A pop-up haven for expression

"I'm retired and have lots of time. Painting fills my life with meaning. I don't have grand ambitions — if others are happy, I'm happy too," she says.

This year, her cheerful energy reached an even wider audience thanks to Migratory Birds 300, part of the 5th Aranya Theater Festival held from June 19 to 29.

Shang was given a space to exhibit her cat drawings at the festival, including a long scroll featuring 250 cats. She also created live works on site during the event.

Each year, the initiative provides about 300 artists of diverse genres with a platform to display their works, create on-site, and collaborate with other artists. They gather at the "sand city", a complex that only exists for 300 hours each year on the beach of Qinhuangdao, Hebei province.

"In the sand city, we want people to slow down, explore each corner, and take it all in. It's not about polished galleries — it's about giving artists a space to create and connect," says Liu Chang, the artistic director of Migratory Birds 300.

According to him, the idea is that even in the most modest places, it is possible to create something meaningful. Within 300 hours, the artists are encouraged to experiment and create while visitors stroll through, finding their own connections with the artworks.

This year's sand city, co-designed by architect Ma Yansong and poet Xi Chuan, was built entirely from recyclable materials for the first time. The modular structures were made from steel scaffolding and polyester fabric recycled from plastic bottles.