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Bamboo
is said to drive away demons. In days gone by, when it was thrown onto
fires, the noise made by the exploding internodes was thought to banish evil
spirits and allow the gods to grant wishes and prayers. In fact, the Malay word
bamboo comes from the very noise it makes. The 'bam' is the dry bang of the internodes
exploding when the air pressure builds up inside, and the escaping air goes 'boo'!
Apart
from food crops, no other plant has had such a profound influence on Chinese
life. Bamboo is part of so many day-to-day objects, that life would be
unimaginable without it. It is abundant, inexpensive and versatile, making it a
strong rival to even such modern substitutes as plastic and metal.
The
artwork seen here is in celebration of all that the bamboo has to offer, not
only to its native land, but also to modern civilization over which it has had
such a universal impact - it is hard to find a single home today that does not
have some form of bamboo in utilitarian or decorative form, don't you agree?
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