Chinese calligraphy, mehndi, origami art. Tried unusual hobbies from Asian countries
November 21, 2025
At the F.-ART.by - 2025 Republican Festival of Creativity of International Students, held at the National Center for Artistic Creativity of Children and Youth, participants from various countries conducted special master classes. Sri Lanka, China, Japan, Turkmenistan – everyone had the opportunity to touch upon new cultures through their traditional art forms. A BELTA correspondent found out and tried what was presented to the Belarusian public.Mehndi, India and Sri LankaThe first stop was the stand of students from Sri Lanka. A queue of people wishing to try mehndi lined up around it. This is a special type of tattoo made with natural henna. The main advantage of such a drawing is that it is not permanent, lasting on the skin for several weeks.One of the artists, Dilakshi Bamunusinghe, said that mehndi is part of Indian culture. Previously, only women applied patterns to themselves, and each symbol has its own meaning. Usually, these are simple, visually symmetrical symbols. Most often, mehndi serves as a decorative element.
The tattoo is applied very easily, as if with a brush. Getting such an interesting body decoration takes very little time, and the drawing remains a temporary reminder of a bright event. You can choose any picture from the internet, and if you wish, you can learn to do it at home.Calligraphy, China
Calligraphy is one of the oldest arts of China, dating back five thousand years. It is not just the writing of symbols, but also Chinese philosophy, with each master having their own style of depiction. At the master class, several young women demonstrate the mesmerizing process of writing and invite everyone to join.
Senior lecturer of Russian as a foreign language Tatyana Denisenko said that when Chinese students want to introduce representatives of other nationalities to their culture, they first demonstrate calligraphy. "As a rule, calligraphers write traditional expressions or wishes for happiness, health, and success. New Year's wishes are usually written on rhombuses, which are hung on doors on the eve of the holiday. Now the girls have simply chosen hieroglyphs for the beauty of the pattern, for example, 'sea'," she shared.
Chinese women in national costume told us what distinguishes a good calligrapher. When determining a master, the manner of writing strokes is very important. Each person uses different brushes and degrees of pressure, line thickness. The girls also demonstrate their skill and write characters with special ink. Around them are many examples of their creativity: on round sheets, squares, and even huge scrolls, which are shown to us unrolled. By the way, special sheets are used for calligraphy.Cuisine, TurkmenistanOf course, the most famous dish of Turkmen cuisine is pilaf, which has been prepared in Central Asian countries for over 2.5 thousand years. It is interesting that pilaf recipes vary depending on the country. For example, in Uzbek pilaf, which I had the opportunity to try before, vegetables and spices are more pronounced, the carrots are cut larger, which makes the taste very bright. Turkmen pilaf can be called calmer - fewer spices and an emphasis on small vegetables, even the rice itself turned out to be more overcooked and soft.
Students from Turkmenistan prepared a dessert called Gatma Halide (meaning "mixed"). This simple dish combines flour, cookies, waffles, and chocolate, and visually resembles a milk pudding with waffle pieces inside.Origami, JapanNatsumi Horiuchi introduced the art of origami. The young woman speaks Russian well and guided participants on how to fold paper corners, make proper creases, and choose the right paper shade. The unique aspect of origami is that most figures require no additional tools, except for tape needed to make a ball. We were offered two options: a classic crane and a helmet. We chose the latter and began.
During the learning process, one mentally travels back to elementary school when doing something similar for the first time. As one gets older, the figures become more precise, there's no desire to rush, and the process is very relaxing.Going HomeOur students from BSUCI also prepared a series of masterclasses for the international students. Together, they made special clay cubes and painted them with special paint. When combined, the small pieces formed a mosaic. A student from Central Asia drew a cornflower pattern alongside the Belarusians. Karina Matvienko from the Department of Decorative and Applied Arts conducted a masterclass in ceramic sculpting. "I found ceramics to be a craft suitable for the soul. Now, any observer can watch the process and join in. The secret to a beautiful piece is love for one's craft," the young woman noted.