Prince William launched his four-day visit to China today with a ceremony to bring good fortune . The second in line to the throne found himself in the unusual position of having to paint the eyes on a larger than life sheep - British cartoon character Shaun the Sheep , no less . 'You know I ca n't do two things at once , ' he joked with the photographers who asked him to pose up with his artwork . Scroll down for video . Prince William smiles as he paints the eyes on a Shaun the Sheep model during a ceremony in China . The Prince is on a four-day visit to China with the sheep-marking ceremony signalled the launch of the first ever Year of Cultural Exchange between the UK and China . He added approvingly : 'It 's not particularly stylish but it will pass . ' The sheep-marking ceremony signalled the launch of the first ever Year of Cultural Exchange between the UK and China , a showcase of innovation for British goods and services . In the Chinese calendar this is the Year of the Sheep - and with Aardman Animation 's Shaun being the UK 's most famous export of the species , the British Council thought it might be fun to marry the two . The ceremony took place in the gardens of the residence of the British Ambassador , Barbara Woodward . William was shown five sculptures of Shaun , each decorated by a different artist , which are among 50 such sculptures to be displayed across China and later auctioned off in aid of the Beijing Cultural Development Fund . In the Chinese calendar this is the Year of the Sheep - and with Aardman Animation 's Shaun being the UK 's most famous export of species , the British Council thought it might be fun to marry the two . The prince joked with photographers who wanted him to pose and paint the eyes on the sheep , saying 'You know I ca n't do two things at once ' The prince gamely agreed to finish decorating a particularly patriotic animal , covered in the Union Flag , by painting his eyes . Dotting the eyes of the traditional lions used in Lion Dances is thought to bring good fortune and happiness - and it is hoped that by William doing this he will bring such benefits to the Year of Cultural Exchange . It also ties in with the Chinese idiom 'san yang kai tai ' , which means 'the advent of Spring brings prosperity ' . The prince was accompanied by Sajid Javid , Secretary of State for Culture , Media and Sport , who said : 'We are incredibly proud of our creative industries , they are one of our biggest success stories and a tremendous driver of economic growth . Crowds of people gathered to catch a glimpse of the second in line to the throne during a visitor to the British ambassador 's official residence in Beijing . Prince William greets a young baby who was brought to the ceremony . The Duke 's visit is the highest-profile visit by a member of the royal family for 30 years . 'The Year of Cultural Exchange will be a wonderful celebration of UK and Chinese creative talent and will help forge new business relations between our two nations . ' Nick Marchand Director of Arts and Creative Industries at the British Embassy said William was a 'fantastic ambassador ' for the UK . 'It 's wonderful that he can be here to launch this for us , ' he said . Earlier William visited Shijia Hutong , an elegantly restored courtyard house , resurrected from dilapidation two years ago with funding from the Prince 's Foundation , set up by his father , Prince Charles . Dressed in a smart suit , the prince was greeted by Matthew Hu , China Representative of the Prince 's School of traditional arts and Drew Ross , the China MD for the Prince 's Foundation . The Duke of Cambridge meets with Chinese children who have physical disabilities on a visit to the Shija Hutong in Beijing . Prince William is guided by Matthew Hu , China 's representative of the Prince 's School of Traditional Arts after meeting disadvantaged children . The Prince also visited Bejing 's Forbidden City where he chatted pleasantly about the weather and remarked on what a nice day it was . Today marks the first of a four day visit to China after the Duke of Cambridge earlier visited Japan . The prince chatted pleasantly about the weather and remarked on what a nice day it was - not realising the air pollution index for Beijing today is 140 , nearly six times the WHO recommended maximum . He also met with groups of disadvantaged rural children in urban Beijing . He chatted about the various challenges they face , and was presented with a small hand-drawn picture , drawn by a 10-year old migrant child from poverty stricken Henan province named Wu Qiuyun . The picture shows a collection of little houses surrounded by foliage and prompted William to 'that will look nice in George 's bedroom ' . He was was also introduced to Zhao Chen , 14 , who is effectively blind and , with the assistance of his mother , learning opera singing . Mr Zhao said : 'My dream is to go to your palace to sing opera ' . Duke replied : 'Well , you 've met the right man . We might be able to arrange something . '
Second in line to the throne launched his today visit to China four-day . He took part in a ceremony in the capital Beijing to bring good fortune . Also painted eyes on model of British cartoon character , Shaun the Sheep . Joked with photographers he could n't multi-task while posing with artwork . Ceremony marks first ever Year of Cultural Exchange between UK and China .