Shining a light on Chinese culture

As a golden dragon, guided by dancers, weaved and soared through the press center at Yabuli, the ski resort cluster hosting the snow sports at the ongoing 9th Asian Winter Games on Wednesday afternoon, the celebratory atmosphere of Lantern Festival was instantly ignited.

Meanwhile, two lively lions entertained and playfully interacted with the audience, drawing cheers and applause.

"To celebrate the traditional Chinese festival, we have carefully planned a series of activities, hoping that athletes and journalists from all over the world can immerse themselves in traditional Chinese culture and enjoy the warmth and happiness of traditional Chinese festivals," said Ning Xiaofeng, general manager of Harbin Yabuli Tourism Investment Group.

At the area designated for writing the Chinese character fu, which symbolizes good fortune, tables were neatly arranged with brushes, ink, paper and inkstones. Participants eagerly picked up brushes to inscribe the auspicious characters on red paper.

Despite many being first-time users of the brush, everyone wrote with great care, showcasing their deep respect for traditional Chinese culture.

Meanwhile, at the Games' main press center in Harbin, over 60 representatives from the Olympic Council of Asia and various delegations, including Hong Kong, China, the United Arab Emirates, Qatar, Kuwait, Kyrgyzstan, Turkmenistan, Bhutan, Sri Lanka and Mongolia celebrated the festival together.

At the event, athletes, officials and media personnel handcrafted tangyuan — glutinous rice balls, symbolic of reunion — and engaged in lantern riddles, experiencing the traditional charm of Lantern Festival.

Visitors also lingered at the intangible cultural heritage exhibition area, gaining insights into traditional Chinese arts such as calligraphy, fish skin painting, lacquerware and lantern making, appreciating the profound depth, richness and artistic allure of Chinese culture.

"I dived deep into Chinese culture,"said Enkhzaya Ganbat, a member of the Mongolia National Curling Team.

"I am expecting to make a lantern, and will take it back home after the Games finish."

During the traditional dance performances, the beat of the drum dance intertwined with the lively rhythms of Northeast yangko, prompted many of the visitors to join in, creating a vibrant atmosphere.

From Feb 5 to 14, the intangible cultural heritage exhibition, centered around the theme "Dream of Winter, Love among Asia", took place at four non-competition venues, hotels and the main press center.

The event brought together several distinctive national intangible heritage projects, such as wheat-straw painting and Fangzheng paper-cutting, as well as provincial intangible heritage projects such as gold lacquer inlay and Ewenki birch bark pyrography.

With a history dating back 8,000 years, the gold lacquer inlay is an important category of traditional Chinese lacquerware.

"The combination of gold lacquer and inlay techniques holds deep historical value, elegant artistic value, extensive practical value, and precious collectible value," said Xia Lijun, a provincial-level inheritor of the skill. "I took over 80 pieces of work to the event, including gold lacquer inlay paintings and items, as well as related cultural and creative products, attracting great attention from the visitors."

"At my booth, I taught the athletes and officials from various countries and regions to make fans with the floating lacquer skill — placing lacquer of various colors in water and gently stirring it, then slowly dipping a fan into the water, allowing the lacquer to adhere to the surface, creating exquisite artistic effects," he said. "The process of creating a lacquer fan takes around three minutes, after which it can be taken away for later use once the surface is dry."

"Officials from Saudi Arabia and Iran expressed their intention to invite me to show my skills in their countries, which made me feel quite honored that I may have the chance to spread Chinese culture to other parts of the world."

The event seamlessly integrated ancient intangible heritage with the Games, and enriched them with a strong cultural ambiance.

"The event, with its diverse displays and content, exciting interactive activities, and innovative integration of intangible heritage with contemporary needs, added a splendid touch to the Games," said Wang Di, deputy director of Harbin Mass Art Center.

"By incorporating intangible cultural heritage into modern sports events like the Asian Winter Games, the event will provide an opportunity for China's outstanding traditional culture to step onto the world stage, engaging in broader exchanges and mutual learning with cultures from around the world."