芶思，建一座“可以吃的博物館”

　　“五味調和，百味生香，以味為魂”，名列中國八大菜系的川菜，如今已香飄四海。川菜館開始林立于西方城市，麻婆豆腐風靡全球，花椒飛出國門，麻遍全世界。

　　2010年2月，成都被聯合國教科文組織授予“世界美食之都”榮譽稱號。高度發達的美食行業、專業的美食機構、大量的優秀廚師和傳統的烹飪技巧，使之成為亞洲第一個獲此殊榮的城市。它擁有中國和世界范圍內的數十項“第一”，包括中國最早的釀酒工廠、最早的茶文化中心和第一個菜系產業基地，火鍋、油茶、龍抄手、麻婆豆腐、黃辣丁……“舌尖上的成都”驚艷著食客的味蕾，成為這座城市閃亮的名片。

　　川菜是從什么時候有的，經歷了哪些發展演變？辣椒沒有進入中國之前川菜是什么樣的？為什么郫縣豆瓣被譽為“川菜之魂”？為什么抄手皮是方的，而餃子皮是圓的……這些問題都能在成都川菜博物館找到答案。

　　占地40余畝的川菜博物館，以川西民居建筑風格和川式園林構筑起獨特的古蜀文化風景。博物館藏品眾多，僅典藏館就收藏了6000多件各個歷史時期的實物和典籍，其中不乏重量級的藏品，清代康熙年間的“四開光山水人物紋泡菜壇”就是“鎮館之寶”之一。

　　川菜博物館從藏品征集、籌備到建成，歷經數十年，于2007年5月18日開館，老館長是芶思的父親。芶思見證了川菜博物館誕生的整個過程，從小耳濡目染，讓他深深愛上了這項事業。2010年，芶思從國外留學歸來，父親與他進行了一次長談。談話中，芶思講到自己對川菜博物館的發展規劃，父親聽后覺得很有見地，便有意將博物館交給他管理。

成都川菜博物館館長芶思。

　　剛開始，芶思內心雖然有憧憬和激動，也難免忐忑。后來，在父親的鼓勵下，他決定接手博物館，將自己心中所描畫的藍圖一步步變為現實。

　　芶思秉承了老館長建設川菜博物館的初心——更好地傳承和弘揚川菜文化。但是在實現的路徑上，他有自己的想法。以前，對于如何弘揚川菜文化，大多數人的想法是：開川菜館，開更多的川菜館。川菜博物館也未能免俗，開了餐廳，生意也還不錯。

　　芶思接手川菜博物館的第四年，做了一件當時看起來非常“叛逆”的事：停掉了博物館的餐廳業務——盡管這是當時川菜博物館主要的收入來源。他投入500余萬元，將原來的餐廳升級改造，全面轉型，打造互動體驗文旅項目。

　　一時間，博物館突然斷掉了收入來源，又要投入大量的資金進行升級改造，而博物館運營的人工、水電等各項開支一樣不少，資金“壓力山大”。那段時間，跑銀行、到處找資金成了芶思的家常便飯。

　　其實，這次轉型升級并非芶思心血來潮。他和團隊前期做了大量的調研和推演，足跡遍及北京、廣州、鄭州、桂林，甚至泰國、新加坡，為打磨互動型新項目做了充足的準備。

　　功夫不負有心人，2015年“玩川菜——川菜文化互動體驗之旅”一經推出，就以其顛覆性的參觀體驗贏得了廣大游客的喜愛。在全新的川菜博物館里，游客不但可以靜態參觀，通過典藏館陳列的數千藏品了解川菜的歷史文化，還可以眼觀、鼻聞、口嘗，親自參與互動，體驗川菜的刀工火候、色香味形，全方位感受川菜文化的魅力。參與性和互動性大大增強，豐富了“一座可以吃的博物館”的內涵和外延，實現了讓參觀“動起來”、讓文化“活起來”的暢想。

