Feng Jicai, safeguarding folk culture

　　In December 1999, Guyi Street, one of the oldest streets in Tianjin, was in the process of being demolished. On this street, built during the Yuan Dynasty , there were many famous shops, such as Qianxiangyi, Ruifuxiang, Shanxi Guild House, and the General Chamber of Commerce of Tianjin. Again, Feng called for volunteers to record the street on videotapes, and collect oral history from local residents. In February 2000, a set of postcards was published with Guyi Street as the theme, attracting long lines of purchasers. With Feng's efforts, the destruction plan for the street was finally changed, saving some of the buildings there.

　　Vargas Llosa, a famous Peruvian author once said something which Feng appreciated very much:"The most important thing for a writer is not the style of your writing, but your concern for the cultural problems in society." When conflicts emerged between social development and culture, Feng, as a writer, realized his responsibility in saving the precious folk culture.

Feng Jicai reviewing New Year Picture

　　Acting on Feng's proposal, a nationwide heritage rescue program launched a general survey of China's folk cultures in 2003, aiming to catalog village-level art, songs, legends, dress and folk customs before they die off with their practitioners. A wide range of methods were adopted, including text, audio and video recording as well as photography. "Every minute piece of folk heritage, no matter whether it is an ancient village or a small piece of wood cutting, is fading away from our fields, mountains and corners of the most remote inhabited areas," said Feng. He traveled throughout China researching undocumented ethnic and folk cultural heritages, and determining which are most at risk.