Palm-sized viral horse brings intangible heritage into the spotlight

Its fluffy mane stands on end, round eyes hinting at lazy nonchalance, tiny body glowing with the warm luster of handcrafted clay. Meet Ma Biaobiao, a palm-sized figurine that has taken China's younger generation by storm — sparking endless social media posts, long exhibition lines, and even a playful netizen joke: "It looks just like me on a Monday morning."

What elevates this little horse beyond a mere cute trinket? It is a product of Zibo soft clay sculpture, a time-honored intangible cultural heritage of Shandong province. Beneath its deceptively simple design lies a labor of patience: more than a dozen manual steps, from kneading and shaping clay to trimming, setting, painting and polishing — each demanding a craftsman's steady hand.

Ma Biaobiao's creation draws inspiration from the galloping horse in Qi Baishi's ink painting Such A Thousand Miles, which is currently on display at an exhibition focusing on Qi Baishi's works at the Shandong Art Museum. All of the exhibited pieces by Qi Baishi are on loan from the Beijing Fine Art Academy.

According to Wu Hongliang, president of the Beijing Fine Art Academy, Qi reluctantly created the galloping horse drawing, influenced by a request he initially hesitated to accept. The result, however, was a spirited, casual work that, decades later, has morphed into a touchstone of tradition woven into modern daily life.

As the show's coorganizer, Wu says the scruffy little horse's popularity completely exceeded his expectations. "I wanted to buy some as gifts, but they're hard to find," he says.

The horse's success gives him new insights into revitalizing intangible cultural heritage. As a member of the National Committee of the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference, he is focusing on ways to spark interest in such traditions this year.

While Ma Biaobiao's success serves as an accidental triumph, the Chengdu Biennale, which opened on Feb 8 in Chengdu, Sichuan province, is Wu's deliberate experiment in merging contemporary art, intangible cultural heritage, and everyday life.

The biennale features 328 works by 251 artists from 29 countries and regions, but its most popular pieces are two installations blending intangible cultural heritage with contemporary art.

Artist Feng Yu used traditional bamboo weaving to create a large-scale installation while another young artist, Chen Fenwan, transformed paper-cutting into a striking outdoor piece titled Sun Bird, using metal spray paint to bring the ancient totem to life. During the Spring Festival holiday, the biennale drew more than 100,000 visitors, most of whom were young people.

From Wu's view, intangible cultural heritage's recent rise hinges on its new guardians: young inheritors. "People once pictured intangible cultural heritage inheritors as middle-aged or elderly craftsmen," he says. "Now, more young people in their 20s are joining the ranks. They understand their peers' tastes and emotions best — breaking boundaries, making good use of social media, interpreting tradition through a modern lens, and turning 'old antiques' into vibrant, emotionally resonant cultural symbols."

Wu is currently preparing to launch the Beijing Art Museum, which will feature exhibitions not only of 20th-century Chinese art but also of intangible cultural heritage, design, contemporary art, and even digital art. Previously worried about how to attract audiences to intangible cultural heritage, he now sees that presenting heritage in ways that resonate with younger generations — making traditions relevant and integrated into daily life — is the key to capturing their attention.

Wu finds that the revitalization of intangible cultural heritage in contemporary times shares similarities with the recent popularity of Chinese ink master Qi Baishi overseas. Having worked at the Beijing Fine Art Academy for years, which houses around 2,000 of Qi Baishi's works and manuscripts, Wu and the academy have made efforts to promote the artist's legacy inside and outside China.

In recent years, the academy has leveraged the cultural symbols of Qi Baishi's works for overseas exhibitions. Last year, the show Qi Baishi: Inspiration in Ink toured the Asian Art Museum of San Francisco and Boston's Museum of Fine Arts in the United States.

It was the first time Qi's works had been displayed systematically at the Museum of Fine Arts in Boston, and the exhibition showcased the artist's journey from a rural carpenter to a master, as well as the rustic elegance of his paintings.

"This exhibition became an unexpected hit. The museum told me that people have been lining up every day to see it," Wu says. At the Asian Art Museum in San Francisco, organizers said they received thousands of handwritten notes from visitors, all expressing admiration for this uniquely charming Chinese artist.

"Chinese art and culture have a distinctive quality: once they are seen, they are loved," he explains.