青花四開光山水人物紋泡菜壇。

　　也正是這次成功的轉型，為川菜博物館后續的延伸教育和文化服務類活動的開展打下基礎。目前，第一批從事雙語川菜國際化教育的師資力量和大量的外籍川菜學員已經從“川菜國際化教育示范培訓基地”培訓結業，川菜文化將通過他們走向更廣闊的世界。

　　自川菜博物館建成開館至今，已經過去15個年頭。從開館時的少人問津，到2019年年接待游客量突破60萬人，再到今年被評為“全國科普基地”“優秀省級科普基地”，芶思深感自豪。

　　2022年4月，成都市第十四次黨代會提出，要保護傳承川菜、川茶、川酒等“老字號”文化和技藝，建設國家美食文化交流創新中心，打響“舌尖上的成都”美食品牌。

　　這正是川菜博物館的使命和發展方向。芶思說：“我們應該不忘初心，守住優秀傳統文化，這是我們的文化之根和精神命脈，會源源不斷地供給我們營養和智慧。同時也要融會貫通，將優秀傳統文化學以致用，在應用中傳承。"
 

　　In 2018,Fuchsia Dunlop,a British,appeared in the food documentary Once Upon a Bite,speaking in authentic Sichuan dialect as she hung around a Chengdu food market:"Master,what kind of chili is this?Do you have the Er Jing Tiao(atype of peper as seasoning for Sichuan cuisine)?"Over the years,she has reproduced the Sichuan flavor of 200 classic dishes in her London kitchen,and these dishes include fish flavored pork slices,Kung Pao chicken,sliced beef and ox tongue in chili sauce,which have already been familiar to the customers,and the unique Qiaotou Yinen,water Tofu pudding,and baked egg pancake.

　　"Five flavors are harmonious,all flavors are combined together to produce delicacy,and taste is the soul".Sichuan cuisine,one of the eight major cuisines in China,is now popular all over the

　　world.Sichuan restaurants have begun to stood in great numbers in the cities of Western countries,Mapo Tofu has become popular all over the world,and Sichuan pepper have flown abroad and been spread all over the world.

　　In February 2010,Chengdu was awarded the honorary title of"City of Gastronomy"by UNESCO.The highly developed gourmet food industry,the professional gourmet food institutes,and a number of excellent chefs and their traditional cooking skills have made Chengdu the first Asian city to win this special honor.It owns dozens of"firsts"in China and the world,including the first winery in China,the first tea culture center and the first culinary industry base,hot pot,oil tea,Long Chaoshou,

　　Mapo tofu,and yellow cartfish,..."A bite of Chengdu"amazes the taste buds of diners and becomes a shining name card of Chengdu.

The traditional craftsmanship demonstration zone for Pixian pea sauce and Zhongba soy source.

　　When did Sichuan cuisine come into being and how has it evolved?What was Sichuan cuisine like before chili came to China?Why is Pixian Horsebean Chili Paste known as the"soul of Sichuan cuisine"?Why is the Chaoshou wrapper square and the dumpling wrapper round?...These questions can be answered at the Chengdu Sichuan Cuisine Museum.

　　The Sichuan Cuisine Museum,covering an area of more than 40 mu,has been built in a style of western Sichuan dwellings and the structure of Sichuan style garden,which forms a unique cultural landscape of ancient Kindom of Shu in Chinese history.The Museum has a large amount of collection,among which more than 6000 pieces of objects and ancient records from different historical periods have been exhibited in the Collection Hall.Some of these collections are invaluable.For example,the"Four-Opening Pickle Jar with Landscape and Figure Pattern"in the Kangxi Period of the Qing Dynasty is one of the"treasures of the Museum".

Cyan glazed plates in Yuan dynasty.

Bowls printed with colored dragon and phoenix in the years of Emperor Guangxu, Qing dynasty.

Yellow and green glazed chopsticks box for armoured generals in Qing dynasty.

　　After decades of collection,preparation and construction,the Sichuan Cuisine Museum was opened on May 18,2007.The former curator was Gou Si's father.Gou Si witnessed the whole process of the birth of the Sichuan Cuisine Museum.He deeply fell in love with the career since he was influenced from childhood.In 2010,when Gou Si returned from overseas study,his father had a long talk with him.During the talk,Gou Si revealed his plan for the development of the Sichuan Cuisine Museum,and Gou's father thought that his idea was very insightful,thereby allowing him to take over the business of museum management.

