Home
» City specials
» Hangzhou
Basquing in Hangzhou culture
By Xu Wenwen |
March 13, 2012, Tuesday
|
Print Edition
Print Edition
AN artistic couple from Basque Country in northern Spain are savoring the relaxed life in Hangzhou and studying traditional music and painting. They call themselves "hippies" living a life of peace and love.
Benat Fuentes, a 32-year-old musician from Mungia, and his girlfriend, 28-year-old painter Isaskun Goyastua from Bilbao, first visited China four years ago, traveling for four months at first, then longer, and finally settling in Hangzhou.
The Basque couple set off on an adventure to explore what seemed like a mysterious country, and now they have made it their home.
"We thought 'this is the place' the first time we visited Hangzhou," recalls Fuentes, citing the relatively smaller population, the relaxed way of living and the landscape that's ideal for weekend hiking.
Fuentes composes film underscores - music that provides emotional or atmospheric background to dialogue or narration - for both Chinese and Spanish films. Goyastua studies Chinese traditional painting at the China Academy of Art in Hangzhou, one of the leading art institutions in the country. Goyastua, who studies on a scholarship, also teaches Spanish.
Both speak Chinese.
They ride old-style bicycles with 28-inch tires and rent a simple apartment that also functions as a studio. They show up at all kinds of exhibitions and concerts; they are not part of the pub scene.
They especially like to visit China's ethnic minority areas, such as Yunnan Province and the Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region. They themselves come from the minority Basque region of northern Spain that borders France; they also speak Basque.
"We are kind of hippies living a life based on peace and love and experiencing diverse Chinese culture," says Goyastua, adding they don't have specific plans for the future, they just go with the flow.
Fuentes, who studied physics in university, has played the guitar since he was eight. He has learned to play guqin and guzheng, two ancient, zither-like Chinese instruments.
He and a local Chinese musician released an album "The Tree," containing original songs; they have performed in more than 10 Chinese cities.
The two musicians went their separate ways earlier this year but the album made Fuentes a notable figure in Spain. He says he's the first Basque musician to cooperate with a Chinese musician.
"Even today, I can hear the band's songs played on Spanish radio," says Fuentes, who has been interviewed by dozens of Spanish media.
His popularity brought him Spanish clients who wanted underscores composed, as well as Chinese customers.
Goyastua is the only Westerner in her master class in Chinese traditional painting; she is believed to be the first student from Basque Country.
Goyastua studied traditional Chinese painting in university and studied Chinese language in Basque Country. There she met Fuentes, who was studying Chinese language because of his interest in Chinese kung fu, music and culture.
At that time Fuentes was helping to compile a Spanish-Basque language dictionary and Goyastua just graduated from a local art university.
Goyastua, who studied comprehensive fine arts, also studied Chinese painting from a tutor and studied language until she reached HSK level 6, a high level making her eligible to enroll in master classes in the China Academy of Art.
She is now perfecting her technique painting mountains and waters, classic subjects in Chinese paintings. She notes that Western perspective is not a feature of Chinese painting.
"Philosophy is behind the painting and I have to experience more of the country to understand the philosophy," Goyastua says.
"To me, the most important thing in life is to have enough time to paint and in Hangzhou I have the time," she says. "That's another reason I love the city."
Benat Fuentes, a 32-year-old musician from Mungia, and his girlfriend, 28-year-old painter Isaskun Goyastua from Bilbao, first visited China four years ago, traveling for four months at first, then longer, and finally settling in Hangzhou.
The Basque couple set off on an adventure to explore what seemed like a mysterious country, and now they have made it their home.
"We thought 'this is the place' the first time we visited Hangzhou," recalls Fuentes, citing the relatively smaller population, the relaxed way of living and the landscape that's ideal for weekend hiking.
Fuentes composes film underscores - music that provides emotional or atmospheric background to dialogue or narration - for both Chinese and Spanish films. Goyastua studies Chinese traditional painting at the China Academy of Art in Hangzhou, one of the leading art institutions in the country. Goyastua, who studies on a scholarship, also teaches Spanish.
Both speak Chinese.
They ride old-style bicycles with 28-inch tires and rent a simple apartment that also functions as a studio. They show up at all kinds of exhibitions and concerts; they are not part of the pub scene.
They especially like to visit China's ethnic minority areas, such as Yunnan Province and the Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region. They themselves come from the minority Basque region of northern Spain that borders France; they also speak Basque.
"We are kind of hippies living a life based on peace and love and experiencing diverse Chinese culture," says Goyastua, adding they don't have specific plans for the future, they just go with the flow.
Fuentes, who studied physics in university, has played the guitar since he was eight. He has learned to play guqin and guzheng, two ancient, zither-like Chinese instruments.
He and a local Chinese musician released an album "The Tree," containing original songs; they have performed in more than 10 Chinese cities.
The two musicians went their separate ways earlier this year but the album made Fuentes a notable figure in Spain. He says he's the first Basque musician to cooperate with a Chinese musician.
"Even today, I can hear the band's songs played on Spanish radio," says Fuentes, who has been interviewed by dozens of Spanish media.
His popularity brought him Spanish clients who wanted underscores composed, as well as Chinese customers.
Goyastua is the only Westerner in her master class in Chinese traditional painting; she is believed to be the first student from Basque Country.
Goyastua studied traditional Chinese painting in university and studied Chinese language in Basque Country. There she met Fuentes, who was studying Chinese language because of his interest in Chinese kung fu, music and culture.
At that time Fuentes was helping to compile a Spanish-Basque language dictionary and Goyastua just graduated from a local art university.
Goyastua, who studied comprehensive fine arts, also studied Chinese painting from a tutor and studied language until she reached HSK level 6, a high level making her eligible to enroll in master classes in the China Academy of Art.
She is now perfecting her technique painting mountains and waters, classic subjects in Chinese paintings. She notes that Western perspective is not a feature of Chinese painting.
"Philosophy is behind the painting and I have to experience more of the country to understand the philosophy," Goyastua says.
"To me, the most important thing in life is to have enough time to paint and in Hangzhou I have the time," she says. "That's another reason I love the city."
- About Us
- |
- Terms of Use
- |
-
RSS - |
- Privacy Policy
- |
- Contact Us
- |
- Shanghai Call Center: 962288
- |
- Tip-off hotline: 52920043
- 沪ICP证：沪ICP备05050403号-1
- |
- 互联网新闻信息服务许可证：31120180004
- |
- 网络视听许可证：0909346
- |
- 广播电视节目制作许可证：沪字第354号
- |
- 增值电信业务经营许可证：沪B2-20120012
Copyright © 1999- Shanghai Daily. All rights reserved.Preferably viewed with Internet Explorer 8 or newer browsers.
