On the afternoon of August 14 local time, a gathering celebrating art, heritage, and travel unfolded at the Mall Galleries in London.

The venue hosted the closing ceremony of artist Zhang Huaicun’s solo exhibition Home Sweet Home alongside the Qinghai Culture and Tourism Promotion Event.

Nearly 200 guests from the UK and China attended, including Dong Fuhai, Director-General of the Qinghai Provincial Department of Culture and Tourism; Zhang Li, Director of China National Tourist Office (CNTO) London; and Mick Davies, former President of the Royal Society of British Artists.

The event served not only as the finale of a month-long exhibition but also as an innovative international exchange utilizing art as a medium and nostalgia as a bridge.

“Qinghai gave me my roots, Guangzhou and Hong Kong gave me my branches, and London allowed me to grow new leaves,” said Qinghai-born artist Zhang Huaicun, summarizing her life and artistic journey.

Having left Qinghai at age 10 and lived in Guangdong and Hong Kong before settling in London, her connection to her hometown remained steadfast. The grasslands, winds, snow-capped mountains, and cultural environment of the plateau have continuously nourished her creative work.

Running from July 23 at the Mall Galleries for nearly a month, Home Sweet Home featured paintings, illustrations, and installations exploring “home” as a space of warmth, memory, cultural roots, and spiritual belonging, inviting visitors from diverse backgrounds to connect over shared human emotions.

Through the artist’s personal ties to Qinghai, the exhibition served as a natural window for the British public to discover the region.

Discovering “Great Beauty Qinghai” Through Art

Integrating the art exhibition with tourism promotion allowed British audiences to step closer to the artist’s cherished homeland through shared human experiences of home, childhood, and nature.

During the event, the Qinghai Provincial Department of Culture and Tourism presented the region’s rich cultural and tourism assets. Situated on the vast Qinghai-Tibet Plateau, Qinghai boasts distinct natural landscapes, vibrant ethnic traditions, and deep historical roots that together define the charm of “Great Beauty Qinghai.”

Connecting a distant location to an artist’s childhood memories and creative works transforms geographic coordinates into a tangible story, enabling visitors to perceive Qinghai’s natural beauty and appreciate its cultural depth.

Innovative Expressions in Cultural and Travel Communication

The London event highlights an evolving approach to international cultural exchange, where natural landscapes enter paintings, local heritage inspires literature, and ethnic traditions are experienced through visual and performing arts.

Long-term overseas Chinese artists, writers, and cultural figures serve as vital links, bridging different cultural contexts while maintaining deep ties to their roots. Through authentic and personal expressions, they allow Chinese regional culture to reach international audiences in a natural and engaging way.

In this sense, Home Sweet Home offered a warm and meaningful perspective to introduce Qinghai to the UK.

Strengthening Bilateral Cooperation and Cultural Exchange

In his keynote speech, Dong Fuhai praised Zhang Huaicun as an outstanding artist from Qinghai who uses an international artistic language to tell stories of the Chinese plateau.

He highlighted Qinghai’s unique ecological significance as the source of the Yangtze, Yellow, and Lancang Rivers, featuring dramatic landscapes such as glaciers, plateau lakes, Danxia landforms, and grasslands. Dong also emphasized Qinghai’s rich history, red culture, multi-ethnic harmony, and living heritage—including intangible cultural treasures like Regong art, Qinghai embroidery, and “Huaer” folk songs—inviting UK guests to experience the region firsthand and deepen practical cooperation in culture and tourism.

Zhang Li, Director of CNTO London, reflected on the deeper significance of the gathering, noting that “home” is a universal sentiment spanning borders and cultures.

He described Zhang Huaicun’s artworks as deeply rooted in her native soil and noted that the travel promotion was a natural continuation of the exhibition’s spirit, enabling overseas audiences to understand Qinghai through art and experience China through culture.

He added that CNTO London will continue strengthening cooperation with the Qinghai Provincial Department of Culture and Tourism to build collaborative platforms and introduce high-quality Chinese cultural and tourism resources to the UK public.

The London gathering marks both the conclusion of the Home Sweet Home exhibition and a new starting point for Qinghai’s cultural and travel promotion in the UK, creating fresh connections between personal memory, regional culture, and travel. As art opens a window to China, Qinghai welcomes travelers from around the world to discover its landscapes, history, and culture in person.