On 28 May, as part of the Advanced Chinese Language course, a cultural visit was organised to the Comprehensive Collection of Ancient Chinese Paintings exhibition, where international postgraduate students explored masterpieces spanning more than a thousand years of Chinese painting and experienced the beauty of traditional Chinese art.

The Advanced Chinese Language course focuses on enhancing students’ proficiency in academic Chinese and cultural practice. Guided by the concept of ‘cultural immersion’, this event enables international students to view ancient paintings dating back a thousand years up close, deepening their understanding of traditional Chinese culture. The exhibition hall is renowned for its dual narrative approach of ‘physical artefacts combined with digital technology’, integrating the static display of traditional Chinese paintings with dynamic digital projections. The exhibition currently features high-definition reproductions of paintings from the Song Dynasty (including the Five Dynasties, Liao and Jin periods) as well as contemporary works unearthed from the Dunhuang Cave Library and Heishui City. Among these are high-definition recreations of national treasures such as A Thousand Li of Rivers and Mountains, The Auspicious Cranes and Travellers Among Mountains and Streams.

By integrating academic Chinese learning with cultural experiences, the activity not only enhanced students' intercultural communication skills but also deepened their appreciation of the artistic charm and cultural significance of classical Chinese painting. As an important practical component of the course, the visit demonstrated the enduring vitality of traditional Chinese culture in a cross-cultural context. Building on their observations and reflections, students will complete course assignments inspired by the visit, thereby further strengthening their academic Chinese proficiency and critical thinking skills.

In the future, the Advanced Chinese Language course will take this as its starting point and continue to explore the integration of language teaching and cultural practice, enabling more international students to develop into cross-cultural talents with a truly global perspective whilst immersed in Chinese culture.

Text&photo: Teaching Centre