Made in China Makersweekend

About the makersweekend

The Made in China exhibition in Amsterdam immerses you in China's rich and diverse maker culture: from centuries-old craftsmanship to contemporary art and design. Wereldmuseum displays a diverse mix of objects, fashion, photography, videos and stories from makers. From porcelain and silk to lacquerware, jade and glass. Over the centuries, these materials have been crafted with great precision and skill by artisans, artists and designers. But even today, there are many remarkable Chinese makers active whom you can meet.

Why now?

春节 chun jie, the Spring Festival, also known as Chinese New Year or Lunar New Year, is the most important festival in the Chinese calendar. It marks a new beginning and is celebrated worldwide. The festival begins on 17 February with the New Year celebrations, lasts 15 days and ends with the Lantern Festival. 

2026: the year of the red horse (fire horse)

The element of fire significantly enhances the natural characteristics of the horse – energy, independence and passion – promising a year of increased dynamism, innovation and intense activity. The term Red Horse symbolises prosperity, good fortune and a burning desire for success. People whose Chinese zodiac sign is the horse will face a challenging year.

About the programme: For creators, with creators

Experience two days filled with design, workshops, food, music, talks and films, during which contemporary creators share their talent and stories:

Pete Wu, Kexin Hao, Ting Gong, Char Li Chung, Fresco Sam-Sin, Tja Ling, Rui Jun Luong, Hoi-Shan Mak, Benjamin Li, Isabel Wang, Simon Wald-Lasowski, Augustina Cai, Julie Ng, Li Libo, Ma Hui, Red Dragon Social Club, Tjyying Liu, Li Libo, Kiyono Sakashita, CHAxART: Meiyi Bao, Thien-Kim Tran, Bin Zhu, Salina Ben, Nastassia Winge, Yuqing/ Sunny Wang, Jessie Yingying Gong, Boey Wang, Luk Hop Moon, Huang Wei, Manique Hendriks, Studio Akeka, BambooBuilds, Willemijn van Noord, Daan van Dartel en Floor Scholte.

Practical information

Date	Saturday and Sunday, 21 and 22 February 2026
Time	11:00 – 17:00
Location	Wereldmuseum Amsterdam
Access	Upon showing a valid entrance ticket

Book your tickets

Saturday programme

Hoektoren

Dian Cha (tea whisking) workshop with CHAxART: Meiyi Bao - All day

Tea sommelier Meiyi Bao introduces you to Dian Cha, a traditional Chinese tea ritual from the Song dynasty (960–1279). In this workshop, you will paint and calligraph on tea foam and work with special Dian Cha utensils by artist and researcher Yicheng Zheng. This will allow you to experience this timeless tea art in a direct, hands-on way.

Lichthal

Create a large, fiery horse together under the guidance of artist Hoi-Shan Mak – All day

Create a large, fiery horse together with artist Hoi-Shan Mak. 2026 is the year of the red fire horse: full of energy, passion and prosperity. Tip for those born under the sign of the horse: wear red underwear!

Flowing ink as a river – Life-size calligraphy performance by artist Ma Hui. 2:00–3:00 p.m.

A metre-long roll of paper turns into a river of black ink under the hands of Ma Hui, a Dutch-Chinese artist. She works with traditional Chinese ink and abstraction, inspired by her childhood in Ningxia and her Chinese roots. With her brushstrokes, she brings rhythm, breath and energy to life, and each layer of ink tells a unique story.

Workshop stations & market

Every day, you can meet Dutch and Chinese makers in the light hall. Art, design and craftsmanship come together. Come and see, experience, taste and buy. Tradition and innovation merge, with a focus on craftsmanship, playfulness and the new year.

Alternating Saturdays & Sundays:

Paint ceramics with designer Li Libo

Learn modern paper cutting with our museum teachers

Lucky Knots workshop with ceramic artist Lili Zhou

Nüshu calligraphy (secret writing for women) with Jessie Yingying Gong

Design Through Touch with designer Boey Wang

Máohóu (the hairy monkey) workshop basics and book sale with Simon Wald-Lasowski/ Augustina Cai and Roma Publications

Building with booming bamboo by Studio Akeka and Bamboobuilds.

