Call it the Artist’s Shopping Guide or just a tip for the fellow artists, but here is a post about the amazing art supplies shop I’ve spotted during my trip to China in June 2019.
If you’re in Beijing and seeking some traditional Chinese art supplies to get home with you, the shop I am talking about is your dream come true, it’s very easy to find as it’s right in front of the National Art Museum of China in Beijing, on Wusi Street.
Once you reached the Art Museum, cross the road and you’ll see couple of similar looking shops, but not all of them are as great as this one. The one you are looking for will be almost right in front of the organized entrance to the Museum’s territory, on the very left if you have the Museum behind you.
When you enter the shop, you can clearly see the dedicated sections - brushes, paper, inks, various tools for ink painting and stamping, etc. I always wanted to try different Chinese brushes, so I chose 3 based solely on their appearance, as I don’t read Chinese and google translator was no use. Some of the natural hair brushes will have stickers, for example with an image of the goat on it, but most of them wouldn’t have that, so if you’re looking for anything specific it will be a good idea to ask.
I definitely have a soft spot for brushes and it was so aesthetically pleasing to just look through the variety of different kinds and natural hair combinations. If you are like me, just enjoying the look of the art supplies - this will definitely be an amazing experience.
To be honest, a big part of all of the products in the shop I have never seen in person and just had to guess how you suppose to use it, but that’s what also was very exciting. Below you can see two massive ink pads, with engraved scenes that are made of stone, and some colorful inks (enamel inks, according to translation).
They had a massive variety of inks for ink painting in the form of solid bricks, that you activate using water.
There were many more tools and displays that I didn’t catch on camera, like seal stamps made from natural stones, calligraphy sets and a selection of paints, that you will have to see for yourself when you visit Beijing.
According to google translate, the shop name include words “four treasures“ in it, that absolutely suits this shop, as it feels like you entered the room with objects, carefully treasured for everyone to try.
National Art Museum of China 1 Wusi St, Dongcheng Qu, Beijing Shi, China, 100875
Hope you enjoyed!
-Anna