Turning a new leaf on intangible cultural heritages
The work requires nimble fingers and patience.
Participants experience the old craft.
A series of activities are being held at libraries in Shanghai and Suzhou, neighboring Jiangsu Province, to promote China's intangible cultural heritages.
The activities enable Chinese and foreign participants to experience ancient document restoration, ancient book binding as well as layout techniques from specialists.
The 10-day event through November 27, jointly hosted by Shanghai Library, Suzhou Library and entertainment giant Bandai Namco Holdings China Co Ltd under a crossover cooperation, comprises nine experiences.
Among these, two will be attended by foreign students from East China Normal University and Shanghai University. Some will be open to the public.
The event, in its third year, is held at the east branch of Shanghai Library and Suzhou Library.
The protection and inheritance of intangible cultural heritage will be enhanced in the Yangtze River Delta region to promote its popularization.
The binding process.
Zhang Pinfang, head of the Document Preservation and Conservation Institute of Shanghai Library, introduces the craftsmanship.
The binding styles for ancient books have evolved from the earliest tortoise shell and animal bones to bamboo or wooden slips and scrolls, and later butterfly-shaped, back-wrapped binding, thread binding and others.
The evolution reveals the splendid Chinese culture, innovative spirit and wisdom of ancient people.
The workshops center on book binding.
Participants are able to make a book of their own after picking threads and pages of about 10 materials with different content and various colors.
Some representative works restored by repairers of the two libraries are also on display.
Reservations can be made on the WeChat accounts of the two libraries and Bandai Namco.
"The event creates a platform for the public to get close to China's intangible cultural heritage and attract young people to the work," said Zhang Pinfang, head of the Document Preservation and Conservation Institute of Shanghai Library.
Book restoration, a centuries-old craft in China, is indispensable in the preservation of ancient writings.
"Due to bad preservation practices of the past, we come across pages bitten by worms and paper that has grown extremely brittle," said Zhang.
Every situation requires specialized treatment, she added.
