Wǒ Men Podcast: Collector’s Edition

The Wǒ Men podcast is a bi-weekly discussion of life in China hosted by Yajun Zhang and Jingjing Zhang. Previous episodes of the Wǒ Men podcast can be found here, and you can find Wǒ Men on iTunes here.

Folks in China love their antiques, and unsurprisingly the antique collectors industry has long fascinated the Chinese public.

During the Cultural Revolution, many priceless artefacts and antiques were destroyed as inconvenient legacies of an old system. But now, antiques are making a comeback. Chinese consumers who in the 1980s and 1990s once rushed to embrace foreign products and brands as trendy status symbols are now starting to develop an appreciation for China’s rich heritage and artistic traditions.

In this episode, we talk to a collector of Chinese antiquities, Mr Zang Nuo (pictured above, right), who is our guide into the world of the Chinese collectors. We visited Mr Zang’s home, and he shared with us not only his collection of carvings and textiles but also his observations and insights into why the antique trade is booming in China and why people today are more interested than ever in the country’s past.

Have thoughts or feedback to share? Want to join the discussion? Write to Yajun and Jingjing at [email protected].

Previously on the Wǒ Men Podcast:

Wǒ Men Podcast: Lijia Zhang on China, Changes, and Prostitution

Article Jun 22, 2018

Wǒ Men Podcast: “Sitting the Month” – Postpartum Confinement in China

Article Aug 25, 2018

Wǒ Men Podcast: The Changing Landscape of Chinese Media

Article Jul 28, 2018