Nantong culture on display at international fair

  Wood artworks from Haimen, a county-level city under the administration of Nantong, are on display at the 12th China (Shenzhen) International Cultural Industrial Fair. ZHANG JUNYI / FOR CHINA DAILY  

Rows of instruments, including violins and cellos, hung on a wall. Graceful qipao, a traditional Chinese dress, and exquisite embroidery works were carefully displayed on tables.

Delegations from Nantong made their presence felt at the 12th China (Shenzhen) International Cultural Industrial Fair with their creative cultural products.

One of the largest cultural expos in China, the fair is jointly hosted by the Ministry of Culture; the Ministry of Commerce; the State Administration of Press and Publication, Film, Radio and Television; the China Council for the Promotion of International Trade; and the Shenzhen government.

More than 100 delegations from 40 countries and regions around the world joined this year’s event, which ran from May 12 to 16.

It was the third time companies from Nantong had joined the fair.

Chen Haiqing, an official from the Nantong Administration of Culture, Press, Publication, Radio, Film and Television, said the city organized a delegation of more than 100 people from 16 leading companies in the cultural industry to attend this year.

They were from such sectors as creative design, music and intangible cultural heritage.

Song Yajun, lead designer of the Nantong Pavilion at the fair, said “culture creativity” was the main theme of his design.

The entrance of the 228-square-meter pavilion was shaped like the English letter N to represent Nantong, Song said.

It also looked like an inverted triangle when viewed from a different angle, symbolizing Nantong being part of the Yangtze River Delta.

The interior design of the pavilion followed two main lines — textiles and sculpture.

On one side of the pavilion were representative textiles from Nantong, such as hand-woven products and tie-dyed clothing.

On the other side were lines of sculptural products, including furniture made from oak, pictures made of wooden sculpture and instruments made of wood.

Other types of cultural products were also displayed at the pavilion, including elegant qipao, delicate silk fans and beautiful embroidery works.

Zhou Zhanxian, chairman of Kelly Embroidery Co of Nantong, said his company received many orders at the fair.

“Traditional products like qipao have an irresistible appeal to many women,” he said.

Many visitors ordered a qipao tailor-made for them, he said.

“The Shenzhen fair is an indicator of a new trend in the cultural industry,” he said. “We also learned a lot from other companies’ products on display.”

Yaping Group took a series of products made of eaglewood to this year’s fair. The products included eaglewood wines, eaglewood tea and eaglewood soaps.

Lu Yaping, chairwoman of Yaping, said the soaps were extremely popular and she expected to sell 50,000 soaps alone during the fair.

“A customer ordered 2,000 soaps at one time,” she said. “I hope to make our brands known to more people through the fair.”

In addition to the Nantong Pavilion, Haimen city, a county-level city under the administration of Nantong, also set up a 216-square-meter special exhibition area for its rosewood products nearby.

Yuan Pengfei, an official from Haimen, said more than 10 companies from the city brought more than 200 pieces of rosewood furniture and artworks to the fair.

Zhang Shushan, publicity chief of Nantong, said large cultural companies should play a leading role in showcasing the cultural industry of the city.

“Only when we tap into local cultural resources and make full use of all the best cultural companies, can we establish a cultural brand for Nantong,” he said.

Contact the writers through dingcongrong@chinadaily.com.cn