Everyday China
How can a bamboo basket become a sweater?
A designer born in Fujian reworked bamboo-weaving structures into contemporary clothing.
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Everyday China
Why was Chinese lacquer called “Coromandel”?
A trade name followed a shipping route, not necessarily the object’s place of making.
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Everyday China
Could a cabinet be sent away to get dressed?
Some furniture forms crossed seas so that Chinese workshops could finish them for European buyers.
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Everyday China
Why did Europeans try to copy lacquer?
East Asian lacquer was admired in Europe, but makers could not simply copy the material.
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Everyday China
Who imagined “Chinoiserie”?
A European fashion for China-inspired decoration tells us as much about Europe as about China.
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Everyday China
What does a museum label leave out?
A short label can tell you what an object is and still leave its journey unexplained.
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Everyday China
Who makes Lunar New Year in Britain?
A big public parade is only one way communities celebrate.
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Chinese food
Is a British Chinese takeaway Chinese?
A takeaway menu can tell a story about people making lives between places.
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History, Arts & Traditions
How Dong singers meet without a conductor
Grand Song uses trained voices, shared repertoire and layered parts; the absence of a baton does not mean an absence of preparation.
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Everyday China
Was “Chinese wallpaper” made for Chinese walls?
Some Chinese wallpaper was painted for European rooms. The name tells only half the story.
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Everyday China
Why is porcelain called “china”?
One ordinary English word still points to the place from which prized ceramics once travelled.
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Everyday China
Which British garden plants travelled from China?
The flowers outside a British front door might have a much longer travel story than the family inside.
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