During the 2025 "Understanding China" International Conference (Guangzhou) held earlier this month, a thematic forum titled "Understanding Chinese Culture through Cultural Relics and Art Collections" along with an art exhibition was held at the Yuexiu International Convention Center. This event was jointly planned and organized by the International Art Exchange Committee of the China Association of Collectors and Guangzhou City Investment GL Events Development Co., Ltd. the guests from various sectors attended the ceremony. Mr. Bamboo Wang, President of the International Art Exchange Committee of the China Association of Collectors, presided over the forum and served as the chief curator.

　　General Manager Zhang Kai from Guangzhou City Investment - GL events, during his welcome speech, briefly introduced the origin of this event. Particularly, on the occasion of the fifth year of the "Understanding China" conference being held at the Yuexiu International Convention Center and the center's fifth anniversary of its opening, these past five years have marked a journey from the center's inception to its maturity, while for this cultural expo forum, it represents a brand-new beginning. Both hold special significance!

　　In the Open speech, Chairman Liu pointed out that the China Association of Collectors, through organizing high-level exhibitions and public lectures, promotes the transformation of private collection achievements into cultural narratives that are both appealing to the public and easily understandable to international friends, thereby building bridges for mutual learning among civilizations and facilitating the inheritance and dissemination of China's excellent traditional culture. In his concluding remarks, the Chairman expressed the hope that the event's location would leverage its geographical advantages and utilize the outward-facing window of the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area to enable more and more foreign friends to approach Chinese culture through cultural relics, art, and the history and thoughts they reflect.

　　Subsequently, the host, Mr. Wang Zhu, President of the International Art Exchange Committee of the China Association of Collectors, shared with the guests, through illustrative examples, the external expressions and intrinsic values of Chinese culture embodied in cultural relic collections. He presented a "Map of the Four-Thousand-Year Evolution Trend of the National Language," designed a century ago, which used the form of rivers and was annotated in multiple Chinese and foreign languages to depict the evolution trend of Chinese characters over thousands of years. This was the earliest attempt to use an intuitive and novel cartographic technique to explain to the international public the origin of the unity of the Chinese written language, thereby stimulating the attention and curiosity of modern overseas audiences towards Chinese characters.

　　Furthermore, President Wang discussed how snuff, originally an imported product, was brought to Guangdong by Jesuit missionaries in the late Ming Dynasty. The original container, a Western snuffbox, was inconvenient to carry and prone to causing the snuff powder to harden due to large air exposure when opened. The Chinese people, leveraging their ingenuity, created small and charming snuff bottles with small mouths and large chambers, which isolated the air, solving the problem of snuff hardening and making them portable and easy to use. This fully demonstrated the inclusiveness and innovation of Chinese culture. Concurrently, the art of snuff bottles developed, integrating various crafts such as micro-carving, inside painting, overlay glass, and enamel, and encompassing a wide range of materials including gemstones, porcelain, jade, and organic materials, ultimately becoming indispensable Chinese art treasures in public and private cultural relic institutions both at home and abroad.

　　Those showing collections including snuff bottles & auspicious artworks

　　President Wang also mentioned auspicious patterns on various Chinese art collections, such as "Dragons and Phoenixes Bringing Prosperity," "Magpies Perching on Plum Blossoms," "Three Rams Bringing Bliss," "Harmonious Atmosphere," "Continuous Melons," and "The Two Harmonious Immortals." These common auspicious themes in Chinese artworks truly reproduce the values of peace and moderation in Chinese culture. At the end of his introductory speech, President Wang summarized that the reason why Chinese culture has continued unabated like a surging torrent lies in its creativity that transforms the mundane into the extraordinary. Fire and clay have transformed into exquisite ceramic art; ink, brush, paper, and inkstone have nurtured vibrant calligraphy and painting art; bamboo and wood carvings with knives as brushes, and the four famous embroideries with needles as paintbrushes—these extraordinary, unparalleled national intangible cultural heritages and materialized treasures have inscribed convincing footnotes for deconstructing the enduring Chinese culture from cultural relic collections, endowing the Chinese people with cultural confidence while enabling the world to more intuitively recognize the foundation of Chinese culture. The President's views elicited enthusiastic responses from the guests.

