Decorative stove artwork attracts a growing number of 【小题1】 (admire), who enjoy the memories it evokes, Yang Feiyue reports. The distinctive art form in Jiaxing 【小题2】 (list) as a national intangible cultural heritage in 2011.

An old wooden stove, 【小题3】 (bear) rich vivid images, took center stage at a village Spring Festival gala in Jiaxing, Zhejiang province, in early February. The images feature historical and legendary figures, fairy tales, animals and flowers, all of 【小题4】 are depicted in bright colors and have a way of claiming attention from viewers.

It was once common for farmhouses, especially those along the lower reaches of the Yangtze River, 【小题5】 (have) a zaotou that was painted with floral (绘有花的) figures. Locals 【小题6】 (burn) firewood and straw in it to cook before gas burners or microwave ovens were available. “Historical evidence shows the art has 【小题7】 history of at least 300 years,” says Zhao from Haiyan’s Tongyuan town.

Most of those engaged 【小题8】 zaotou painting were bricklayers (砌砖工) in rural areas where they were often hired by villagers to build a mud stove in 【小题9】 (they) new home. Tools used to produce such art included a selection of brushes, rulers, and paint. As people’s aesthetic appreciation grew, watercolors were applied, mostly red, yellow and blue. “But no matter what material is used, the stove painting is always 【小题10】 (symbol) and harbors good wishes for the owners,” Zhao says.

Many people agree that going to museums 【小题1】 (be) a good way of learning about ancient treasures. However, others may find it boring to spend hours there. Therefore, how to make museums and their lifeless collections more attractive is a tough question worth 【小题2】 (attach) importance to. Luckily, National Treasure, a TV program 【小题3】 began to air on Dec. 3, 2017, throws light 【小题4】 ways to inspire interest in museums and their collections.

Aiming to make ancient relics to come alive, the program presents treasures through different artistic methods including lots of dramatic 【小题5】 (perform) and storytelling, which explain the history behind each cultural relic 【小题6】 (complete), so that audiences can not only understand how to appreciate the beauty of cultural relics, but also know the civilization 【小题7】 the spirit of Chinese culture. In fact, such programs that promote traditional ancient relics 【小题8】 (become) popular in recent years. For example, a 2016 documentary featuring the Forbidden City’s cultural relics and their restorers, urged lots of college students 【小题9】 (apply) to work as volunteers there. It is universally accepted that National Treasure has been 【小题10】 (success) in encouraging more people to visit museums by touching their hearts.

Almost everything inspired the ancestors of Chinese to create diverse decorative patterns on objects ranging from daily life needs to pure artworks. They carried good and lucky 【小题1】(mean) and were possessed of high value, driving numerous people to protect them. However, the huge number of these decorations increases the difficulty of conservation efforts. Fortunately, many Chinese artists have been considering various ways to pass down this culture 【小题2】 the next generation. Huang Qingsui, 【小题3】 Zhuang ethnic art designer, numbers among these artists. He started collecting decorative patterns from rural areas and recorded them in an online database in 2013 that now 【小题4】(contain) more than 20,000 traditional decorations.

Managing the database consists of three steps. The first is collecting these traditional patterns through various channels, including investigating and visiting places where these decorations may have been passed down or 【小题5】(contact) museums and experts. After tracking down a decorative pattern, Huang and his team fake photos and 【小题6】(digital) reproduce the patterns on computer. During the process, they often need to restore damaged patterns, especially 【小题7】 it comes to decorative patterns on clothing because they tend to be faded or misshapen. The last step involves collecting the data and checking and correcting any mistakes 【小题8】 may have occurred during the earlier steps.

The beauty 【小题9】(hold) in traditional patterns has inspired Chinese designers to find 【小题10】(they) own style and emotional bonds instead of just caring about function and form when designing their works.