CHINA. Downtown duty free retailer CNSC has opened an art gallery at its Sanya store in line with an increasing focus on promoting the links between travel retail and culture.
The retailer said that amid the construction of the Hainan Free Trade Port, Sanya’s cultural tourism and art sectors have made “breakthrough progress”.
The inauguration, hosted on Saturday 20 July, was attended by government officials and guests from the art, academic and business worlds.
The art gallery opened with an exhibition titled ‘The Bloodline of Art’. Co-organised the China Collectors Association and several art institutions, the exhibition features some 100 works by Rong Tie, Director of the Chinese Calligraphers Association and the Chinese Artists Association, and the President of the Seal Collection and Research Society of the China Collectors Association, and his protégé, the renowned calligrapher and artist Kuang Yiming.
“The master and his protégé are both titans of Chinese poetry, calligraphy, painting, and seal-making,” CNSC said. “Through a variety of traditional mediums, they express human emotions, celebrate natural beauty, seek truth of the world, and convey the essence of their subjects.”
Speaking at the opening ceremony, the China Collectors Association Chairman Liu Mingwei said that the hosting of such a high-calibre art exhibition on the island will encourage more tourists to take a greater interest in literature, art, artists and artistic events.
In turn this will drive enhanced integration and promotion of culture and tourism, Liu added.
Rong Tie said the exhibition aims to express the message of ‘respecting cultural tradition, cultural legacy, and cultural communication’. Art must serve society and the people, and should reach into all corners of the world, including the homes of ordinary people, he added.
“We should continue to explore the path of integrated development,” Rong said, describing the exhibition as a fine example of ‘duty-free + art’, a concept which further enriches Sanya’s cultural tourism allure.
CNSC Executive Deputy General Manager Lin Mingkuan said the company was actively broadening the appeal of duty-free shopping through initiatives and events related to art, health and wellbeing, sport and cultural tourism.
This latest initiative underlines CNSC’s desire to develop this “gallery inside the duty free store” into a space that integrates shopping, art appreciation and cultural exchange and ultimately elevates the appeal of the CNSC Sanya store, Lin added.
“We want to work with various sectors to introduce world-class innovations and further develop the concept of ‘duty-free + art’, break the existing boundaries between art and business, and create a gallery that represents global culture and international vision.”
“Looking into the future, we plan to create more innovative retail scenarios, particularly ones that combine duty free shopping with culture and sports. We will continuously provide and optimise various retail experiences and contribute to the development of Hainan’s duty free sector.” ✈
