Carnival celebrates diverse handicraft traditions

A carnival celebrating the integration and innovation of ethnic handicrafts opened on Sept 9 at Shougang Park in Beijing, alongside the 2026 China International Fair for Trade in Services.

The inaugural carnival brings together more than 80 exhibitors from across the country, including ethnic handicraft brands, time-honored enterprises and inheritors of intangible cultural heritage.

The event showcases how traditional handicrafts are being presented through new designs, digital technology, cultural experiences, and commercial platforms, aiming to give traditional craftsmanship new forms of expression and connect it with contemporary consumption.

At the opening ceremony, young designers incorporated cultural elements reflecting interaction and exchange among different ethnic groups into their creations.

More than 10 companies also presented their brands, highlighting efforts to develop new products and applications based on traditional handicrafts and intangible cultural heritage.

One highlight is an immersive theater that uses holographic projection and panoramic imaging technology to explore the artistic and cultural significance of traditional ethnic patterns.

An ethnic handicrafts XR digital workshop combines virtual reality, augmented reality and artificial intelligence to present intangible cultural heritage and traditional craftsmanship from various regions. Visitors can interact with digital displays and performances that offer a glimpse of how emerging technologies can present traditional skills in new ways.

The exhibition also features award-winning works from the Beijing creative design competition, along with a selection of high-quality intangible cultural heritage handicrafts.

A crafts market brings together representative handicrafts and creative brands from various regions. Alongside product displays and sales, visitors can watch small-scale performances, take part in intangible cultural heritage activities, and sample traditional food-related crafts.

The small stage, "Craftsmanship Theater", hosts ethnic music and dance performances, traditional handicraft demonstrations, traditional clothing displays, and Chinese culinary craft presentations, creating a rotating lineup of cultural activities around the market.

The "One Place, One Product" section gives regional public brands and established companies dedicated spaces to promote distinctive handicrafts from various provinces and autonomous regions.

The event also features a cultural exchange program that combines ethnic clothing, music and dance. A traditional ethnic clothing runway team from Guizhou province joins a folk performance troupe from the Inner Mongolia autonomous region for performances, highlighting the diverse cultural expressions embodied in traditional clothing and performing arts.

By bringing together handicraft artisans, cultural heritage practitioners, businesses, and industry organizations from across China, the event provides a platform for cultural display, artistic exchange, business networking, and industry cooperation.

Held alongside the CIFTIS, the carnival also explores ways to connect traditional handicrafts with the digital economy and the growing demand for cultural and tourism experiences, while giving traditional craftsmanship new avenues for preservation, development, and contemporary expression.