　　At the beginning,Gou Si was excited and ambitious but felt uneasy inevitably.Later,encouraged by his father,Gou decided to take over the museum to turn his blueprint into reality step by step.

　　Gou Si stayed true to the original aspiration of the former curator when he built the Sichuan Cuisine Museum-to better pass down and promote Sichuan cuisine culture.But he had his own ideas on the path to realization.In the past,most people hold the view that building and opening more Sichuan restaurants is an effective way to promote Sichuan cuisine culture.The Sichuan Cuisine Museum had also opened the restaurants,which ran well.

Exterior view of Chengdu Sichuan Cuisine Museum.

　　In the 4th year since he took over the Sichuan Cuisine Museum,Gou Si did a thing that seemed very"rebellious"at that time:he shut down the restaurants of the Museum,even though they were the main source of income for the Museum at that time.He invested more than RMB 5 million to upgrade and comprehensively transform the original restaurants,creating cultural tourism projects for interactive experience.

　　The museum suddenly lost its main source of income,and a large sum of fund had to be invested in the upgradation and transformation.Operating costs of the Museum,like labor expenses and utlity fees,also put huge financial pressure on Gou.During that time,it was not unusual for Gou Si to visit banks to seek help and raise fund everywhere.

　　In fact,this transformation and upgradation of the Museum was not a whim of Gou Si.He and his team did a lot of research and analysis in the early stage,leaving the footprints in Beijing,Guangzhou,Zhengzhou,Guilin,and even Thailand and Singapore,to make adequate preparation for the development of new interactive projects.

　　The hard work eventually pays off.In 2015,once the"Play Sichuan Cuisine Interactive Experience Tour of Sichuan Cuisine Culture"was launched,it gained the favor of tourists for the fire new visiting experience.In the entirely new Sichuan Cuisine Museum,visitors can not only take a static tour to get known the historical culture of Sichuan cuisine through thousands of collections displayed in the Collection Hall,but also watch,smell and taste Sichuan cuisine,personally experiencing the cutting technique and heating in the process of making Sichuan cuisine,as well as the color,shape,flavor,taste of the dishes,to feel the charm of Sichuan cuisine culture in an all-round way.The participation and interaction have been greatly enhanced,enriching the connotation and extension of"an edible museum",and realizing the vision of making visits"active"and culture"alive".

　　This successful transformation has laid foundation for the followup activities of extended educational and cultural services in Sichuan Cuisine Museum.At present,the first batch of bilingual teachers engaged in international education of Sichuan cuisine and a number of foreign Sichuan cuisine students have completed the training from the"Demonstration and Training Base for International Education of Sichuan Cuisine".With their help,Sichuan cuisine culture will be better understood by the rest of the world.

　　It has been 15 years since the Sichuan Cuisine Museum was opened.While at first the Museum was visited by few people,it received more than 600,000 visitors in 2019,and this year,it is awarded as"National Science Popularization Base"and"Excellent Provincial Science Popularization Base".Gou Si is deeply proud of that.

　　In April 2022,the 14th Party Congress of Chengdu proposed to conserve and pass down the"time honored"culture,skills and art such as Sichuan cuisine,Sichuan tea and Sichuan wine,and build a national center for food cultural exchange and innovation,to make"A bite of Chengdu"more resounding and known to more people.

Chengdu Sichuan Cuisine Museum.

Tureen printed with blue and white flowers in the years of Emperor Guangxu in Qing dynasty.

　　This is the mission and development direction of Sichuan Cuisine Museum.Gou Si said:"We should stay true to the original aspiration and keep up the excellent traditional culture.This is the root of our culture and spiritual lifeblood,and will continue to provide us with nutrition and wisdom.In addition,we should also perceive how and why,putting the excellent traditional culture into practice,and inherit it in application."