New year, new make-up by Xiu Yun Yu

Chimera drawing dance – with Kexin Hao

Painting Chinese silk hairpins and/or fans Yuqing/ Sunny Wang

Saturday only

Create a stamp with artist/illustrator Tja Ling

Yiwu – continuous all day

Artist Simon Wald-Lasowski filmed 40 market stalls in Yiwu, the largest commodity market in the world. In slow motion, the video explores the shine, texture and beauty of mass-produced goods, raising questions about admiration, desire and overconsumption.

CELEBRATION Worldwide

Family activity “At full gallop” – all day

Make a lantern in which a horse appears to be galloping! In the Chinese zodiac, the horse is an animal that loves to travel and is always curious. It does not give up easily, is brave and dares to try difficult things. First, decorate your lantern with gold, then make the horse really move. This is how you bring the Year of the Horse to life!

Café de Tropen

Food market - all day

Food also plays an important role as a sensory platform where craftsmanship and taste come together. A contemporary food market, rooted in Chinese culture and contemporary creativity, can be found in the Tropen café.

Second floor, in front of the Made in China entrance

Mahjong in collaboration with Red Dragon Social Club - 1:30 p.m. – 4:30 p.m.

Where tiles click and glasses clink – the first Dutch Mahjong Social Club. Whether you are new to Mahjong or already play occasionally, this gathering is all about conviviality, relaxed games and fun, playful people.

Studio

Talks and book launch

11.30 – 12.15	The making of de Made in China expo (NL) How do you create an exhibition about Chinese craftsmanship? Meet curator China and ceramics specialist Willemijn van Noord and exhibition maker Floor Scholte, who will take you through their creative process.
13.00 – 13.45	Things from China that talk (NL) Viewing workshop with sinologist Fresco Sam-Sin They are familiar: the rice hat, chopsticks, the silk dress with the slanted closure. Yet many objects that the world has come to regard as typically Chinese tell us more than you might think at first glance. By looking together, you will discover more about the history of China and about the image surrounding these kinds of “typical” objects.
14.00 – 14.45	Chinese Fashion Class (NL) Talk with Daan van Dartel and Bin Zhu What Chinese influences can you see in today's fashion? Fashion curator Daan van Dartel discusses leading designers such as Susan Fang, Ma Ke and Guo Pei. Tai Chi master Bin Zhu zooms in on the Neo-Chinese street fashion that has been rapidly emerging since Covid and unravels the philosophy of life behind it.
15.00 – 15.45	Mahou, the art of humorous social criticism (ENG) Book launch about Maohou with Roma Publications Simon Wald-Lasowski presents his book on the máohóu art of master Qiū Yíshēng. This fascinating Beijing craft uses cicada insects and magnolia flowers, which are used in traditional Chinese medicine, to create small dolls that depict critical scenes from society. With Augustina Cai as moderator and a live streaming conversation with master Qiū Yíshēng.
16.00 – 16.45	Chinoiserie, Object-Kinship & Diasporic Identity with artist and jewellery maker isabel wang pontoppidan Stemming from an on-going fascination with Chinoiserie, this talk examines the role of decorative objects in the formation of Chinese diasporic identity. As a hybrid style in-between East and West, Chinoiserie inspires many questions about the aesthetics of Chineseness and Europeanness, and how these might be co-constructed. The artist will also share a recent project produced as her own version of Chinoiserie, a gesture towards embracing complexity and unsettling the binary East vs. West relationship.

In the Made in China exhibition

Tours with Chinese block printing activity at 1.30 pm and 2.30 pm

Guided tour of Made in China in Mandarin Chinese by Xinwu Luo - from 12 noon to 1 pm and 2 pm to 3 pm