Jing Daily’s Top Posts For The Week#
In case you missed them the first time around, here are some of Jing Daily’s top posts for the week of April 26-30:
China’s First “Soul-Rich List” Celebrates Positive Contributions Over Cash
While Chinese names have become fixtures on Forbes and Hurun Report “rich lists,” a new list coming out of China this week takes a somewhat different approach at measuring wealth. The first-ever “Soul-Rich List” (which can also be translated as “Spiritually Rich List”), published by Beijing’s China Social Sciences Press, measures “wealth of compassion” and selflessness rather than net worth, although — incidentally — list-makers like billionaire Geely boss Li Shufu and philanthropist Chen Guangbiao are super-rich by any standard.
Topping the “Soul-Rich List,” ahead of high-profile figures like author and blogger Han Han and former Caixin (and current Century Weekly) editor Hu Shuli is Yuan Longping, famous in China as the “father of hybrid rice.” The scientific achievements of Yuan, who began experimenting with hybrid rice in the 1960s with the hopes of boosting production in the wake of China’s devastating famine of 1958-1961, have been instrumental in the country’s agricultural modernization, and in addition to helping China become the world’s largest producer of rice, Yuan’s breakthroughs have been exported to dozens of at-risk countries.
Chinese Outspend French To Become World’s #4 Tourism Spenders
As spending on outbound tourism by travelers in developed markets like France, Germany, the UK and the US plummeted last year amid the global financial slump, mainland Chinese tourists — the ranks of which have swelled as more middle-class Chinese start to take their first trips abroad — leapfrogged the French to become the world’s fourth-largest tourism spenders.
According to figures released by the United Nations World Tourism Organization this week, Chinese tourists spent a total of $44 billion outside the country last year, a staggering 21% rise over the year before, putting them behind only Germany, the U.S. and the U.K. in international spending.
Zeng Fanzhi Painting Sets Record At BAZAAR Charity Auction In Shanghai
Last night, BAZAAR China held its 8th annual Charity Night event in Shanghai, which raised a total of 19 million RMB (US$2.75 million) for the China Social Assistance Foundation (CSAF). The money raised at the event will be put towards the reconstruction of Yushu, the site of this month’s devastating earthquake, as well as drought relief in the stricken southwestern provinces of Guizhou, Guangxi and Yunnan. In attendance at last night’s event were more than 400 celebrities and businesspeople, including international stars likeHalle Berry and the South Korean pop group Wonder Girls.
At the night’s charity auction, in addition to watches and jewelry from companies such as Tiffany, Cartier and Chow Tai Fook, up for grabs was a new painting by top Chinese contemporary artist Zeng Fanzhi, “Untitled 10-3-23.” The 200 x 200 cm oil painting sold for a whopping 10 million RMB (US$1.5 million) to an unnamed bidder after a contentious bidding battle with the actor Huang Xiaoming.
Beijing Auto Show: Weekend Highlights
Last week, in preparation for Auto China 2010 — the Beijing Auto Show — Jing Daily looked at Bentley’s new China-only Continental models and discussed Chery’s announcement that the company had signed soccer star Lionel Messi to promote its upmarket Riich brand. Over the weekend, as the show opened to the public, a number of other stories have come out in the Chinese- and English-language media, some focusing on the actual models on display at the show, others at the possible future of the Chinese auto industry, and still others at whether the Beijing Auto Show still has a “wow” factor equal to the scale of its production.
Asia Art Forum To Address Educational And Market Demand From New Chinese Collectors
Along with the growing interest in buying and collecting art in China — whether for personal or investment reasons — has come increased demand for information and educational resources from the country’s “new collectors.” To address this information gap, new books and online resources, along with more forums and conferences, have appeared on the scene in mainland China and Hong Kong, designed with Chinese collectors and art enthusiasts — rather than just academics and curators — in mind.
Next month, the Asia Art Forum will take place in Hong Kong from May 21-23. This lecture series will include several respected figures from the Asian contemporary art world, as well as one day fully devoted to a deeper examination of the current state of the art market and the role of the collector in Asia. At this event, audience members will get a unique opportunity to hear personal testimonies from prominent collectors who are building art collections in Asia today. Additionally, participants will be able to take part in a trip to Hong Kong’s Fotan art district, a former industrial area that’s now home to the studios of many of Hong Kong’s most prominent artists.