Chinese Summer Art Camp: The Perfect Introduction To Art For China's Youngest Generation

SHENZHEN, China, August 29, 2013 /PRNewswire/ -- Art training programs have always been highly welcomed by Chinese parents. The number of available spots for tots wishing to attend China's National Centre for the Performing Arts' (NCPA) Children's Summer Art Camp is far exceeded by the number of applications for those spots. During the nearly two-month-long summer vacation, the camp offered close to 200 activities, including ones that encompassed symphony, opera, chamber music, folk music, chorus, dance, drama, traditional Chinese opera and other types of music and art. During the summer, Qzone, Tencent's leading social networking website, as part of the Children's Summer Art Camp's program, also participated in organizing special activities that provided children an opportunity to embrace art.

In 2000, Li Yundi participated in the International Frederic Chopin Piano Competition. He was the first participant to be awarded First Prize, a prize that had gone without selecting a winner for 15 years. At 18 years old, he was the youngest winner -- and the first Chinese -- in the competition's history. Many Chinese parents with high expectations for their children were inspired by Li's success. Five-year-old Chinese Canadian Ryan Wang's performance on The Ellen Show demonstrated his unique musical talent, captivating U.S. audiences along with many Chinese parents.

The new generation of parents believes art education should focus on improving their child's own accomplishments at artistic endeavors. Increased involvement in artistic activities and knowledge about art opens young people's eyes and improves both their EQ and IQ. As part of the activities organized by NCPA to promote an interest in art in a way that would appeal to the participants, top artists were invited to provide a general introduction to art as well as perform live classic plays at the Master Workshop. The approach of having the children feel engaged through these edutainment activities has been widely welcomed by Chinese parents. During this summer, NCPA held two highly participatory activities of this kind every week.

During Tencent Qzone's special series of activities held in August, the online giant provided easy-to-use family photography services for children and their parents outside NCPA. Parents with fashion sense used Tencent Qzone's app to take photos that they could share with their families and friends through the online Qzone album, conveying the joy and happiness that they felt during China's hot summer months. Like Facebook and Twitter, Qzone provides hundreds of millions of users in China with a platform to share their most treasured experiences.

Kelvin Zheng and his 3-year-old daughter participated in Tencent Qzone's special activities. On the day the activities were held, two teachers provided young participants with an on-site demonstration of beginner and advanced ballet movements. Kids who interacted with the teachers enjoyed the body stretching and captivating music. "I took many photos of the children dancing and uploaded them to Qzone. It will become cherished memories for the children," Zheng said.

Tencent's official website: http://www.tencent.com/en-us/index.shtml.