Non-genetic inheritance: the charm of Wada on mulberry paper

A thin piece of mulberry paper condenses the thousand-year-old civilization in the western region. A volume of exquisite paintings about the charm of Hetian, on January 1, 2022, the charm of Wada on mulberry paper - Beijing Xinjiang Calligraphy and Painting Exhibition Urumqi Tour Exhibition was launched at the Urumqi Art Museum.

Stepping into the hall on the first floor of the museum, you will be greeted by a 16-meter-long scroll of "Mulberry Paper Making Techniques". Scan the QR code of the scroll to view the dynamic long picture with good sound and color online.

Mulberry paper, known as Hanpi paper in ancient times, has the characteristics of insect moth prevention, not afraid of moisture, strong paper tensile resistance, and writing and painting are not easy to fade. In 2006, the xinjiang mulberry paper making technology was included in the first batch of national intangible cultural heritage protection list. It can be called the "living fossil" of Chinese papermaking.

"I grew up in Hotan, and now when I see these paintings, I suddenly evoke memories of my childhood, these art paintings are very close to life, especially when painting on this kind of mulberry paper, the rustic charm is clear at a glance." 」 Audience member Yu Hengkang said.

"Mulberry paper is made of mulberry bark as raw material, and there are more than 40 processes, making it resistant to folding, mothproof, not afraid of moisture, and does not fade after thousands of years..." At the exhibition site, Wei Baoshan, executive vice president and secretary general of Xinjiang Academy of Chinese Painting and promoter of Xinjiang mulberry paper, introduced it.

Depicting the charm of Hetian on mulberry paper, so that people have a deeper understanding of the beauty of Hotan culture, since 2012, nearly a thousand well-known calligraphers and painters at home and abroad have explored the promotion, excavation and utilization, inheritance and protection of mulberry paper, and also developed cultural and creative products such as "mulberry paper calligraphy and painting fragments" and "mulberry paper Xinjiang style Chinese painting", which will creatively transform and develop non-heritage mulberry paper, which has been praised by all sectors of society and has become a bright business card of Xinjiang's cultural tourism industry.

"This tour exhibition and the series of activities of collecting style and sketching are part of Beijing's cultural assistance to Xinjiang, and in the future, we will work with all sectors of society to excavate the valuable cultural heritage of Hotan, make it creatively transformed and innovative, and contribute to the revitalization of the countryside and the prosperity of Xinjiang." Mi Jia, member of the party committee and deputy commander of the Beijing Municipal Aid to Xinjiang Hotan Command, said.

The exhibition is sponsored by the Beijing Municipal Federation of Literary and Art Circles, the Beijing Municipal Headquarters for Aiding Xinjiang Hotan, and the Propaganda Department of the Hotan Prefectural Committee, and jointly organized by the Beijing Artists Association, the Beijing Calligraphers Association, the Xinjiang Academy of Chinese Painting, the Moyu County Party Committee, and the Hotan Regional Bureau of Culture, Sports, Radio, Television, and Tourism. The exhibition will run until January 7, and visitors can visit the Urumqi Art Museum for free.

Xinjiang is the intersection of the four major civilizations, Hotan has a profound historical and cultural accumulation, rich and colorful cultural heritage, and the mulberry paper and Adelaide silk with a thousand years of history are inherited and exist in this land. Mijia said that in the next step, Hetian will work with all sectors of society to excavate many valuable cultural heritages of Hotan, make it creatively transformed and innovatively developed, and contribute to the revitalization of the countryside and the prosperity of Xinjiang. (Zhang Xiaoyu) (China Daily Xinjiang Reporter Station)