On October 7th, the “Little Hands Shake Big Hands – Big City Small Craftsmen” 2024 Autumn Colors Exhibition opened its doors at the Wangfujing Zhiwei Port Starry Sky Art Museum in Foshan. This event is organized by the Foshan Museum and the Foshan Intangible Cultural Heritage Protection Center.
The Autumn Colors activities, running from May to October 2024, have included a series of workshops in various locations throughout Foshan. Venues such as the Tapo Community Committee in Zhumiao Street, Shiqiao Village, QiCong School, Sanlong Bay Primary School, and Minle Primary School in Xiqiao Town, Nanhai District have been home to these workshops. Focused on the theme of intangible cultural heritage, these sessions aimed to nurture its preservation and growth, culminating in the exhibition showcasing the results of these educational efforts.
The exhibit features an impressive collection of 77 works, consisting of 69 exceptional creations by the “Little Inheritors” and 8 masterpieces from seven renowned intangible cultural heritage practitioners. These works highlight a variety of traditional crafts, including Danliao Fish Lanterns, Lingnan Calligraphy, Foshan Paper Cutting, Foshan Wood Carving, Small Dragon Boats, and Foshan Woodblock New Year Paintings.
This year, the Autumn Colors theme centers on “Dragons.” Guided by intangible cultural heritage inheritors, children participated in creative projects that express their love for and respect toward traditional culture, incorporating themes rich with imagination and childlike wonder.
Beyond the static displays of crafts, the exhibition also shines a spotlight on live performances from four school-based projects: Guangdong music, Cantonese opera, Big Head Buddha, and Dragon Style Boxing. Students from Sanlong Bay Primary School showcased a martial arts performance titled “Dragon Boy,” while special education students from QiCong School, led by provincial inheritor Shen Xiaoli, performed the Cantonese opera pieces “Shuang Fei Yan” and “I Am from Foshan.” QiCong School’s students also delivered performances of Guangdong music, featuring pieces like “Qing Mei Zhu Ma” and “Peacock Opening Its Tail.” Additionally, students from Minle Primary School presented “Fu Bao Nao Chun,” based on the traditional Lingnan art of Big Head Buddha.
Looking ahead, some of the works and performances from this exhibition will be featured in the upcoming “Little Hands Shake Big Hands – Big City Small Craftsmen” parade set for November this year.
