Asian Culture Takes Centre Stage in Shangri-La Art Collections

Hong Kong (SANEPR.com) July 21, 2008 -- Modern China, the arts of the Sung Dynasty, traditional Malaysian crafts, and the mythical land of “Shangri-La” have all provided inspiration for the paintings and sculptures that grace the group’s hotels.

China’s Sung Dynasty, the era of Marco Polo’s visit to the East, is the inspiration for the art collection of Shangri-La’s Far Eastern Plaza Hotel, Taipei. To furnish the hotel’s interior, the hotel borrowed from the colours, motifs and themes of the Sung Dynasty at the suggestion of an expert from the National Palace Museum. The collection displays recreations of historic pieces including wood, stone and bronze sculptures, earthenware instruments, intricate brocades, and painted silk scrolls.

Contemporary Chinese artists are also represented at a number of Shangri-La properties in China. “Tribute to a Chinese Poet,” a vibrant canvas painted by San Francisco-based, Shanghai-born artist Sheng Shanshan, overlooks the staircase of Pudong Shangri-La, Shanghai’s Grand Tower. Many of China’s highly regarded painters come from the Sichuan province, and the Shangri-La Hotel, Chengdu presents four locally born artists in the hotel: Zhou Chunya, He Duoling, Guo Jin and Guo Wei. Their works are inspired by the culture and countryside of the southwest Chinese province, including the area’s most famous resident, the giant panda.

The art collection of Shangri-La’s Rasa Sayang Resort and Spa, Penang celebrates the rich diversity of Malaysian culture. The resort invested more than RM3million (about US$924,000) into the collection of antiques and creations by regional craftsmen and artists. The resort publishes an art guide and runs weekly guided tours of the collection, which includes the prow of a traditional Malay boat, gold ornaments and jewelry, “money tree” sculptures, batik metal blocks, silk fabrics and paintings.

Island Shangri-La, Hong Kong’s atrium grandly displays the traditional craft of Chinese silk painting with “The Great Motherland of China.” Awarded by Guinness World Records as the world’s largest Chinese landscape painting, the piece measures 51 metres (about 167 feet or 16 stories) by 14 metres (16 feet) and consists of 250 panels of Chinese silk. Forty artists from the Beijing Arts and Crafts Research Institute worked diligently for six months to create the masterpiece. The painting depicts the landscape of China, sweeping across the vast country from Qinghai to the Yellow Sea, and from Beijing to Guilin. It contains well-known landmarks such as the Great Wall, Huangguoshu Waterfalls, and the mountain pathways commonly found weaving through the cliffs of Sichuan and Taishan. A peaceful river binds all the elements together, winding gracefully from West to East.

Across Victoria Harbour at Kowloon Shangri-La, Hong Kong, the art is inspired by the mythical land of “Shangri-La.” The lobby houses four paintings, which were created by Malcolm Golding for the hotel’s opening in 1981 and were restored by the artist in 2003, depicting the legendary Shangri-La valley and scenes of lotus flowers, plants and birds. The Cantonese for Kowloon, geo lung, translates to nine dragons – and Kowloon is represented in the mural through the depiction of nine “dragon clouds.”

Hong Kong-based Shangri-La Hotels and Resorts, Asia Pacific’s leading luxury hotel company, currently owns and/or manages 55 hotels under the five-star Shangri-La and four-star Traders brands, with a rooms inventory of over 28,000. The company has over 50 projects under development in Austria, Canada, mainland China, France, India, Japan, Macau, Maldives, Philippines, Qatar, Seychelles, Taiwan, Thailand, United Arab Emirates, United Kingdom and the United States. For more information and reservations, please contact a travel professional or access the website at www.shangri-la.com.