Questioning Cultural Exemplarity: Two Decades of Intangible Heritage Practices

Nearly 20 years ago, the People’s Republic of China (PRC) was one of the very first states to ratify the UNESCO Convention for the Safeguarding of the Intangible Cultural Heritage (ICH). Since then, Chinese legislation has incorporated a new set of globally oriented standards with the aim of identifying, inventorying, and ideally safeguarding hundreds of traditional skills, craftsmanship techniques, and performing arts that had long suffered under the regime’s cultural policies. Safeguarding ...