New Chinese silk series charms readers at book fair

A new series on the art of Chinese silk was unveiled at the ongoing 28th Beijing International Book Fair on Tuesday as Zhejiang University Press (ZJUP) made a further foray into the "Belt and Road" publications.

Consisting of 10 volumes, The Art of Chinese Silk Series covers everything on silk, as well as China's history of silk, silk culture and silk art from the Han Dynasty (206 BC-AD 220) through the early 20th century.

Created in collaboration with the China National Silk Museum in Hangzhou and compiled by a team of China's top professionals and scholars, the series has comprehensively and systematically examined the artistic development of Chinese silk in terms of artistic styles of silk patterns of the times and their cultural, political and economic significance. The series explores weaving techniques, artistic features, production arrangements and fashion, along with their influence on the development of overseas silk art.

Chu Chaofu, head of the ZJUP, donated a copy of the series to the National Library of China at the launching ceremony and the ZJUP signed an agreement with scientific publisher Springer Nature to publish an English version.

The series will prove invaluable to those engaged in the research of art history, textile design and artistic creations, and will undoubtedly inject fresh impetus into the spread of Chinese culture and to the inheritance and revitalization of China's traditional culture and intangible cultural heritage.

In a strategic partnership for five years, ZJUP and the China National Silk Museum have published nearly 50 titles and series and are working on a digital service platform for Chinese silk funded by national publishing authorities.

The Art of Chinese Silk Series was selected as one of the examples of China's internationalization strategy at the 2019 China International Fair for Trade in Services and honored with an award from the "Belt and Road" publication cooperation program.