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2,000 participants at Hangzhou creative expo
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Hangzhou, already known for its scenery, is pushing to promote its modern culture industries to make itself distinctive.
Yesterday, the Cultural and Creative Expo held by the city government over four days drew to a close. The results should please Hangzhou citizens:
More than 2,000 cultural and creative organizations and companies from more than 60 countries and regions participated, and more than half were from overseas.
The expo was a combination of curiosities, high-end products such as artistic accessories and Ferrari sports cars, daily commodities like tableware and tea sets, and artwork including illustrations and sculptures. The fair covered 600,000 square meters.
It is the third time that the Hong Kong Illustration Association has attended the event, and this year it specially designed its booth with an iconic double-deck tramway installation at the entrance.
The cardboard-and-iron tramway bus featured dozens of illustrations inside and outside, all by members of the Hong Kong Illustration Association.
“It is expected that our member illustrators will be introduced to China’s mainland via the expo,” said Sindy Lau, president of the association. “We will keep coming to the expo, as we know the city puts emphasis on the cultural and creative industry.”
The association also has organized China Illustration Awards for three years, which collects works by illustrators from all over China.
Since the expo is in its sixth year, more Taiwan and Hong Kong cultural and creative firms participated, as shown by the fact that the Cross-Strait Culture and Creative Works Zone covered 3,000 square meters.
In the zone, Mano Accessory from Taiwan displayed artistic accessories made from resin, thread, polystyrene foam and iron.
“Once, we got a big order from a client from Hangzhou, and we became aware that maybe Hangzhou people were ready for a new concept of accessories,” said Hsu Wen-Hsien from Mano.
“The concept that accessories do not have to be gold or silver is known in West, and it has gotten popular in Taiwan in recent decades. Now we want to bring it to China’s mainland via the expo,” she added.
While some exhibitors sold art concepts, some won visitors by smartly designed daily commodities. JIA from Taiwan brought its tableware and kitchenware designs, and caught the attention of local and foreign visitors.
Its products include a pot that combines a bamboo steamer and porcelain pot, a gourd-shaped sauce dish, and a tube-like glass cruet — a small vase with a lip — contained in a bamboo tube.
“The products are designed for both Chinese cuisine and Western food, and we believe that cross-culture design is in accordance with the trends of cultural and creative industries,” said Bonnie Lee, marketing manager of the company.
Visitors also were impressed by the International Design Zone, which boasted a sleek orange Ferrari sports car and a dazzling red Ducati motorcycle.
They are part of the exhibition set up by the Italian Franchising Association that also exhibited arts, fashions and designs from Italy.
It was the first time the association brought a display to China’s mainland, and “we are learning what are the best ways of promotion in China after exploring markets in Russia and India,” said Roberto Ghelardini from the Italian Franchising Association.
Local brands at the expo also showcased designs marked with Hangzhou elements.
A Hangzhou design brand, IW, meaning I and West Lake, sold hundreds of its products of the “Hangzhou Map in the Qing Dynasty” series during the expo.
The series uses elements of a map drawn during the Qing Dynasty (1644-1911) which was believed to be Emperor Qianlong’s tour map. Details are abstracted and modernized into patterns, printed on boxes, postcards, bookmarks, fans, scrolls and even iPhone covers.
The company, which owns two branch stores in Hangzhou, said the cultural and creative industry was not for people looking for easy money, but for people who have passion.
“Compared with other industries, this industry has fewer entrepreneurs because it’s not easy to make money,” said Jin Yan, brand director of IW Design Company. “But so far it’s good to see that the government is helping us and the market is getting more and more mature.”
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