Restoration work in Xiuli was extensive. Buildings on the verge of collapse were relocated; many others were rebuilt in the traditional style from the ground up, while some were only lightly repaired. The restoration was so successful that Xiuli soon caught the attention of filmmakers. Town residents also made themselves available to directors: they would don traditional garb and engage in traditional crafts to feature in films as extras. The motive was economic – but the result was that traditional culture has made a comeback among the restored dwellings. Films shot on location in Xiuli include True Legend and My Own Swordsman.

Another grand example of the success of the '100 Villages, 1,000 Buildings' initiative is the former Huizhou local government office, or Fuya, in the center of modern Huangshan city's Shexian county. The Fuya, as the symbol of the imperial government's power in Huizhou, was expanded several times before reaching its most glorious state by the middle years of the Ming Dynasty. At the time, such was the Fuya's reputation for architectural splendor that it was referred to as the 'Imperial Palace of Huizhou'.

In the 1980s, large sections of the Fuya were destroyed. Only a small section of one of its halls remained intact.

Restorative work on the Fuya officially got underway in April 2009. Builders relied on historical references during their work and have recreated the buildings as they were under the Ming. Now open to the viewing public, the Fuya occupies a prominent position in Shexian county's old town. It sits a stone's throw from the old town wall, central archway, drum and bell towers. The old town itself is also immaculately preserved. Wandering its alleyways gives tourists an excellent impression of what life was like in one of Ming China's wealthier locales.

Once restoration is fully completed, the Fuya will also include a museum of exhibits on central themes in Huizhou history. Planned exhibits include notable historical figures from Huizhou, local history, paintings, traditional arts and crafts, and folk stories. All exhibits will highlight the unique place Huizhou culture occupies in China; the Fuya, as the symbol of Huizhou's former cultural might, is a fitting place to house such a collection.

Artistic legacies

Architecture is the grand facade of Huizhou's long history. But look behind it and you'll find local culture has much more to offer than merely stunning architecture. Huizhou is astonishingly rich in intangible culture – skills and traditions that are passed down from generation to generation. Folklore, performance arts, folk festivals and other activities and traditional handicrafts each enjoy their own rich history in the region.

China recognizes 'cultural inheritors' – those who possess the skills and knowledge to pass down unwritten knowledge – at the national and provincial level. Huangshan city currently has 21 national intangible cultural heritage inheritors, in such fields as traditional ink production, inkstone making, opera, and bonsai horticulture. Three traditions – the 'three carvings of Huizhou', namely brick carving, wood carving and stone carving – have been officially recognized by UNESCO as the intangible cultural heritage of all humanity.

The traditional method of passing down these skills and traditions in Huizhou, as in the rest of China, was the master-apprentice education model. The system still exists, but in order to develop the traditions and expose greater numbers of young people to the arts, the Xingzhi School of Anhui Province, located in Shexian county, took the initiative in establishing a curriculum for the teaching of nationally recognized intangible cultural heritage.

Xingzhi School was named in honor of Tao Xingzhi (1891-1946), a Shexian county native and renowned Chinese educator. Today Xingzhi School is an important base for vocational education and training nationwide.

As early as the 1980s Xingzhi School had already established She Inkstone making as a vocational major. The program was short-lived, however; it shut down two years after first being offered, due to a glut in local inkstone craftsman.

In 2007 She Inkstone reappeared on the school curriculum. Earlier that year, Yu Rijin, the school principal, became interested in the art of making inkstone. He looked into the careers of students who had studied inkstone making at Xingzhi School in the 1980s, and was surprised to see that many had gone on to senior positions in industry as technicians, painters and handicraft artists. Some had been recognized as 'cultural inheritors' of various crafts in their own right. Among them was Wang Zuwei, a nationally recognized inheritor of the She inkstone tradition.

Principal Yu Rijin was inspired to seek a new way of teaching intangible cultural heritage such as the She inkstone tradition. Within a few years he had succeeded in building curriculums for not only inkstone creation but also the 'three carvings of Huizhou', bonsai horticulture, machine-less tea production and porcelain painting, with the aim of nurturing Huizhou's artistic legacies.

Promoting cultural heritage in a vocational setting is new in China. It requires a different approach from educators and is demanding on students. Many head into vocational education with a poor grasp of traditional Chinese culture and aesthetics. Such things are hard to teach in between hands-on lessons, but are essential if artistic legacies are to survive.

In light of the importance of cultural background to artistic creation, Xingzhi school gives intangible heritage students the kind of comprehensive education usually disregarded at vocational schools. All students pass through one year of lessons on Chinese culture, art, aesthetics and general knowledge before they even start working on their artistic specialties. In their second year, artistic creation is given more time in the curriculum, while first year subjects continue. In the third year, 80 percent of students' time is spent getting hands-on practice with their crafts.

The school realized early on that in order to train up practioners of traditional crafts to a high level, it would need to employ Huizhou masters to teach them. Thankfully, the school attracted the very best. Fang Xinzhong, a nationally recognized 'cultural inheritor' of the brick carving tradition, and Zhou Meihong, a similarly noted master of Huizhou ink production, and others, now teach there.

Thanks to teaching expertise, first-rate facilities and access to materials, intangible cultural heritage apprentices at Xingzhi School are able to produce stand-alone works of arts after a mere three years of training.

'The master-apprentice relationship that dominated traditional skills education in former times doesn't suit the way we go about things today,' said Principal Yu. 'To ensure they remain relevant, traditional artistic skills must feature as part of a broader education. At Xingzhi school, we combine the best of the master-apprentice system with the modern model of education. Students receive classroom smarts as well as one-on-one instruction. It's to their benefit,' he added.

Xingzhi's model for passing down traditional skills seems to be working. For one, it's commended by the masters of intangible cultural heritage themselves. 'As inheritors, it's our duty to go out into society and pass on our skills to young people. Fortunately, the school is the perfect place to both work on our crafts and do our youth outreach. Xingzhi's model deserves to be copied,' said Fang Xinzhong.

Huizhou’s architectural and artistic wealth has long inspired people from across China. Hopefully, Xingzhi School’s new take on the master-apprentice relationship will go on to inspire educators in other provinces to rethink – and reinvigorate – their own approach to traditional culture.

(chinatoday.com.cn)