Art for One Billion People and More

There is no doubt that today China is one of the big global players. A country whose history reaches back more than 4,000 years and which today has the world’s biggest population impresses in every possible way. But besides the ongoing news about the economic strength of the long-awakened dragon it is Chinese culture especially that is fascinating the rest of the world.

In this regard it is not only the country’s long history, its traditions and achievements of an era long ago – everyone has heard about the many myths and legends which entwine the Forbidden City and the Great Wall, symbols for the grandeur of imperial China. But it is also China’s way into the 21^st century that shows how much this country has developed in recent years.

In the last two decades the image that we have developed of China has also been influenced by Chinese cinema. For a lot of people it has become one of the most common ways to get an idea of traditional and modern Chinese life. Since the huge success of the martial arts movie Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon at the Oscars in 2001, Chinese films have been big box-office hits in Europe and the US. They compete regularly at the Cannes International Film Festival or at the Berlin International Film Festival where only recently Black Coal, Thin Ice won the Golden Bear.

In the past the Chinese have developed their very own style in the fine arts, and today again they are creating masterpieces of artistic genius.

Find out more about China in our title, Chinese Art.