A Modern Exhibition on an Ancient Treasure Opens on International Museum Day

Curator of the Palace Museum Shan Jixiang makes a keynote speech at the opening ceremony of an exhibition on the masterpiece Life Along the Bian River at the Pure Brightness Festival on May 18, International Museum Day, in the Forbidden City in Beijing
Liu Changle, Chairman and CEO of Phoenix TV, delivers a keynote speech at the opening ceremony
The entrance to the exhibition
Visitors watch a display showcasing a digital edition of the original artwork in the first part of the exhibition
The Sun Yangdian Interactive Theater Space. The Sun Yangdian Interactive Theatre Space offers visitors the chance to experience how the people of the Northern Song people lived their daily life in a 360 immersive space. Moving, lifelike scenes are visible through the window, the sound of music audible as the songs of Bianjing’s inhabitants float across the air.
The interior of the Sun Yangdian Interactive Theater Space
The path to the third part of the exhibition; a touch screen display which responds to movement of visitor’s feet
The 4D Fulldome Cinema, where audiences take a boat along the Bian River. In front of them the water rushes by, framed by the branches of willows. This unique exploration of one of China’s national treasures, and the shareable form of the installation, allows museums to break the barriers of time and space, letting audiences feel and enjoy a city in the distant past. For foreign visitors, such an experience transcends language, culture and historical context, allowing them direct access to the wonders of Chinese civilization.
The 4D fulldome cinema
Visitors experience a cultural space in the fourth part of the exhibition focusing on the lifestyle of people in the Northern Song Dynasty
A map of the Forbidden City with the location of the exhibition. The exhibition hall is marked by the star, east of Baohedian, west of the Xiqingmen Gate, north of Jianting, and south of the Fengxianmen Gate.

This year, May 18 marks the 42^nd International Museum Day and the launch of a high-tech interactive art exhibition based on the ancient Chinese painting Life Along the Bian River at the Pure Brightness Festival (Qingming Shang He Tu) at the Archery Pavilion (Jianting) in the Palace Museum, made possible via a partnership between the museum and Phoenix Satellite Television.

The theme chosen for this year’s International Museum Day is "Hyperconnected Museums: New approaches, new publics." The Palace Museum’s exhibition is offering audiences a novel and immersive experience which is highly consistent with this theme. It is an innovative exploration of a masterpiece created by the painter Zhang Zeduan during the Northern Song Dynasty (960-1127) and currently curated by the museum.

Visitors can make reservations on the Palace Museum’s official website to experience the exhibition free of charge following an initial trial period.

Copyedited by Laurence Coulton