Chongqing - Sichuan Fine Arts Institute launched the "Old Things Renewal - Sustainable Innovation Workshop," which aims to train villagers to upcycle old things into works of art and build an online platform to sell those artworks.

"Art helps villagers increase their income by turning old things into works of art, villagers into artists," said Yu Ying, a Sichuan Fine Arts Institute teacher.

                         Villagers upcycle old things. (Photo provided to iChongqing)

The workshop is a cooperation project between the higher institution, the local government, and enterprises. Eleven workshops have been built in Pengshui Miao and Tujia Autonomous County, Xiushan Tujia and Miao Autonomous County, and other counties.

The villagers provide the raw materials and work time, while the government and institutions provide the workspace. The Department of Fashion Design of Sichuan Fine Arts Institute is responsible for training, design, and production. The project is expected to promote rural revitalization and boost villagers' income.

"Our team has spent four years evaluating 186 kinds of old things commonly found in rural areas after 32 investigations in 21 villages. We finally selected 72 kinds of old things worth upcycling," said Yu Ying, who is from the workshop team.

To let the villagers learn to do it as easily as possible, the team has developed the course system for the design and renovation of old objects and four sets of teaching materials, and 84 operation manuals.

"Six teachers and students from this project went to Zhongyi Village in Shizhu County for training, and 14 villagers transformed waste clothes into bag products within half a day," Yu Ying said.

The project allows villagers to transform old objects into works of art and creates a complete system for these products, from recycling to sales. The team provides full life cycle services - from selecting, recycling, cleaning, training, design and development, and production to sales - and builds the country's first rural artwork upcycling platform.

Feng Aiqiao, a graduate of Sichuan Fine Arts Institute, said that participating in this project made her realize that art and design must be rooted in the earth and people's lives. "Artists need to fulfill the social responsibilities and create works that are in line with the needs of society."