Fieldwork Research Group

The Fieldwork Research Group (also known as the Nationalities Arts Research Center, a parallel structure set up by the Yunnan Academy of Social Sciences) was established to encourage independent scholarship by young researchers in Yunnan. Modest grants were given to a select number of scholars and artists who compose this group. With this funding, these individuals were able to devote their work to Nationalities cultures, principally in remote rural areas. The on-site and personalized culture conservancy separates these from their traditional counterparts. The creation of this group resulted in the establishment the Center for the Study of the Arts of Minority Nationalities at the Yunnan Academy of Social Sciences. This group has also drawn members from a variety of other Yunnan educational or research institutions such as the Yunnan Institute of the Arts, the Yunnan Nationalities Institute, the Yunnan Academy of Sciences, the Yunnan Teachers College, and the Yunnan University. While some of their work has received praise from abroad, these researchers still face the daunting challenges of utilizing up-to-date research theories and methodologies, acquiring modern equipment, and undertaking demanding fieldwork with meager financial resources. The original group selected by the Center has expanded from six to nineteen, six of whom are Nationalities (Bai, Man, Miao, Mosuo, and Yi).

Some of the research subjects include:

1.Dramatic art in northwest Yunnan

2. Rock painting along the Jinsha, Lanchang and Nujiang rivers

3.Community-based mentoring in the Yi culture

4.The Mabang (horse caravan) culture

5.The lushen (mouth organ) tradition of the Miao

6.Locally initiated conservation of cultural resources in Lijiang

7.Preservation through mentoring in the Mosuo Daba culture

8.The relationship between Dongba ceremonials and indigenous Tibetan religious traditions

9.Folk art and the market

10.Literature of oral traditions

Additionally, in collaboration with the Chinese Exploration Association and Kunming Television, the group planned and executed a five-week exploratory study tour across the whole length of the southern part of Tibet. The trip, which included excursions by Jeep through uncharted land, resulted in an exhibition, conferences, and a documentary. This group also produces a number of periodicals. Among the most exemplary of them is the tri-annual periodical, Nature and Folklore. The Group has increased the number of projected monographs to be published each year, and since last June has begun publishing a tri-annual newsletter, Nationalities Cultures: Mentorship and Conservation. Members: Deng Qiyao, Deputy Director, Nationality Literature Research Institute, Yunnan Academy of Social Sciences Guo Jing, Deputy Director, Institute of History, Yunnan Academy of Social Sciences Hao Yuejun, Assistant Research Fellow, Film and Video Division (Anthropology), Information and Reference Center, Yunnan Academy of Social Sciences Wang Qinghua, Assistant Research Fellow, Institute of Ethnological Studies, Yunnan Academy of Social Sciences Zhao Yaoxin, Head, Visual Arts Department, Yunnan Folk Arts Center Zhou Kaimo,Deputy Director, Research Division, Yunnan Institute of Arts.