　　Director Luo then delivered a special report on the past and present of the Ji Zhou Kiln. He guided everyone through an in-depth and comprehensive cultural journey of the Ji Zhou Kiln from four core dimensions: its long history, current development status, and skill inheritance and craft innovation. Director Luo sorted out the heyday of the Ji Zhou Kiln, the correlation between the distribution of kiln sites and the local socio-economy, and several representative intangible cultural heritage porcelain-making techniques, such as wood-leaf patterns, paper-cut appliqués, kiln-changed glazes, green glazes, sculptures, and underglaze color paintings. He also narrated the institute's attempts and achievements in restoring, inheriting, and innovating the ceramic firing techniques of the Ji Zhou Kiln. Combined with the on-site display of exquisite porcelain artworks featuring various themes such as zodiac signs, and tea sets outside the conference, he promoted the profound and extensive ceramic culture and exquisite craftsmanship of the Ji Zhou Kiln.

　　Professor Wang Peigen elaborated on the theme of "The Inevitable Discussion of Cultural Relics and Art Collections Keeping Pace with the Times." He mentioned that the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area, backed by Lingnan culture and nurtured by the influx of Western culture, is a confluence of Chinese and foreign humanities. Guangzhou can leverage its geographical advantages to develop and strengthen the cultural relic industry. Mature models are available for reference in fields such as art exhibitions, gallery operations, art auctions, intangible cultural heritage promotion, and cultural and creative development. Guangdong should make good use of the humanistic characteristics of the Lingnan region and its past background of foreign trade to construct and cultivate feasible paths for the development of the cultural relic industry, gradually optimize the ecosystem for art collection, grasp favorable external environmental factors, and have government departments introduce policies to support public and private cultural relic institutions to take root locally. This would create conditions for introducing high-quality collection culture and also facilitate the external output of Chinese culture through collections, thereby driving the growth of related cultural trade and specialized service industries.

　　The advisory team of the International Art Committee of the China Association of Collectors is willing to share insights with peers, practitioners, and the public in Guangdong based on their years of accumulated experience and expertise, providing references for the construction of the local cultural relic industry and the refinement of the collection community. The Professor proposed that cultural relic collections should adapt to local conditions. Taking Guangdong Province as an example, the kiln changes in Yangjiang are colorful and diverse, the ceramic sculptures in Foshan are vivid and lifelike, the Duan inkstones in Zhaoqing are warm and of exquisite quality, Canton porcelain is luxurious, Cantonese embroidery is gorgeous, Lingnan painting techniques blend Chinese and foreign elements, and Cantonese furniture is simple and steady, jointly constituting the roots of art collections in the southern region. As the saying goes, "a particular environment nurtures particular people." Each region has its unique humanistic genes and historical imprints worthy of collection and inheritance.

　　A Rare Flower Vessel of Guang Kiln with its amazing blue colors on its glaze in Song Dynasty

　　Professor Wang also mentioned that cultural relic collections should be people-oriented, with objects gathering around people and people transmitting through objects. Collections need both static displays to give people intuitive and concrete feelings and dynamic sharing to enable people to understand their essence from the surface to the inside. Combining conferences with exhibitions and using exhibitions to supplement conferences has become the best choice for perceiving cultural relic collections and understanding Chinese culture. Professor Wang also particularly mentioned that the discourse power of cultural relic collections should be in our own hands. The essence of national art and cultural deconstruction can only be truly appreciated by deeply rooting in the local context. We should not underestimate ourselves; while foreign research can be used for reference, it should not be regarded as the ultimate authority. We should not blindly follow others but should explore our own academic paths, consolidate the appraisal and collection system, and cultivate new talents, thereby grasping the dominant power to interpret the value of Chinese treasures. The Professor recalled the story of following his late father's generous donation of national treasures more than seventy years ago. He believed that in the new era, while continuing to promote the spirit of "transforming private collections into public ones," we should also keep pace with the times, respect the subjects of charitable acts, treat donated treasures well, live up to trust, build a solid safety net, and improve professional qualities. This is the inevitable path to enrich public cultural relic collections. As a witness and participant in the development of the national cultural relic cause, the Professor's profound thoughts provided beneficial enlightenment to the attending guests.

