In a remarkable fusion of tradition and innovation, the Chinese popular mobile game "Honor of Kings" has introduced a character molded into a puppeteer, drawing inspiration from the UNESCO Intangible Cultural Heritage of Chinese shadow puppetry. The shadow puppet gaming skin, launched by tech giant Tencent, pays homage to Huaxian shadow plays, a main branch of this ancient art form originating from Huaxian County in Shaanxi Province, northwest China.
Dang Feihua, an inheritor of the Huaxian shadow plays whose family participated in the design of the skin, emphasizes the importance of innovative transformation while respecting tradition. He believes that this approach is crucial for the survival and thriving of intangible cultural heritage in the modern era. The online gaming skin serves as an epitome of China's creative efforts to protect and promote intangible cultural heritage among the younger generation.
As China celebrates Cultural and Natural Heritage Day on Saturday, more than 12,000 related events are in full swing across the country, according to the Ministry of Culture and Tourism. These events, ranging from live performances to themed lectures and photography exhibitions, aim to enhance the visibility of intangible cultural practices while renewing protection efforts.
Born into a shadow puppet inheritor's family in 2000, Dang Feihua began exploring the integration of traditional artistry with modern elements in 2017. Inspired by a performance combining projection technology and a traditional Chinese shadow puppet show at the Venice Biennale, Dang and his team of young people in their 20s have designed bookmarks, earrings, and hanging decorations based on puppets. They also run related accounts on social media, recognizing the impact of shadow puppetry beyond the cultural field as it allows them to connect with their roots and strengthen a sense of identity.
This year marks the 20th anniversary of China's ratification of the Convention for the Safeguarding of the Intangible Cultural Heritage. By the end of 2023, China had over 100,000 intangible cultural heritage items of various levels, with 1,557 featuring on the national intangible cultural heritage list and 43 items added to the UNESCO Intangible Cultural Heritage List.
Innovative products showcasing the blending of intangible cultural heritage and ancient civilizations have also gained attention. At the Chongzhou culture and art center in Sichuan Province, a bamboo-weaving artwork combining Daoming bamboo strips weaving, a national intangible cultural heritage, and the civilization of the ancient Shu Kingdom has attracted over 700,000 visitors in just 4 months. The artwork's authors hope to employ different traditional handicrafts and iconic artifacts to create more innovative products in the future.
Lu Yingchuan, vice minister of culture and tourism, highlights China's efforts in the systematic protection of intangible cultural heritage. Workshops and demonstration bases have been mushrooming across the country, stimulating the innovative development of various intangible cultural heritage items. These trendy newly-developed products have breathed new life into the ancient heritage and wooed consumers, unleashing market demand.
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The stock is in an uptrend, trading above its 50-day and 200-day moving averages, indicating a positive market sentiment. The moving average convergence divergence (MACD) indicator shows a bullish crossover, suggesting a potential continuation of the uptrend. The stock has recently broken through a key resistance level at HK$330, which now acts as a strong support level. Fibonacci retracement levels suggest that the stock may face some resistance at HK$345, which coincides with the upper Bollinger Band. However, if the stock manages to break through this resistance, it could potentially target the next Fibonacci level at HK$355. Overall, the technical analysis suggests a positive outlook for Tencent, with the stock showing strong momentum and the potential for further gains in the near term.
