HANGZHOU, Nov. 18, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- On November 18, the Cai Zhizhong Museum of Art (Cai Zhizhong Museum of Art), located in the Caixi National Wetland Park, opened its doors to the public, marking the official unveiling of a new landmark that blends natural light with the art of⼈⽂.

A New Landmark for My Art and Fiction in Hangzhou's Lake District, Cai Zhizhong Art Museum Opens in Grand Style

"Half of Water Margin is in Hangzhou, and three parts are in Xiaoxi". In 2020, the Water Margin Museum in Xi'an came into being against the background of the deep-rooted relationship between the book and Hangzhou and the Xi'an River Wetland. Today, the DIC is building the Cai Zhizhong Museum of Art in the Xiwu Xi Wetland to, on the one hand, facilitate the development of a high-tech and innovative city with a high degree of vitality and quality, and to provide a richer range of public cultural services and tourism and leisure experiences for visitors to the city, and on the other hand, continue to do a good job in excavating, displaying and disseminating the traditional literature in the wetland, and to capitalize on Cai Zhizhong's influence to promote the dissemination of Water Margin Manga both at home and abroad.

Cai Zhizhong has been living in the wetland for 15 years and has deep feelings for the wetland, which he regards as his second hometown. In recent years, many of his cartoons are based on Hangzhou, and they are connected to the wetland. By chance, Cai Zhizhong realized that this is the place where "ancient polygonal puddles are buried", and felt that "there is great beauty in heaven and earth without a single language", so he drew frantically for fifteen days, without rest, and the 108 generals of the Water Margin appeared in vivid images. Cai Zhizhong's love for Hangzhou's Xi Xi River flowed through his brushwork and led to the creation of the Xi River Cai Zhizhong Museum of Art.

A New Landmark of Mystical Art in Hangzhou's Lake District, the Cai Zhizhong Museum of Art Opens in Grand Style

The Cai Zhizhong Museum of Fine Arts in Xi'an has a total floor area of approximately 3,302 square meters. The museum was built with the core idea of "Paint to the Tao, integrate traditional literature and philosophy into spatial artistic expression" in mind, and has carefully created three unique exhibition halls, namely, the Trace Hall, the Handwriting Hall, and the Hall of Care, which house more than 400 of Cai Zhizhong's best cartooning works from his illustrious creative career.

Stepping into the Cai Chih-Chung Museum of Art in Xixi, a dreamlike journey of art begins. At the entrance stands a sculpture of Wu Sung fighting the enemy, based on Cai's cartoon "One Hundred Generals of the Water Margin," which he drew in his youth. It is not only a symbol of the museum's welcoming presence, but also a symbol of Cai's cartooning connection to the water margin, and to the River Brook. Stepping into the main hall, the exhibition, under the theme of "Constant Progress," unfolds like the scroll of Tsai Chih-chung's unending cartooning vitality, demonstrating his boundless creative energy and creativity - the "Traces" room displays Tsai Chih-chung's legendary human life, which took him from Changhua to Taipei, from Japan to Hangzhou, leaving behind bits and pieces of his cartooning. The Hall of Strokes, as a place dedicated to Tsai's cartoons in the fields of Chinese studies and science, presents his works to the audience in a centralized manner, allowing them to gain a more comprehensive understanding of his creative accomplishments; the Hall of Strokes analyzes the origins of Tsai's creativity and the history of Xi Xi, especially his cartooning of the story of "Water Margin," and opens up a window to Tsai's world of creativity, allowing them to gain a deeper appreciation of this master cartoonist's work. It allowed the audience to appreciate the artistic power and creative spirit of this master of cartooning more deeply. On the second floor, there are a hundred classrooms and a calligraphy and painting classroom. In addition, the museum also has supporting facilities such as a file store, a book bar and a coffee bar, aiming to provide visitors with a richer and more diversified experience of literature.

A New Landmark of Mystical Art in Hangzhou's Lake District, Cai Zhizhong Art Museum Opens in Grand Style

The theme of the opening ceremony was "Cai Zhizhong Art Museum in Water Margin". In addition to the presence of Mr. Cai Zhizhong's⽣, the organizers also invited two other celebrities with ties to the Xi Xi Wetland - the famous writer Mr. Jia Ji and the famous director Mr. Zhang Jizhong - to conduct interviews to initiate a meeting of minds and art. The three leaders shared their unique connections with Hangzhou and the city, their inspirations and stories of creativity, and their plans and expectations for the future.

With the completion of the Cai Zhizhong Museum of Art, it will not only become a bright new name for the arts and culture in the Lake District, but will also enrich the content of the tourism industry in Hangzhou and the whole of Zhejiang Province, as well as helping to facilitate the development of the local cultural industry. In the future, the museum plans to hold various art exhibitions, lectures, seminars, and science studies on a regular basis, and strive to become an important port for domestic and international exchange of files.

Opening Hours: 9:00-17:00 on every second day of the week through Sunday (closed on Mondays, open on legal holidays and postponed to the first day thereafter)

Ticket Information: Free admission

Address: No. 10, Quxiuan Block 2, 508 Tianyu Road, Hangzhou, Zhejiang Province, China

Transportation: Metro Line 3, Huawu Station, Exit A, walk north 200 meters; for self-driving vehicles, enter the north end of the Xiwetland on Second Tianyue Road to the Xiwetland Gaozhuangchangchang parking lot.