　　During the tea break, the guests moved to the art exhibition area of the forum to appreciate fine porcelain, jade, and scholar's implements, as well as calligraphy and painting masterpieces. They also enjoyed Ms. Sherlin Wu 's Ji Zhou-style Song-style tea whisking and Mr. Wang Ming's dotted coloring techniques, a wave of positive reviews from the audience.

　　Ji Zhou Unique Whisking Tea by Sherlin

　　In the dialogue session of the second half of the forum, Chairman Liu pointed out that private collections are an important means of inheriting China's excellent traditional culture and a beneficial supplement to state-owned collection resources, occupying an irreplaceable position in national cultural construction. They not only inject diverse nutrients into the treasure trove of Chinese culture but also bear the mission of safeguarding the collective memory of the nation. At the cultural research level, private collections provide a large amount of precious primary materials and physical specimens for academic research, promoting the development of related disciplines. In addition, in international cultural exchanges, private collections participate in international exhibitions, promoting dialogue between Chinese culture and world civilizations and enhancing the international community's cognition and understanding of a real, multidimensional, and comprehensive China.

　　Deputy Minister Wang Shaode from the Publicity Department of the Ji An Municipal Party Committee mentioned in his speech that Ji An is known as a "museum without walls," with ten national key cultural relic protection units, ranking first in Jiangxi Province. In recent years, Ji An has strengthened protection and restoration efforts, focusing on creating a benchmark for the protection of red cultural resources. Secondly, it has deepened research and interpretation, continuously expanding its cultural dissemination power and influence. Thirdly, it has revitalized inheritance and utilization, promoting the transformation of red research and study from traditional models to in-depth experiences and long-term education.

　　President Wei shared the latest trends in media technology, believing that new means and channels adapted to cultural dissemination should be developed by combining cutting-edge technologies and that design ideas should be expanded to cater to different groups, creating refined cultural media channels. He cited the successful experience of key media and cultural projects and proposed gradient dissemination tailored to different groups. The President also wished the cultural relic collection forum a good start, steady progress, and to become better and better.

　　In the second part of the dialogue session, the guests jointly discussed the inheritance and innovation of Song Dynasty ceramic art. Curator Xu believed that cultural inheritance and international expression cannot be ignored. Cultural relic collections are not only about preserving history but also an important way to connect with the world. He said that it is necessary to adhere to the concept of upholding fundamental principles while breaking new ground, to safeguard the spirit and aesthetic core of traditional crafts, and to continuously develop by combining modern technology, enabling them to integrate into contemporary society and go international. From cultural relic collections to life aesthetics, let more people understand the depth and warmth of Chinese culture through the beauty of objects.

　　Director Luo introduced practical experience in inheritance and innovation during the dialogue, proposing to build a solid foundation in folk art and achieve an aesthetic balance between elegance and popularity. He believed that the pinnacle of ceramic art lies not only in the extreme elegance of official kilns but also in the interpretation of life by folk kiln systems, becoming a vivid footnote for the inheritance and innovation of art.

　　The two dialogue topics received enthusiastic responses from the attending guests. Deputy Curator Huang Lei, President Yang Xiaodong, Miss Sherlin Wu, Ms. Vicky Feng, General Managers Yu Jinsheng and Kuang Yinan, Secretary-General Fan Ziwei, and others had in-depth discussions with the dialogue experts on topics such as the interaction between public and private collections, the expansion of specialized collections, the continuation of traditional techniques such as tea whisking, the dissemination of collection culture, the improvement of the art market, the expansion of peripheral groups, and the repatriation of overseas collections. The interactive atmosphere was lively, pushing the dialogue atmosphere of the forum to a climax.

　　The inaugural "Understanding Chinese Culture through Cultural Relics and Art Collections" forum and art exhibition activity of "Understanding China" concluded successfully amid the concluding remarks of the host, President Wang Zhu, the applause of the on-site guests with the sounds of shutters as the guests lingered to take photos.