Riding the Wave of Free Trade Port Development: The 2026 First Bolan Bonsai Premium Invitational Exhibition Grandly Opens in Dongfang, Hainan

By Guangzhou Baowen Gardens · June 10, 2026

Leveraging the opportunity of the island-wide customs closure operation of the Hainan Free Trade Port and closely following the local industrial development layout of 'duty-free + tourism' and 'duty-free + culture', the first China Bolan Bonsai Fine Works Invitational Exhibition 2026, the 5th Hainan Province Bonsai Exhibition, and the Dongfang City Ornamental Stone Fine Works Exhibition officially opened on April 18 at the Yuntian Treasure Garden in Dongfang City. The exhibition is jointly hosted by the Dongfang Municipal People's Government and Bonsai Clubs International (BCI), and co-organized by the BCI China Committee, the Bonsai Clubs International (USA) Guangdong Office, the Hainan Provincial Bonsai Professional Committee, the Dongfang Yuntian Treasure Garden, and Guangzhou Baowen Garden, among others. Supporting units include the Dongfang Municipal Party Committee Publicity Department, the Municipal Tourism, Culture, Radio, Television and Sports Bureau, the Forestry Bureau, and other departments, with the Dongfang Ornamental Stone Association and other institutions as co-organizers. The exhibition runs from April 17 to 21.

This exhibition is a public welfare, non-profit cultural event, with no fees for exhibitors or visitors. It brings together fine works from many regions across the country, displaying over 300 exquisite Bolan bonsai from various provinces, cities, and regions including Hong Kong, Macao, and Taiwan, as well as over 100 local Dongfang characteristic ornamental stones. The bonsai works on display are collected from Hainan, Guangdong, Guangxi, Fujian, Jiangsu, Zhejiang, Shanghai, Chongqing, Hong Kong, Macao, Taiwan, Henan, and other places, showcasing the Hainan characteristic bonsai art represented by Bolan and the Dongfang ornamental stone collection culture. The opening ceremony was co-hosted by Hainan Broadcasting Group hosts Chen Aijing and Yu Lü. The ceremony began with a Dongfang city promotional video, comprehensively promoting Dongfang's cultural tourism resources and the achievements of the free trade port construction. Taking advantage of the cultural tourism boom of the Li ethnic group's traditional festival 'San Yue San' (March 3rd), it promotes the deep integration of traditional bonsai and stone art with the local cultural tourism industry.

At the opening ceremony, the organizers grandly introduced the lineup of distinguished guests. Present were Zhong Haitao, Director of the Standing Committee of the Dongfang Municipal People's Congress; Lin Anbin, former Vice Chairman of the Hainan Provincial Committee of the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference; Li Yongchun, former Secretary of the Dongfang Municipal Party Committee; Meng Songwu, Member of the Standing Committee of the Dongfang Municipal Party Committee and Executive Vice Mayor; Pei Qiuyu, former Director of the Standing Committee of the Dongfang Municipal People's Congress; Fu Hongli, former Chairman of the Dongfang Municipal Committee of the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference; Huang Kuilin, former Deputy Secretary of the Dongfang Municipal Party Committee; Zeng Yuxiong, Deputy Director of the Standing Committee of the Dongfang Municipal People's Congress; Wang Suizhen, Vice Mayor of Dongfang City; Wang Jianing, Vice Chairman of the Dongfang Municipal Committee of the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference; Chen Jian, Level 3 Researcher of the Hainan Provincial Ethnic Affairs Committee; Qin Guohua, Deputy Director of the United Front Work Department of the Municipal Party Committee and Secretary of the Party Committee of the Federation of Industry and Commerce; Guo Yinliang, Chairman of the Dongfang Federation of Industry and Commerce; Liu Xianjue, Director of the Dongfang Municipal Government Office; Zhong Zhenqin, Secretary of the Dongfang Municipal Development and Reform Commission; Zhuang Tian, Director of the Dongfang Municipal Tourism, Culture, Radio, Television and Sports Bureau, and other leaders. Industry leaders from home and abroad gathered, including Chen Chang, President of Bonsai Clubs International (BCI); BCI Directors Susan Lee, Sulistio Budi, Liu Chuangang; Alex Tangkulung, President of the Indonesian Bonsai Association; Michael Morden, President of the Philippine Bonsai and Stone Appreciation Alliance, and others. Also present were BCI China Executive Vice Presidents Tang Senlin, Yang Xingzhu, Huang Lianhui, Wang Zhensheng; BCI China Vice Presidents Chen Zhaonian, Wang Shijie, Wei Jiquan, Zhou Kuanxiang, Wang Deguo, Yan Tao, Guan Yinhai, Luo Zerong, Ding Shaohong, He Xiaobing; Chen Zhongying, Vice President of the China Ornamental Stone Association; Xu Dongting, Secretary-General of BCI China; Deputy Secretaries-General Chen Mo, Wang Kui, Deng Xiaotao, Shi Xiaoxi, Luo Zhijie, Hou Minggang, Huang He, Wang Youyou, Xie Xinqing, Lin Xingbiao; International Bonsai Masters Xia Guoyu, Zhang Xianjue, Zhang Huiming, Lin Xuezhao, Hu Dayu, Wang Liyong; BCI China Masters Zhang Fulu, Lu Xinyi; Chinese Bonsai Art Masters Xing Jinke, Shen Baiping, Lu Zhiwei, Luo Chuanzhong; International Bonsai Masters Xia Guoyu, Zhang Xianjue, Zhang Huiming, Lin Xuezhao, Hu Dayu, Wang Liyong; Lan Wufa, Chairman of the Hong Kong Bonsai and Stone Appreciation Society; Cui Xiquan, Vice Chairman of the Hong Kong Bonsai and Stone Appreciation Society; Cai Zizhang, President of the Bonsai Branch of the Fujian Flower Association; Wu Guorong, Executive Vice President of the Shanghai Bonsai and Stone Appreciation Association; Zheng Wenguo, Chairman of the Xinjiang Landscape Architecture Society; Huang Jinguo, President of the Shandong Bonsai Association; Lin Wen and Xu Jie, Advisors of the Hainan Provincial Bonsai Professional Committee; Xing Yishi, Chairman of Hainan Longquan Group; The event gathered prominent figures including Wang Tieliang, General Manager of Wang Shouyi Thirteen Spices; Wei Yudong, President of the Dongfang Ornamental Stone Association; and Wang Jingli, General Manager of Yuntian Group, along with leaders from bonsai and stone appreciation associations across Hainan's cities and counties, bonsai masters from across the country, renowned industry entrepreneurs, and representatives from dozens of bonsai and mainstream media outlets such as "Flower and Bonsai", "Bonsai World", Hainan Daily, and Hainan Broadcasting.

