Cultural Experiences of Intermittent Participants in Community-Based Intangible Cultural Heritage Workshops

Abstract

This paper analyses the cultural experiences of intermittent members of community based Intangible Cultural Heritage (ICH) workshops in China. The study examines the role of temporary and irregular participants in the context of the traditional cultural practices through workshops conducted by museums, cultural centres, universities and local heritage communities. The study deploys a qualitative secondary research approach to examine Chinese academic literature, cultural policy reports, and participation research published in 2015-2025. It has shown that intermittent engagement has been on the rise in the modern Chinese society as a result of urbanisation, the changing lifestyle, the digital cultural promotion and the heritage revitalisation programs funded by the Chinese government. The participants are driven by emotional involvement, cultural cares, leisure and socialization as well as identity. The community-based workshops create hands-on learning space where traditional crafts, folk arts, tea culture, and various cultural practices within the region are integrated through direct experience and sensory engagements. The paper also reveals conflicts between heritage conservation and cultural commodification especially in tourism-focused and digitally marketed workshops. Although the participation is not permanent, intermittent participants help in cultural awareness, emotional attachment and bring the traditional Chinese culture into the limelight of publicity. The study finds that community-based heritage workshops are significant cultural spaces through which Chinese intangible cultural heritage is continually interpreted, experienced and reimagined in the contemporary social contexts.