Category — China

Interested in listening to a selection of historical and contemporary music from China? 14 tracks have a set to sample and buy : Beyond the forbidden city…

From 14tracks.com

The country has a musical tradition as diverse and sprawling as its numerous ethnic groups, and it would be virtually impossible for us to offer anything more than a fleeting glimpse at its tremendous musical legacy, but it has been an amazing experience picking these tracks from just a handful of its seemingly endless regional and historical varieties, including a couple of contemporary pieces made outside the country itself.

These 14 Tracks hopefully capture the mysterious and impenetrable essence of a culture that most of us know very little about, hidden somewhere beyond the forbidden city…

Check 14 tracks: Beyond the forbidden city

Thanks Tom!

Technorati Tags: Beyond the forbidden city, China, Chinese music, contemporary music, historical music, music

The new and colourful ChinaDoll club incorporates work from some of China’s best contemporary artists.

Founded by award-winning Chinese actress/producer Ai Wan and club designer Wu Ying, ChinaDoll was conceived and designed via their studio E.P.I.C. Design where the original club first opened in Beijing at the end of 2006.

The work of six contemporary chinese artists is integrated into the interior, custom made installations and furniture, depicting for example sexy female forms, Chinese dolls or modern Chinese love lives.

A glossy backdrop of lightboxes adorned with abstracted fashion photography references the brush strokes and vivid colours of chinese water colours.

When illuminated, it creates an electric atmosphere making ChinaDoll a lolly shop for the eyes and an amusement park for the senses.

By Jeanne Tan for The Coolhunter

Technorati Tags: art, Beijing, China, ChinaDoll club, entertainment, interiors, E.P.I.C. Design

Email magazine ArtKrush has an Art in Shanghai special, with the cover image (below) taken from a photograph of Chinese superstar Zhan Wang’s 2006-2008 installation Garden Utopia.

Read more about Art in Shanghai

Technorati Tags: art, Art in Shanghai, Garden Utopia, Shanghai, Zhan Wang

A man works at the Shanghai World Financial Center, which is under construction, on August 26, 2008.

The 101-story, 492-meter-tall building will be opened to the public on August 30.

Via Activate.us

Technorati Tags: China, photography, Shanghai World Financial Center

NYC-based photographer Dan Eckstein’s recent project entitled Picture China, comes in a blog format and offers a rich, authentic look into China, the culture and way of life.

From his site:

Picture China is a photographic journey through contemporary China. From the teeming metropolises of the east coast to the rural villages of the interior to the lofty Tibetan plateau, New York City based photographer Dan Eckstein traveled 10,000km over the course of eight weeks to document this rapidly changing country. The result is a unique portrait of life in modern China and the issues that its people face.

Check out PictureChina.net

Via CoolHunting

Technorati Tags: China, Dan Eckstein, photography, Picture China

A fishing boat near Hainan Sanya in China captured what is likely to be one of the largest stingrays ever caught.

Casting nets, the fishermen caught the 3,300 lbs Stingray, which took about 3 hours to pull back into the boat. The net was strong enough to hold the huge fish, but the struggle cause the stingray to die.

The fishermen tied the stingray to the back of the boat and dragged it back to their dock. It remained in perfect condition even though it was dead for many hours.

The fisherman was able to sell the stingray for around $1,500 since they have a high commercial value.

Stingray’s liver can be made into fish oil, the bones and intestines are used in medical fish powder, and the meat is a delicacy in most restaurants.

The stingray measured about 16 1/2 foot in width.

Via WeirdAsiaNews

Technorati Tags: China, Stingray

Lost At E Minor post about New York-based artist Xiaoqing Ding’s work which draws from traditional Sung Dynasty scroll paintings as well as from more recent forms.

Her figures looking as much like the cherubic babies in festive Chinese New Year art (known as Nian Hua) as they do the sultry flappers in cigarette ads in 1930s Shanghai.

Her images have an ethereal and slyly erotic quality, referencing Chinese mythology, pre-revolution film, and subtly personal narratives.

Via LostAtEMinor

Technorati Tags: art, cherubic babies, China, New York, Nian Hua, Sung Dynasty scroll paintings, Xiaoqing Ding

BusinessWeek ran an article on China’s most marketable Olympic stars. Check out the names if you want to familiarise yourself with these people.

You’ll recognise some of them, although Yao Ming doesn’t look too happy for some reason.

Not sure how marketable China’s sporting star Liu Xiang is now after pulling out of the 110m hurdles, though.

China’s Most Marketable Olympic Stars

Technorati Tags: Beijing, China, Chinas Olympic stars, Olympics, Liu Xiang, sports, Yao Ming