Opportunities to understand China, Chinese culture and Chinatown

Cantonese and Mandarin Census Information and Support

  The 2021 census will be taken on 21 March. Letters, with unique access codes, have been sent out and responses are already coming in. It is important for East and South East Asian people to be represented in the census. The data gathered is used to make important national and local policy decisions.  Chinese […]

Launching the Champion London Chinatown’s Heritage Campaign

China Exchange has launched a new crowdfunding campaign – the Chinatown-based charity’s most ambitious effort yet to create lasting and positive change in London’s Chinatown.  The campaign needs to secure £21,320 in pledges by 11 May to deliver projects that protect and celebrate unrecorded East and South East Asian heritage in Chinatown. The funds raised […]

Winnie M Li – Translating personal experience into fiction

Winnie M Li, author, activist and film producer took part in our China in Context festival, describing how she translated her personal experience into fiction for her debit novel, Dark Chapter. During this talk, Li was in conversation with BBC Journalist Helier Cheung. Li’s debut novel Dark Chapter is a fictionalised account of her own […]

Stories Told in Chinese Painting

Painting is a significant part of cultural heritage in China, taking not just inspiration from the natural world, but also from literature and writing.  Yet for those unfamiliar with Chinese literary epics and writings, these meanings are often lost. In this lecture Dr Malcolm McNeill, Chinese Paintings Specialist at Christie’s auction house, de-mystified the link […]

Feast on Poetry – free writing workshop

poetry workshop

This event formed part of the Hong Kong Focus at China in Context – three events supported by the Hong Kong Economic and Trade Office celebrating the role that Hong Kong has played as a cultural translator and the creativity of writing from this unique region. This free workshop was led by Hong Kong Poet […]

Remembering the Chinese Labour Corps

140,000 men were recruited by Britain and France to serve in World War One. They are yet to be formally recognised, and there is no memorial to them. We would like this to change. Following our 2017 exhibition of photographs of the Chinese Labour Corps and memorial service, this talk Remembering the Chinese Labour Corps […]

China in Context Book Fair Weekend

Our China in Context festival 2018 culminated in a book fair weekend from 15-18 March at China Exchange that welcomed hundreds of visitors. Alongside talks with leading authors, interactive activities, visitors could also explore a book fair with over 1000 titles. Audiences explored the world of writing from and about China with talks with writers […]

Cloud/Plunger – a performance installation

Cloud/plunger

China Exchange’s first performance installation, Cloud/Plunger, developed by our Cultivate Programme supported artist Tuo Lin (AAIS), transformed our second floor space with giant inflatable ‘clouds’ supported by elongated household plungers. Audiences were immersed in the piece which combined architecture, dance, light and music. After a short opening film, two dancers, Malgorzata Dzierzon and Renaud Wiser […]

In Conversation with Su Tong 苏童

In a rare UK appearance, Su Tong, one of China’s most acclaimed novelists, joined our China in Context festival to share his writing journey and his views on literature. In this talk, Su Tong revealed some of the stories behind his works and themes he explores through his writing. On discussing one of his best […]

Xue Xinran 薛欣然: 10 years since Miss Chopsticks

On Saturday 17 March, leading British-Chinese writer Xue Xinran joined our China in Context festival to reflect on the changes that she has seen in the last decade following the publication of her novel Miss Chopsticks. Miss Chopsticks, published in 2008, focused on the experiences of young female migrant workers who moved from the countryside […]