Economic and cultural wonders never stop

From July 18 to 22, the eighth China National Commodity Fair’s turnover volume and agreements of intent amounted to 4.8 billion yuan ($784 million) in five days. The amount of projects signed reached 5 billion yuan.

The festivals have greatly driven the economy and tourism. They not only stimulate cultural prosperity, but also bring significant economic benefits.

A series of festivals have helped to enhance the name of tourism in the region. According to the tourism work conference this year, the total tourism revenue of the region reached 140.35 billion yuan, a 24.36 percent increase over the same period last year, and a higher growth rate compared with the national average.

Fine arts win global attention

A variety of festivals have fostered a group of artists and promoted the generation of some fine arts. Since the establishment of the China Inner Mongolia Prairie Cultural Festival, more than 40 categories consisting of over 500 pieces of fine arts have been launched in succession. The national dance drama Memory of Grassland, the song-and-dance duet Blooming and Withering of Flowers, and the stage play Tuoba Xianbei preformed and exhibited in previous grassland cultural festivals have been selected as national stage fine arts projects. Memory of Grassland and Tuoba Xianbei also received awards.

Recently, a lot of artistic groups in the region have presented performances overseas. They have received international awards successively. Meanwhile, foreign guests have been attracted to Inner Mongolia for sightseeing and cooperation for its distinctive culture. The grassland culture of Inner Mongolia has begun to attract the world’s attention.

As commented by Wu Lan, secretary of the region’s publicity department, the implementation of the “8337” development strategy for prairie culture creates a group of platforms or carriers. With the efforts made in recent years, a number of platforms have been established for culture inheritance, display and development. The platforms are represented by festivals, cultural projects, and relics and museum exhibitions. They play an important role in innovating and promoting prairie culture.

Rooted in the profound and well-established grassland culture, the culture and arts of the region have been gradually forming a series of fine art projects that are characterized by prairie style and rich national spirit and represent the core concepts of grassland culture.

Edited by Michael Thai