Arrival Essentials
Explore cities / Crafts

CRAFTS · CITIES · TRAVEL IDEAS

See the hands behind the place.

Pick a city, look at one craft, then decide if it belongs in your day.

Twenty places to start

Venue information checked 17 October 2026. Displays, admission and activities can change.

Two people working at a large brocade loom, archival photograph
NANJING · BROCADE

Nanjing Yunjin

Watch how two weavers work around one large loom.

Explore the craft →Photo: Anne Oeldorf-Hirsch · CC BY 2.0. Archival, not today's programme.
An embroidered screen in Suzhou, archival photograph
SUZHOU · EMBROIDERY

Suzhou embroidery

See the threads and stitching at the China Embroidery Art Museum, 1 Xiuguan Street, Zhenhu.
苏州市高新区镇湖街道绣馆街1号

Explore Suzhou →Venue source · Photo: Kwz · CC BY-SA 3.0, archival.
Shu brocade photographed at Sichuan Museum in 2010, not Chengdu Museum
CHENGDU · BROCADE

Shu brocade

Begin with historic textiles in Chengdu Museum's Tang–Song gallery, 1 Xiaohe Street. No live weaving is promised.
成都市青羊区小河街1号

Explore Chengdu →Museum source · Photo: Gary Todd · CC0, other museum in 2010.
Gambiered silk drying outdoors in 2023, archival process photograph
FOSHAN · SILK

Gambiered silk in Shunde

A temporary exhibition at Shunde Museum, north of Bishui Road, is listed until 6 April 2027. Confirm before going.
佛山市顺德区大良新城区碧水路北侧

Explore Foshan →Exhibition source · Photo: 方人也 · CC BY 2.5, not the museum.
Entrance to Zhuzi Fang, the Fuzhou neighbourhood of the lacquer museum
FUZHOU · LACQUER

Lacquer art in Zhuzi Fang

See lacquer works at Shen Shao'an Lacquer Art Museum, Furong Garden, 34 Zhuzi Fang.
福州市鼓楼区朱紫坊34号芙蓉园

Explore Fuzhou →Venue source · Photo: Yumeto · CC BY-SA 4.0, street entrance.
Artisans applying colour to cloisonné, archival factory photograph
BEIJING · ENAMEL

Beijing cloisonné

Follow the steps from metal base to coloured enamel.

Explore the craft →Photo: Gary Todd · CC0, archival.
An 18th-century Yixing teapot held by the Asian Civilisations Museum, not the Yixing museum
YIXING · POTTERY

Zisha teapots

Compare forms at China Yixing Ceramics Museum, 150 Dingshan North Road, Dingshu.
宜兴市丁蜀镇丁山北路150号

Explore Yixing →Venue source · Photo: Wuselig / Rainer Halama · CC0, another collection.
A ceramic plate on display at Jingdezhen China Ceramics Museum
JINGDEZHEN · CERAMICS

China Ceramics Museum

Start with ceramics across periods at 1 Zijing Avenue. Passport holders should confirm how to reserve and enter.
景德镇市昌江区紫晶大道1号

Explore Jingdezhen →Venue source · Photo: 沈澄心 · CC0.
Red-brick buildings at Tsingtao Beer Museum in 2024
QINGDAO · BREWING

Inside an old brewery

See equipment and industrial history at 56 Dengzhou Road. Tasting is optional and for adults.

Explore Qingdao →Museum source · Photo: Suginami · CC0, 2024.
Wuhu Museum building in 2023, not an iron-painting workshop
WUHU · IRON PAINTING

Forged into a picture

Start with the city's museum; check the iron-painting gallery before visiting.

Explore Wuhu →Gallery source · Photo: 西安兵马俑 · CC BY-SA 4.0, museum exterior.
Two Huishan clay figurines photographed at Wuxi Museum in 2017
WUXI · CLAY FIGURINES

Huishan clay figurines

Look at the forms and painted faces in Wuxi Museum's permanent display.

Explore Wuxi →Museum source · Photo: Huangchenhai · CC BY-SA 4.0, 2017 collection photo; not today's display.
Dali textiles photographed in 2008, not the Zhoucheng museum
DALI · BAI TIE-DYE

Blue and white in Zhoucheng

See how tied cloth becomes patterned fabric at a museum in Zhoucheng Village.

Explore Dali →City source · Photo: Jo Schmaltz · CC BY-SA 2.0, another Dali shop.
Shanghai Museum East building in 2024, not a repair workspace
SHANGHAI · CONSERVATION

How old objects are cared for

Follow examination and repair cases in the museum's fourth-floor gallery.

Explore Shanghai →Museum source · Photo: Alexey Yakovlev · CC0, exterior.

Fourteen ways to look closer

The research collection covers these themes. A theme is background reading, not a claim that a matching visitor workshop exists.