Visitors to the Ginza Museum of Art in Tokyo got a firsthand view of traditional printmaking last week as a part of the Shizhuzhai Oriental Art Culture Week. The practice has roots in China and shows the shared cultural history of the two countries.

The activity attracted scholars and artists from China and Japan, who had extensive discussions on traditional Chinese art.

The artwork on show is called "Shizhuzhai jianpu," which means a collection of letter papers from the Ten Bamboo Studio in Chinese. It is a technique of woodblock printmaking. 

Woodblock prints are often recognized as a Japanese art form, but the practice actually began in China. They first appeared in the Tang Dynasty (618-907) and reached their peak in the Ming Dynasty (1368-1644), where they represented traditional Chinese aesthetics.

The technique was designated a national-level intangible cultural heritage in 2014. 

"The purpose of the exhibition is to let more Japanese people understand Chinese culture and art so that we can contribute to cultural exchanges between China and Japan," said Chen Weiguo, director of the China Shizhuzhai Art Museum.

Forty Chinese and Japanese students were taught the woodblock printmaking technique at the event. Visitors were also able to to get hands-on experience.