pub:Zhejiang Library 
time:2018/06/04 
count:94
“June 1” is International Children’s Day.
Wang Yifang, a librarian in Zhejiang museum of literature and history, as well as writer and painter, drew fans at the scene with children who loved the art of calligraphy and painting together.
Fans have lasted for more than three thousand years with varieties of Pu fan, paper fan, folding fan, silk fan, etc. Before the emergence of electric fans and air conditioners, it used to be a tool for parents, grandparents to listen to stories and drive away mosquitoes when they were young. There was a nifty nursery rhyme that “Fans can bring a cool only used in summer, not in winter. If someone asked me to borrow it, then wait until the twelfth lunar month in winter.”, which indicated the importance of fans in the summer.
Today, as the practicability of fans is disappearing, the traditional culture attached to fans is fading away as well. In order to give the fan new energy and activate the old traditional art of traditional Chinese painting, Wang Yifang exhibited painting and calligraphy art on fans and painted the flowers and birds, goldfish, chicken and ducks, etc. on fans, which was painted on Xuan paper in the past. In addition, to arouse the childhood memory of young parents and elderly grandparents, she also painted animation image on small fans including the Peppa Pig the kids like at present, Snoopy the kids liked in the past, and the image of the Monkey King a long time ago. Over 50 fans were painted in advance and distributed to children who spend the International Children’s Day in Zhejiang library. Event organizers warmly instructed children who loved painting and calligraphy to interact with Grandma Wang and draw a fan for themselves to take it home as a special commemoration on the International Children’s Day of 2018. At present, fans are not popular, but Chinese painting art allows fans to recreate artistic life.
Wang Yifang was asked about the reason to attend such activity. She said that it was meaningful to provide public service and contribute a little bit for the traditional art before too old.
