Dunhuang Sand Painting — A Call to Cherish (珍惜) Art

Dunhuang, an ancient Chinese city on the Silk   Road, has     1     number of historical attractions and the   world’s most treasured grotto (石窟) art.

Recently, a sand painting was finished at Mount Mingsha,    2     (make) a sharp contrast to the surrounding desert. As the sun rose and set, the painting gradually faded away within a day after       3     (remove) canvas (帆布) over the painting.

This work was accomplished by a young team of    4     (artist) led by Liu Jie, an expert in solid colour sand painting. He    5     (hope) the unique piece would remind people that art can easily fade away without proper protection, and said that the great culture of Dunhuang should be protected carefully.

“It is very meaningful to be   part   of   this   campaign to   raise awareness. Hopefully, watching   the       6       (disappear) of   the painted sand can motivate a desire to   cherish what is   precious and   translate   it    7     action,” Liu said.

The good news is    8     scientists as well as visiting scholars from across the world are drawn to the caves. Thanks to international cooperation and advanced technology, Mogao’s relics have been    9     (successful)   preserved. All these show how Mogao has built bridges of common understanding and share its    10     (culture) heritage with the world.

What is culture? Culture is the shared characteristics and knowledge of a group of people,     1     (include) their language, religion, food, social habits, music and arts. The word “culture” has     2     (it) root from the Latin “culture”, which is related to the meaning of “growth”.

A number of historical events     3     (help)shape Western culture in the past 2,500 years. The fall of Rome cleared the way for the establishment of a series of states in Europe. The Black Death of the 1300 cut the population of Europe by one-third,     4     remade the society. Gradually, Christianity became the strength of all religions in Europe. Then the trade between East and West allowed Europeans     5     (explore) North and South America.

Eastern culture generally refers to the traditions in Asian     6     (country). Like the West, Eastern culture was heavily influenced by religion during its early development, but later it     7     (influence) by the agricultural development significantly.

    8     culture differs from area to area, one thing is for certain: Cultures change. “Culture plays     9     important role in our interconnected world,” Do Rossi said. “But it is no longer fixed. Culture is constantly moving and     10     (essential) flowing.”