During the speech segment, Executive Vice Mayor Meng Songwu, grounded in the actual development of Dongfang city, elaborated on the development approach of empowering the local "duty-free + cultural tourism" strategy through the bonsai and stone appreciation industry, focusing on the integration of cultural tourism within the free trade port. BCI President Chen Chang, from the perspective of the global bonsai industry, discussed international cultural cooperation and industry development prospects. Leaders of the bonsai industry from the Philippines and Indonesia shared their overseas industry development experiences and looked forward to cross-border artistic exchanges. Liu Chuangang, a leading figure in Hainan's bonsai industry and a BCI director, detailed the achievements of Hainan's bonsai industry over the years and, based on local resources, pointed out the path for the industrialization and specialization of Bolan bonsai.

The series of award ceremonies was an important part of the opening ceremony. The conference first held the BCI Outstanding Contribution Recognition Ceremony, where six industry masters who have long been dedicated to Sino-foreign bonsai exchanges—Chen Chang, Zhou Kuanxiang, Tang Senlin, Huang Lianhui, Liu Chuangang, and Yang Xingzhu—were awarded BCI Outstanding Contribution Certificates, presented on-site by overseas BCI directors Susan Lee and Sulistio Budi. The event also completed the certification of new BCI China positions: Wang Shijie was appointed Vice Chairman of BCI China, and five practitioners—Xie Xinqing, Hou Minggang, Zhang Zelin, Long Jun, and Huang He—assumed the role of new Deputy Secretaries-General. The organizing committee also specially invited renowned artists from home and abroad to form a professional judging and supervisory team, and on-site, issued appointment certificates to all judges and supervisors, reinforcing the professionalism and authority of the exhibition's evaluation.

The ribbon-cutting ceremony brought the opening event to a climax. Leaders and masters including Zhong Haitao, Lin Anbin, Meng Songwu, Chen Chang, and foreign guests from multiple countries took the stage together to cut the ribbon. Director Zhong Haitao officially declared the exhibition open. After the ribbon-cutting, all attending guests gathered in front of the exhibition hall for a group photo. Subsequently, six domestic bonsai art masters took turns on stage to conduct live practical creation demonstrations, showcasing bonsai styling techniques up close.

This exhibition, held in Dongfang, is an important implementation project for Hainan to align with the island-wide customs closure milestone and to carry out the "duty-free + culture" development strategy. Using bonsai and stone appreciation as cultural carriers, the exhibition connects channels for art display, cultural tourism consumption, and regional specialty industry linkages. It not only builds an international exchange platform for the interconnection of the bonsai and stone appreciation industries at home and abroad, but also further promotes Dongfang's distinctive cultural brand, aiding the quality improvement and upgrading of Hainan Free Trade Port's characteristic cultural tourism industry.