The Chinese people's growing enthusiasm for art is also giving rise to fakes and frauds. In fact, the art market has become rife with the illegal copies.

The Huangcheng Art Trading Center, the Chinese government-sponsored art trading center, was officially opened in Beijing on October 11.

To fight the problem, a government-sponsored art trading center was officially opened in Beijing on Monday. It aims to restore order to the market.

The Ministry of Culture is behind the Huangcheng Art Trading Center. Distinct from auction houses and antique corporations, the center will incorporate art display, appraisal, and trading.

Lv Lixing, general manager of Huangcheng Art Trading Center, said, "The major concern with collectors is whether an art item is genuine or not. You can be rest assured about this in our center, as we have an appraisal committee made up of over 300 experts."

These experts were assembled by the Ministry of Culture in 2006 to provide consultation and educate a passionate army of art lovers.

The trading center is also consulted in order to complete the compilation of "China National File of Fine Arts in the 20th Century".

Luminaries such as Qi Baishi, Xu Beihong and Li Kuchan will be included in the first edition of the compilation.