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Reflections on water

2012-08-03 11:12

Anyone with even a passing interest in Chinese art knows that apart from the fabled Four Gentlemen - orchids, bamboo, the chrysanthemum and the plum blossom - there are at least two other staples in Chinese paintings: mountains and water.

New world for old master

2012-07-27 12:17

If you want to become the best enologist, you first need to become the oldest enologist, jokes Michel Rolland.

A new focal point

2012-07-27 12:17

There are at least a couple of things Yann Romain cannot stand about Beijing. One is that it is hard to find a female model "who has not had a face job"; the other is that those who run fashion magazines are often the "young, stuck-up know-it-alls". That is why Romain, 48, a French photographer who has been shooting pictures for fashion magazines in France for 15 years, steers away from the industry in China.

Body language

2012-07-20 12:22

Growing up in Australia where Asian culture is prevalent, Claxton has always had a huge interest in China and the Far East in general.

Heady times

2012-07-20 12:22

It would make a pretty story to say Thierry de Dobbeleer was ahead of his time - that he saw China's imminent boom back in his university student days and jumped into the study of Mandarin in Brussels. But he won't take that much credit. The computer science major needed another course to fill out his class schedule, he says, and he was interested because he had "lots of Asian friends".

Flaming flamenco

2012-07-13 12:35

As the blare from speakers rises to a crescendo, the six Chinese dancers twist and turn, stomping their feet and flourishing their arms in an equally feverish manner. On the other side of the room, their teacher Clara Ramona watches closely, occasionally shouting as beats are missed.

Home advantage

2012-07-13 12:35

Many foreign businesses are rushing to woo the world's second-largest economy by forging business ties with their Chinese counterparts. Some see the enormous market potential in China while others cite the country's spectacular economic growth as a major draw. But for Briton Joanna Dodd, it was the heart of a loving mother that led her to do business with Chinese companies.

Conducting from the heart

2012-07-06 12:29

Heart, heart, heart. There is no doubt that Zhang Xian has it. "Of course, it's natural," says the distinguished Chinese conductor, now serving in Milan as the music director of the Orchestra Sinfonica di Milano Giuseppe Verdi, aka La Verdi.

Musical interlude

2012-07-06 12:29

Deep in the heart of Beijing's historic Gulou area, a group of young Europeans makes their way slowly through the traditional hutong alleyways. They are in search of the sounds of joie de vivre from another musical tradition - the French one - but all they hear are those of traditional Chinese music from the many shops selling handicrafts from around the country, or from the street musicians, bowing on an erhu - a two-stringed fiddle.

Here we go again!

2012-06-29 12:51

Mamma Mia! My, my, how can you resist it? After 13 years of playing to 42 million people around the world, the answer appears to be - we can't.

Cool runnings

2012-06-29 12:51

Snow sports have always been a major part of Miriam Hanna Deller's life. In the small Austrian alpine village where she grew up, almost everyone skied, snowboarded or tobogganed in the winter months. That expertise later helped her land a job in China, where she met and later married the nation's best known snowboarder, Wang Lei, a former child gymnast and top-level skier.

Trio turns the tables

2012-06-22 16:58

'There are different parts of me. I can be very serious and strict about work, but I also like crazy nights with cool dance music," says Tommy T. The latter part often sees him behind the turntable as a roving DJ in the clubs of Beijing, and while he aims to have a good time and provide exciting sounds, the experienced beatmatcher also considers himself somewhat to be on a teaching mission to the Chinese music scene.

Ground strokes

2012-06-22 16:58

When Jean-Charles Penot arrived in Beijing two years ago, he headed straight for Beihai Park, where a famous imperial Nine-Dragon Wall stands. Penot stood before the wall for days on end, observing the dragon relief for a whole year. "I took my time to study the dragons because I did not want people to laugh at my paintings if they did not show the Chinese dragon properly," the French artist says.

His stock in trade: creative juices

2012-06-15 12:45

Studying at Swarthmore College in Pennsylvania, He Feng, 18, learned about the importance of self-expression, something that has become an asset in his career.

Opposing agent

2012-06-15 12:45

Since moving to Beijing from New York a decade ago, bilingual language professor Hedy W. Lee (Lee Wen) has made it her business to "sue, reveal and criticize" others. Lee cannot remember the exact number of times she has raised a furor over people's behavior and actions, which many considered trivial. She roughly calculates at least one a day so that is more than 3,650 complaint cases in 10 years.

Grand design

2012-06-08 12:40

Top Chinese product designer Jamy Yang says product designers are different from artists - What a designer does is more practical.

Home inspiration

2012-06-08 12:40

Manuela Parrino's apartment in downtown Beijing contains a bed from Indonesia, a bookshelf from Jerusalem, blue china and a large work of Chinese calligraphy. The collection might sound like a hotchpotch of color and material, but when viewed as a whole they come together into a harmonious setting. Brave, colorful, independent of trends and a mix of the ethnic and modern - that is exactly how the Italian interior designer defines her work.

Royal stitch

2012-06-01 11:16

Artist presents British monarch with valuable piece of her Chinese heritage.

Work of art

2012-06-01 07:56

Art gallery owner Meg Maggio, who runs a thriving business selling contemporary Chinese works to individual collectors, museums and corporate clients, has a record of unearthing and supporting some of the nation's most promising young artists.

Unexpected face upfront

2012-05-25 10:58

When Chen Yo-jung shows pictures of his soon-to-be retirement home in Japan, he gets some teasing from old friends. "Are you sure that's Japan?" his longtime squash opponent William Huo asks, as he looks at a chalet-style wooden building perched on a spring mountainside.

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