April 2014 Chinese Calligraphy and Bookmark Making Workshops at the
Scenic Rim Libraries
“Chinese Culture into Community Libraries” Activities Organized by the Tourism Confucius
Institute (TCI) at Griffith University
On April 9th and 15th 2014 the “Chinese Culture into Community Libraries” activity was launched by
the Tourism Confucius Institute at Griffith University at four community libraries in the Scenic Rim
district of Queensland Australia (Tamborine Mountain, Canungra, Beaudesert and Boonah). The
interactive activities were designed for the community, with special attention given to primary and
middle school students, and included Chinese calligraphy and making traditional Chinese bookmarks.
During the Chinese calligraphy workshop held at the Tamborine Mountain and Beaudesert libraries,
over 40 children from nearby communities, accompanied by their parents, participated in the
workshop and were fascinated by this traditional Chinese art. Exquisite examples of Chinese
calligraphy were displayed on a red clad exhibition table, along with traditional calligraphy brushes
and ink stones, wooden brush hangers and paper weights, bamboo brush rolls, blue and white
porcelain calligraphy brush washes and the traditional calligraphy ink and xuan paper. Each exhibit
was labelled in English to enable the participants to understand more about the art of Chinese
calligraphy.
The TCI calligraphy teachers patiently explained and guided participants in practising writing some
Chinese characters with positive meanings, such as “家”(family), “爱“(love) and “福”（good fortune
and happiness）using water on special practice paper. After the “training”, each participant had the
opportunity to create their own “calligraphy works” with real calligraphy ink.
One lady from the local primary school demonstrated a strong interest in this form of art after taking
part in the calligraphy workshop at the Tamborine Mountain library. She asked the TCI teacher to
write down “欢迎你” (Welcome) for her to imitate so that she could welcome her newly arrive
Chinese students in this special way.
Meanwhile, the traditional Chinese bookmark making activities held at Canungra and Boonah
libraries were also very popular, with over 20 children taking part in the workshops. Teachers from
the TCI created a kind of cork stamp carved with patterns and characters which allowed the children
create some traditional Chinese patterns on the bookmarks. Ms. Renee, the librarian from the
Beaudesert library, said that this activity enriched the life of the community inhabitants and allowed
them to obtain a brand-new understanding of Chinese culture. She also expressed her sincere wish
to cooperate with the Tourism Confucius Institute and organise similar activities in the future.
Closely observing the calligraphy teacher
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The calligraphy teacher demonstrating how to use the calligraphy brush
Bookmarks made by the children