A drama portraying Teacher Zhang Guimei, who devoted herself to improving education for girls in far-flung mountainous areas, played to a packed house at a theater in southwest China's Yunnan Province in November, with many in the audience moved to tears.
"Popular works must have their roots in real life and people," said Ma Jie, head of the Yunnan provincial drama theatre, where the play was produced.
China is encouraging the development of people-centered cultural creation and facilities, and is striving to bring traditional culture back to life.
PEOPLE-CENTERED CULTURAL NOURISHMENT
On the bank of the Fuchun River stands a mountain-shaped building complex comprising a museum, an art gallery and an archive. The masterpiece of renowned Chinese architect and the Pritzker Prize winner Wang Shu, inspired by the famous ancient ink painting "Dwelling in the Fuchun Mountains," has become a cultural landmark in Hangzhou, capital of east China's Zhejiang Province.
In recent years, the Fuyang District of Hangzhou stepped up the construction of cultural facilities, establishing 11 urban bookshops, three rural museums and 90 public cultural zones, all within 15 minutes' walk.
The district is improving the accessibility of public cultural services, so as to enhance the city's cultural appeal, said Jiang Jianjun, head of the district's bureau of culture, radio, television, tourism and sports.
By 2021, China boasted 2,542 radio and television stations, 3,215 public libraries, 3,316 cultural centers and 6,183 museums. All public libraries, cultural centers, art galleries and cultural stations, as well as most museums, can be accessed free of charge.
REVIVED HISTORICAL LEGACY
Multi-pronged efforts have been made across China to promote the building of national cultural parks, injecting vitality and popularity into an increasing number of cultural heritage sites, alongside the Great Wall, the Grand Canal, the Yellow River and the Yangtze River.
In the eastern city of Yangzhou, a landmark museum themed on the Grand Canal -- the world's longest artificial waterway, as well as a world heritage site -- has become so popular that weekend tickets cannot be booked.
In Shandong Province, intelligent network technology has turned Mount Tai, one of China's UNESCO world cultural and natural heritage sites, into a smart scenic spot that offers comfortable and convenient trips for visitors.
At an intangible cultural heritage workshop in Huawu Village in southwestern Guizhou Province, embroiderers are busy making Miao ethnic costumes. Having helped lift the village out of poverty, the workshop is now endowed with new missions, ranging from providing jobs and supporting rural revitalization, to carrying forward the intangible cultural heritage of the Miao ethnic group.
"We use new design concepts to make traditional Miao embroidery more fashionable, in order to meet the changing market demand," said Yang Wenli, head of the workshop.
At the 2022 World Internet Conference Wuzhen Summit, the "digital Dunhuang project" (https://www.e-dunhuang.com) developed by the Dunhuang Academy wowed audiences both online and offline.
Thanks to digital technology, the Mogao Grottoes, a UNESCO World Heritage Site in the northwestern Chinese city of Dunhuang, can be freely enjoyed by people from across the globe, regardless of time and distance.
Wu Fasi, an expert with the Dunhuang Academy, said that the academy is building a national key laboratory in the field of cultural relic protection, which will help promote the understanding of the Dunhuang culture, as well as the cultural spirit of the Chinese nation. ■