Entering the Jiangnan Artifacts Hall on the 4th floor of the East Hall of the Shanghai Museum, the words on the exhibition wall - "Jiangnan is a glorious place for human beings to live poetically, and Jiangnan craftsmanship is a solid foundation for beautiful and poetic life" vividly illustrate the characteristics of Jiangnan culture. On December 27, the Shanghai Museum and the Shanghai Federation of Social Sciences held the "Poetic Heart and Aesthetics" Yangtze River Delta Jiangnan Culture Seminar in the East Hall of the Shanghai Museum, and the third season of the "Jiangnan Culture Lecture Hall" was officially launched.

Since its opening in 2020, the "Jiangnan Culture Lecture Hall" has attracted the active participation of experts, scholars and audiences. So far, two seasons and a total of 20 lectures have been held, exploring the characteristics of Jiangnan culture from multiple perspectives such as politics, economy, society, science and technology, literature, and art. It not only deeply explores the strategic value of Jiangnan culture through solid academic research, but also injects new contemporary connotations into traditional culture through wonderful and vivid interpretations. This project makes the Shanghai Museum an implementation unit of the key project of the Shanghai Municipal Party Committee Propaganda Department to promote the "Shanghai Culture" brand.

The lobby of the Calligraphy Museum in the East Building of the Shanghai Museum

The third season of Jiangnan Culture Lecture Hall kicks off

"The 'Jiangnan Culture Lecture Hall' has brought together social science experts and cultural resources through innovative combinations, and has widely popularized the development concept of Jiangnan culture. It has had a positive impact in the Yangtze River Delta and formed a good brand effect. This is the reason and motivation for us to continue to launch the third season of the 'Jiangnan Culture Lecture Hall' series of activities." Ren Xiaowen, member of the Party Leadership Group and full-time vice chairman of the Shanghai Federation of Social Sciences, said at the launch ceremony.

Shanghai Museum East Building Jiangnan Creation Museum

As a major collection center of ancient Chinese art, Shanghai Museum has long been committed to promoting the inheritance and innovation of Jiangnan culture. During the construction of the East Building of Shanghai Museum, the Jiangnan Art Museum and roof garden were carefully built. Through the systematic display of traditional Jiangnan handicrafts and related Jiangnan theme exhibitions such as "Jiangnan Stone Offerings and Shanghai Bonsai", the unique artistic conception and humanistic spirit of Jiangnan culture are presented.

"In terms of Jiangnan culture construction, the Shanghai Museum attaches importance to and promotes the construction of the Jiangnan Creations Exhibition Hall, the 'Landscape Jiangnan' digital exhibition hall, Archaeological Shanghai, the Shanghai Painting and Calligraphy Exhibition Hall and the Jiangnan Garden on the roof of the East Hall. It hosts exhibition projects that reflect the Jiangnan and Shanghai culture, making Shanghai's 'cultural brand' a three-dimensional 'real painting' in the Shanghai Museum." said Tang Shifen, Secretary of the Party Committee of the Shanghai Museum.

"Poetic Heart and Aesthetics" Yangtze River Delta Jiangnan Culture Seminar

Focusing on the theme of "Jiangnan Culture", the seminar invited 11 experts in social sciences and cultural and museum research in the Yangtze River Delta Jiangnan culture to give keynote speeches and exchange and discuss. Dai Angang, professor of the Department of History at Fudan University, told the story of the Chinese Jiangnan region with the world through the exchange and mutual learning of civilizations. He believes that there is a lot to be done from the perspective of "the exchange and mutual learning of civilizations with the world through the Chinese Jiangnan region". The research of the academic community should not be limited by the constraints of disciplinary divisions, but should open up the connection between ancient and modern China and the West. He proposed that the research could be conducted from multiple perspectives, including global history, material cultural history, the Maritime Silk Road, the history of the exchange and mutual learning of civilizations, and the history of Jiangnan. In fact, whether it is the research of global history or the history of Jiangnan, we have top experts at the forefront of academia engaged in research in this field. At present, the research on the history of Jiangnan has become a global discipline. The "Multi-perspective View of the Economic History of Jiangnan" proposed by the well-known scholar Mr. Li Bochong examines the economy of Jiangnan in the process of global economic development and re-evaluates the status of Jiangnan in the world pattern.

