On May 24,pupils from the Olympic Garden Experimental Primary School affiliated toBeijing Normal University were watching photos in the National Art ExhibitionHall of Beijing Confucian Temple and the Imperial College Museum.
Onthe afternoon of May 21, “Historic Buildings– Beidaihe Old Villa PhotoExhibition”, hosted by Qinhuangdao Culture, Radio, Television, Press andPublication(Copyright) Bureau and Qinhuangdao Tourism Administration, waslaunched in the National Art Exhibition Hall of the Confucian Temple of Beijingand the Imperial College Museum.
On May 24, avisitor was watching photos in the National Art Exhibition Hall of BeijingConfucian Temple and the Imperial College Museum.
Atotal number of 40 photos of old villas in Beidaihe were exhibited in thisexhibition, including the villas of many Chinese and foreign celebrities in theRepublic of China era such as Zhang Xueliang, Gu Weijun, Xu Shizhang, and vonHanneken from Germany, ClementBourgery from France, and John D.Hayes from America.
On May 24, avisitor was watching photos in the National Art Exhibition Hall of BeijingConfucian Temple and the Imperial College Museum.
In1898,the Chinese Qing government announced to open Beidaihe as a summer resort whereboth Chinese and foreign personages were permitted to live. After theannouncement, famous people from both China and foreign countries, richmerchants, foreign diplomats in China and foreign missionaries streamed in andpurchased land to build their houses and villas in the Beidaihe seaside. It isknown that during 1893 and 1948,719 villas were built by personages from Chinaand 19 foreign countries including America, Britain, France, Germany, Russia,Italy, Japan, Greece, Austria and Norway. These villas were located from theLianfeng Mountain to the Pigeon Nest Park, covering a coastal area of 18 squarekilometers. With distinct architectural styles, they symbolize a completecollection of world architectural art, thus called “architectural complex ofthe world”. This modern villa complex was listed by the State Council among the6th batch of key national heritage sites on May 25, 2006.
On May 24, avisitor was watching photos in the National Art Exhibition Hall of BeijingConfucian Temple and the Imperial College Museum.
Architecturallyspeaking, these villas combine western style and local style. For nearly everyvilla, there is a spacious verandah. Veranda ranges from one to four fordifferent villas. For every villa, there is an attic and a basement, which dealperfectly with humid seaside conditions. These villas are mainly built with localgranite and decorated with rough stone walls, single or double pitched roofs,and red-paint and iron-tile covers. This building style makes them lookingsimple and elegant. Their style is concluded as “red roof, plain wall, highplatform, and bright verandah” in the academic circle of Chinese architecture.
On May 24, avisitor was watching photos in the National Art Exhibition Hall of BeijingConfucian Temple and the Imperial College Museum.
The year 2018marks the 120th anniversary of both the port opening of Qinhuangdao and thedevelopmental construction of the Beidaihe district. As one of a series ofactivities organized by the government of Qinhuangdao, this exhibition aims atan-in-depth publicity and promotion of its history and culture. It is also aninitiative of Qinhuangdao to actively integrate itself into Beijing andTianjin.
On May 24, avisitor was watching photos in the National Art Exhibition Hall of BeijingConfucian Temple and the Imperial College Museum.
Allof the photos on exhibition were created by the artist Shang Chun, who was bornand is living and working in Beidaihe. He is a member of the PhotojournalistSociety of China and a contracted photographer for the Xinhua News Agency. Hehas many photo collections published such as Strolling along the Beach in Beidaihe and Beidaihe in the Eyes of Russians, and many books published such as Beidaihe Old Villas and In Love with Beidaihe.
Thisexhibition will last until May 30.
Part of thephotos on exhibition
Translated byHou Yu from Yanshan University