Tianjin delegation visits Yungang Grottoes in Shanxi

A delegation led by Yan Weiyuan, head of the Tianjin Academy of Fine Arts' costume department, recently visited the Yungang Grottoes in Datong city, North China's Shanxi province, Datong Evening News reported on Aug 18.

The delegation spent six days studying the grottoes, and exchanged views on decorative pattern application as well as relationships between the decorative patterns and Buddhism. They held the view that the Yungang Grottoes is a combination of Chinese and Western cultures, and its decorative patterns carry a breathtaking charm. Every pattern, such as lotus flower, floral scrolls and honeysuckle, originates from the spirit and power of Buddhism.

The patterns first turned cultural art into decorations, which, in turn, upgraded cultural art, creating a visual impact. The patterns are all varied, and none of them are the same in the one-kilometer-long grotto. Yan Weiyuan said that they will continue to come back to collect materials for future studies.

"Experts across China have paid a lot of attention to Yungang Grottoes' decorative patterns in recent years," said Zhang Zhuo, head of the Yungang Grottoes Research Institute.

An artist in Datong wrote a thesis on decorative patterns of the Yungang Grottoes, which analyzed 185 patterns in eight series. The other artist Wang Tianluan also created a book that studied local decorative patterns after visiting the Yungang Grottoes on many occasions.