In addition to the historical perspective, Zhuang Ruojiang, a professor at the School of Humanities of Jiangnan University, deeply analyzed the unique cultural characteristics of Jiangnan - "poetic nature". She believes that "this poetic quality is not only due to the objective conditions such as the superior geographical location, environment, and climate of Jiangnan, but also depends on the comprehensive development level and population structure of the Jiangnan region. It was formed in the Southern Song Dynasty after the three major migrations of the Jin Dynasty to the south, the Anshi Rebellion, and the Jingkang Rebellion. The most prominent symbol is the emergence of gardens."

Drinking tea and wine, exchanging poems, calligraphy and painting, playing the zither and playing chess... Garden life embodies the "poetic" qualities of Jiangnan culture. It also reflects the Jiangnan people's understanding of poetic living to the greatest extent, and integrates it into the garden to create the "poetry and distance" in their hearts.

Even so, the people of Jiangnan do not only pursue "poetry and distant places" or "aim high and far". On the contrary, from a historical perspective, almost all national industries and commerce in the Westernization Movement started in Shanghai, reflecting the openness of the people of Jiangnan in terms of ideas and vision. Whether it is Gu Yanwu's "Every man has his share of responsibility for the rise and fall of the country" or Fan Zhongyan's "Be the first to worry about the worries of the world, and the last to enjoy the happiness of the world", these political sayings that have had a profound impact on our nation were all proposed by the people of Jiangnan, reflecting pragmatism and responsibility. "It can be said that Jiangnan culture has handled the relationship between 'pragmatic management' and 'poetic pursuit' very well, being both proactive and trying to enjoy the fun and beauty of life as much as possible," said Zhuang Ruojiang.

Taihu West Mountain The Paper

Jiangnan Folk House

Folk music performance in the Jiangnan Art Museum of the Shanghai Museum

The Jiangnan Creation Hall and the Shanghai Painting and Calligraphy Exhibition Hall, which are carefully built in the East Hall of the Shanghai Museum, have incorporated the latest academic achievements in the study of Jiangnan culture. Ling Lizhong, director of the Painting and Calligraphy Research Department and research curator of the Shanghai Museum, interpreted why Jiangnan and why Shanghai School, using the "Shanghai Painting and Calligraphy Hall" of the East Hall of the Shanghai Museum as a clue. Ling Lizhong said that Shanghai school culture was nurtured on the basis of Jiangnan culture and the intersection of Chinese and Western cultures, and red culture grew out of it. Ordinary people and even many leaders believe that Shanghai does not have many cultural relics, and many other provinces and cities are rich in cultural relics dug out with a shovel. However, the research on Shanghai's history and culture is mainly based on documents and lacks the support of cultural relics, so it is not convincing enough. "There is actually a misunderstanding here," Ling Lizhong believes, "Cultural relics are divided into unearthed cultural relics and handed down cultural relics. The 2000 years of calligraphy and painting cultural relics in Shanghai are precisely handed down cultural relics, so we are not a shovel, we are a cabinet by a cabinet, which also belongs to calligraphy and painting archaeology."

"Through the review of Shanghai's calligraphy and painting over the past thousand years, I have summarized 16 words from it: profound heritage, pure artistic tradition, inclusiveness, and courage to innovate. Being open and inclusive to Shanghai's urban spirit will help us understand the cultural heritage of this big city," said Ling Lizhong.

Ancient Paintings Exhibition Hall, East Building, Shanghai Museum

Shanghai Museum Jiangnan Creation Museum

Shi Yuan, director of the Craft Research Department and research curator of the Shanghai Museum, explained how to explore the cultural character of Jiangnan artifacts through integration and commonality. He believes that communication and integration are the norm in the field of Jiangnan artifacts, and have been so for thousands of years. We cannot look at a specific craft category or a small regional cultural form in Jiangnan in isolation and static, but should put it in the context of communication and integration. Jiangnan artifacts are born out of an objective need in the global economic connection, and can only be so prosperous and developed. From a perspective beyond regional culture, we can re-examine, sort out and discover the highlights and the best parts of Jiangnan culture.

Entering the Jiangnan Crafts Museum on the 4th floor of the Shanghai Museum's East Building, the words on the exhibition wall - "Jiangnan is a glorious place for human beings to live poetically, and Jiangnan crafts are the solid foundation for supporting beauty and poetic life" seem to be a vivid footnote to the characteristics of Jiangnan culture.