Shiliuyun-Xinjiang Daily (Reporter Liu Mengmeng) news: Strolling through the cultural and creative base on the first floor of Turpan Museum in Turpan City, northwest China’s Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region, a wide range of cultural and creative products including hand-painted wallets, naan-patterned cushions, gourd carvings and ethnic musical instrument handicrafts attract many tourists.

Photo shows the cultural and creative base of Turpan Museum in Turpan City, northwest China’s Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region. (Photo provided by Turpan Museum)

Thousands of cultural and creative products displayed here are inspired by local folklore and cultural relics excavated from Turpan. Among them, the most eye-catching series are those themed on the ancient city of Gaochang and the image of the Gongming Bird (a bird with two heads in Buddhist legend) on the brocade unearthed from the ancient tomb complex in Astana.

There are two simple and charming dolls themed on the King and Queen of the ancient city of Gaochang, greeting the tourists at their doorsteps. Notebooks, seals, hand-painted books, phone cases, postcards and other tourist souvenirs based on the image of the King are readily available. "Seeing these dolls after listening to the docents talking about the history of the ancient city of Gaochang, I feel that history and culture are more vivid now, and I can take my favorite historical products home..." said Sun Wen, a tourist from Zhejiang Province.

Photo shows two dolls, “Xiao Zhi” and “Xiao Hui”, themed on the King and Queen of the ancient city of Gaochang in the cultural and creative base of Turpan Museum in Turpan City, northwest China’s Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region. (Photo provided by Turpan Museum)

Lu Bingjian, the general manager of Xinjiang Mohuying Culture and Media Company, producing a series of cultural and creative products themed on the ancient city of Gaochang, introduced that the images of Gaochang figures are based on mural paintings discovered from the twentieth cave of Bezeklik Thousand Buddha Caves, which are murals of Gaochang Huihu aristocracies. The design team of the company named the male doll "Xiao Zhi" and the female one "Xiao Hui". "In addition to 'Xiao Zhi and Xiao Hui', we have also created other series of more than 400 products including 'Tang Xiaoju', 'Five Stars Rise in the East, Benefitting China', 'Grassland Stone Man', 'Time Mystery Box' and 'Xinjiang Folklore'. Xinjiang has a unique geographical environment and rich cultural resources, so as long as we put our heart and soul into research and development, we will definitely be able to create more cultural and creative products that tell the story and spread the voice of China's Xinjiang."

This year, as a highlight, some products of the cultural and creative base are displayed in the Xinjiang Exhibition Area of the 19th China (Shenzhen) International Cultural Industries Fair. "The images of the valiant King of the ancient city of Gaochang and his beautiful queen, the painted horse-riding figurines of the Tang Dynasty unearthed from the Astana tomb complex, and the clay figurines of noblewomen on horseback are made into naive little dolls. The image of the Gongming Bird from the brocade unearthed in Astana tomb complex is cleverly printed on chopsticks and silk scarves, which are very popular among tourists." Halida, a staff member of the Turpan Museum, said that in order to better present the story of Turpan, they have used cultural elements from the Silk Road arts and Turpan relics and supplemented them with modern art concepts to create a variety of practical products.

Photo shows some cultural products on display in the cultural and creative base of Turpan Museum in Turpan City, northwest China’s Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region. (Photo provided by Turpan Museum)

At present, the cultural and creative base has attracted nine cultural and creative enterprises and individual studios inside and outside Xinjiang to settle down, and has developed 160 types of cultural and creative products in more than 40 categories such as wood carvings, branding paintings, woven carpets and earthenware products. "The designing concept for these cultural and creative products are from Silk Road arts and Turpan relics, and with the supplement of modern artistic skills, a variety of products with both practical values and cultural connotations that are popular among tourists were created. Deng Yonghong, deputy curator of the Turpan Museum, said, "We hope that these cultural and creative products can not only present the long-lasting culture of Turpan, but also can meet people’s daily needs, and thus give beauty to people's lives."

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