmin Primary School Education Group is one of the organizers of this competition. Party secretary and principal Yang Langlang commented, ‘We are very happy to contribute our energies to enhancing cultural exchange between youths in Chongqing, Hong Kong, and Macao.'

 

'The paintings and calligraphy that students made communicate their profound friendship and demonstrate the charm and fun of traditional culture. Together, we believe that we can enhance our humanistic care and spiritual exchange, so as to carry forward and inherit Chinese traditional culture, and promote harmonious coexistence.’

‘The Bauhinia Cup calligraphy and painting competition has entered campuses to display beauty, truth, and kindness in cultured life, as well as inheriting the past and opening up the future. Traditional culture has gradually become a common memory, identity, and feeling that links us together.’

‘What is the best way to enhance cultural recognition of the motherland among the youth? The Bauhinia Cup Cross-Strait and Hong Kong and Macao Youth Painting and Calligraphy Competition has smoothened the process greatly, so that the seeds of traditional Chinese culture may settle in the hearts of children, where they can take root, germinate and eventually bear fruit.’