Teenagers have the opportunity to try their hand at stamp-making and Chinese calligraphy this Friday during a unique workshop being held in Valletta.

Organised by Spazju Kreattiv, the China Cultural Centre in Malta and the Educational Team of the Palace Museum in Beijing, Finding the I in China sees a series of workshops taking place, bringing this form of Asian art close to a Maltese younger audience.

This cultural education project integrates creativity with knowledge acquisition through a hands-on activity, based on the rich history and valuable collections of the Palace Museum.

The Palace Museum is also referred to as the Forbidden City, a place that has intrigued and baffled visitors to Beijing since the days of the illustrious Ming dynasty.

Now a Unesco world heritage site, it was built by Emperor Yung Lo during the first decades of the 17th century.

Participants will derive a certain understanding of the cultural significance of their creation and gain deeper insight into Chinese history and culture

This labyrinthine complex of audience halls, servants’ quarters, royal apartments, and interconnecting courtyards served the highly specialised needs of China’s emperors and their enormous retinues for three centuries.

Emperor Qianlong ( 1711-1799) was the sixth emperor of the Manchu-led Qing dynasty. His five important seals can be seen in many calligraphy collections of the museum.

Carving the Seal of Emperor Qianlong is a workshop targeted at those aged 13 to 17. Participants will be provided with materials, simple instructions and guidance to produce a cultural item on their own. By using a piece of rubber to make a stamp, the participants will learn the art of stamp-making and gain some knowledge of Chinese calligraphy.

While enjoying their own sense of accomplishment, participants will also derive a certain understanding of the cultural significance of their creation and gain deeper insight into Chinese history and culture.

This project fits in with the museum’s aim to be more open, modern and international in its approach to education, research and cultural exchange, as it strives to cater for the growing global interest in Chinese culture.

In the past 10 years, the education team of the Palace Museum has developed more than 30 programmes which encourage participants to learn about Chinese culture as well as produce handicraft by themselves, boosting their creativity and engaging in a lively interactive process.

The project in Malta is being run by three representatives from the Publicity and Education Department of the museum.

Guo Meixia, Deputy Director, has a master’s degree and is now a PhD student in history. She is accompanied by Fan Xuechun and Deng Chenyu, educators.

Carving the Seal of Emperor Qianlong is taking place on Friday, November 4 at Studio A, St James Cavalier in Valletta between 6pm and 7.30pm. Participation is free, however, booking is required. To reserve a place, visit www.kreattivita.org or call 2122 3200.