Quanzhou: A Creative Crossroads of Gastronomy and the Arts
Fusing Flavour with Creativity Across Disciplines
As a dynamic cultural hub on the historic Maritime Silk Road, Quanzhou has embraced a multidisciplinary approach to creativity. Through its innovative "Gastronomy Plus" concept and strategic international partnerships, the city has fostered powerful synergies between gastronomy and other UNESCO Creative Cities Network (UCCN) fields—ranging from crafts and folk arts to film, music, design, literature, architecture, and media arts.
Gastronomy Plus: Blending Culinary Heritage with Creativity
- Gastronomy + Crafts and Folk Arts
In 2023, Quanzhou hosted the 2nd Quanzhou International Design Competition and the World Ceramic Design Conference in Dehua, bringing together designers from 52 countries. The focus was on innovative tea culture, ceramic artistry, food utensil design, and packaging. This event celebrated the union of traditional crafts with modern gastronomic creativity, placing Dehua's world-renowned porcelain at the heart of global design dialogues.
- Gastronomy + Music
The 2024 "Quanzhou Nanyin & Gastronomy Feast" seamlessly fused local Nanyin music, Quanzhou cuisine, and folk customs in an immersive cultural experience. By integrating intangible cultural heritage (ICH) with everyday gastronomy, this vibrant festival enriched the city's creative tourism appeal and breathed new life into heritage traditions.
Multidisciplinary International Initiatives
- Maritime Silk Road International Documentary Film Festival
Launched in 2023, this cross-cultural initiative gathered 476 filmmakers, scholars, and creatives from 40 countries and regions, advancing global documentary storytelling. It underscores Quanzhou's role in promoting real-world narratives through film and culture.
- Media Arts: Cai Guo-Qiang's Firework Spectacles
Internationally renowned artist Cai Guo-Qiang collaborated with famed architect Frank Gehry to present multimedia exhibitions and firework performances—"Mirage" and "Red Sails"—in 2023 and 2024. These shows used traditional gunpowder art and innovative pyrotechnics to merge folklore, storytelling, and new media.
- Architecture + Literature: World Heritage "Art Plus" Initiative
At the 5th Maritime Silk Road International Art Festival, Quanzhou launched a platform where architecture, folk arts, and literature reinterpret and revitalise World Heritage Sites. This initiative inspires public appreciation, preservation, and tourism through artistic reinterpretation of historic sites.
Infrastructure and Citywide Creative Programming
Quanzhou's cultural infrastructure reflects its holistic creative vision, featuring:
Industrial Design Pavilion
Quanzhou Grand Theater
City Library & Community Libraries
Intangible Cultural Heritage Exhibition Hall
Science and Technology Museum
Workers' Cultural Palace
These facilities host key annual events and initiatives across the UCCN creative fields:
Architecture: "Traditional Architecture in New Vibe" (2023) explored sustainable practices in Minnan residential restoration.
Film: China Film Screenwriting Week (2023) spotlighted new narratives and cinematic innovation.
Literature: Maritime Silk Road Quanzhou Literary Week (2023) invited renowned authors to reflect on the city's literary legacy.
Media Arts: Dehua International Ceramic Culture Week (2024) fostered design-media collaboration.
Crafts and Folk Art: Digital Cultural Creation Week (2024) combined storytelling, music, and folk traditions through digital art platforms.
A Future Built on Creative Synergy
Quanzhou's creative strategies are more than cultural celebrations—they are engines of urban innovation, sustainability, and global dialogue. By linking its rich gastronomic heritage with arts, design, and digital media, the city continues to shape a future where tradition and creativity move forward hand in hand.
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2025-10-15
Quanzhou Hosts "Industry-Education Integration: Nourishing the Future" Forum to Explore New Paths for Culinary Education and Industry Development
On October 14th, the sixth edition of the "Zayton Food Talk" culinary salon took place at Huaguang Vocational College in Quanzhou.
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2025-09-18
"Dehua White Porcelain" Shines at the Michelin Culinary Gala
Recently, a remarkable gastronomic celebration titled "Stars of the East: A Feast of Porcelain Artistry" took place at Yue Haitang in Shanghai. The event brought together top Michelin-starred chefs from Beijing, Guangzhou, and Shanghai to present a culinary journey of Eastern aesthetics—served on the exquisite Dehua White Porcelain, a national geographical indication product from Fujian Province.
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2025-05-27
Micro-Drama A Bowl of Quanzhou Begins Filming
Bridging cultures through heritage and connecting hearts through cuisine — yesterday, the opening ceremony for the micro-drama A Bowl of Quanzhou was held at the Dongya Window Cultural and Creative Park in downtown Quanzhou, alongside the "Unlimited Freedom" film prop exhibition. The production has been selected as one of the 2025 Key Micro-Drama Projects on Intangible Cultural Heritage and Tourism by Fujian Province.
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2025-05-27
Tea Meets Trend: Quanzhou Hosts Fujian's First "Tea + Fashion" Crossover Showcase
In May, the hills of Anxi were steeped in the rich aroma of tea. Under the theme "Savour the Flavour of Heritage, Embrace Fashion's Pulse," the "World Heritage Quanzhou: Capital of Fashion" event series launched a striking debut at the Huaxiangyuan Tieguanyin Tea Estate. Marking Fujian's first "tea + fashion" crossover show, Huaxiangyuan Tea joined hands with fashion label Septwolves to spotlight an imaginative dialogue between Chinese tea culture and Guochao Cultural Revival style. Guests from China and abroad, including leaders from government, business, and creative industries, gathered to witness fashion's powerful fusion with heritage in a lush tea garden setting.
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2025-03-23
Quanzhou's Cultural Renaissance: Uniting Tea, Porcelain, and Fragrance
The Anxi-Yongchun-Dehua Industrial Integration Conference & 2024 Guochao Quanzhou Tea-Porcelain Industry Summit was held on March 22 in Dehua, marking a significant milestone in regional industrial collaboration.