July 25, the 2025 Rural Arts Festival, themed “Spiritual Echoes of Gongyang Peaks,” officially opened in Gongyang Village, Zhongyang County, Lüliang City, Shanxi Province. The event was jointly organized by the Academy of Arts & Design, Tsinghua University and Tsinghua Straits Research Institute in collaboration with the CPC Zhongyang County Committee and the Zhongyang County People’s Government. The initiative brought together artistic forces from provincial institutions including Shanxi University, Shanxi Datong University, and Lüliang University, to explore innovative models of arts-driven rural development, activating local resources and promoting sustainable development.

This arts festival is deeply rooted in Gongyang Village’s natural endowments, distinctive industries, and local cultural heritage. Through artistic creation as its core medium, the festival organically integrates rural marketplaces, outdoor musical performances, intangible cultural heritage experiences, and digital communication across multiple sectors, innovatively exploring pathways for the deep integration of arts and cultural tourism, aiming to construct sustainable new models for rural development.

Qin Chuan (left), Secretary of the Party Committee of the Academy of Arts & Design, Tsinghua University, and Sun Yanfei (right), County Magistrate of Zhongyang County, delivered opening addresses.

In his opening remarks, Qin Chuan stated that the Academy of Arts & Design, Tsinghua University, has consistently dedicated itself to exploring and practicing arts-empowered rural development, accumulating rich experience and achievements. He noted that arts-enabled rural revitalization in the new era requires focus on integrated enhancement of agriculture, culture, and tourism and urban-rural integrated development. He expressed hope that this event would serve as a new starting point for deepening bilateral cooperation and pursuing collaborative development, jointly painting a vibrant and colorful canvas for the rural revitalization of both Gongyang Village and Zhongyang County.

At the opening ceremony, County Magistrate Sun Yanfei remarked that this artistic initiative, launched in partnership with the Academy of Arts & Design, Tsinghua University, and Tsinghua Straits Research Institute, employs innovative approaches to create an immersive, interactive, and experiential cultural celebration. She emphasized that this represents not only a grand event for Gongyang Village, but also concrete practice by Zhongyang County in exploring new pathways for rural revitalization and new developments in cultural-tourism integration.

Wang Feng, Secretary of the CPC Zhongyang County Committee, declared the arts festival officially open.

Gao Manjun, Executive Curator of the Spiritual Echoes of Gongyang Peaks Arts Festival and doctoral candidate at the Academy of Arts & Design, Tsinghua University provided systematic interpretation of the Tsinghua Academy team’s previous rural practice cases during the opening tour. Through analysis of representative projects including the Arxan Arts Festival, Anji Youth Creative Camp, and Pinggu Nanshan Arts Festival, she conducted in-depth examination of how artistic intervention activates local resources, reconstructs spatial narratives, and facilitates industrial collaboration. These cases not only demonstrate the academic team’s pioneering exploration in rural revitalization but also provide methodological reference for site-specific creation in Gongyang Village， “Art is not unidirectional implantation, but must breathe together with the land, achieving sustainable development through collaborative mechanisms.” The future arts festival will establish a sustainable closed loop of “Artistic Creation (functional integration)→Living Cultural Tourism (multidimensional experiences)→ Property Rights Mechanisms (long-term returns)→Enhanced Communication (IP development).”

Gao Manjun, Executive Curator of the Spiritual Echoes of Gongyang Peaks Arts Festival and doctoral candidate at the Academy of Arts & Design, Tsinghua University

The “Arts-Rural Construction Joint Research Group,” led by the Academy of Arts & Design, Tsinghua University, and jointly formed with Tsinghua Straits Research Institute, Shanxi University School of Fine Arts, Shanxi Datong University Department of Sculpture, and Lüliang University Department of Arts, entered Gongyang Village to conduct field research around three major themes: ”Industrial Transformation, Ecological Symbiosis, and Cultural Reconstruction,” laying both academic and emotional foundations for subsequent “Art Illuminates Gongyang” site-specific creation.

Festival Visual Identity System (logo, posters, banners)

Cultural Creative Products

This arts festival specially invited the local Shanxi music group “Sound Heroes Alliance” for deep participation, launching the innovative “Music-Arts Co-creation Program”, during subsequent artistic creation cycles, musicians will engage in cross-disciplinary collaboration with resident artists, integrating musical composition with installations, sculptures, and other artistic forms.

The “Spiritual Echoes of Gongyang Peaks” Arts Festival is deeply interwoven with the “Charming Zhongyang: Rural Culture Festival,” transcending the boundaries of static artistic exhibitions by activating local cultural DNA through multidimensional interactive scenarios. Through the collective participation of villagers, visitors, and creators, Gongyang is transformed from a geographical coordinate into a tangible, co-creative, and sustainable living cultural community.

Opening Ceremony Performance

Arts Market

“Song Dynasty Tea Ceremony” Experience