HKMoA’s massive exhibit “Blooming: The Art of Gardens in East and West” reveals today (with pictures)
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The “Blooming: The Art of Gardens in East and West” exhibit will be staged at the Hong Kong Museum of Art (HKMoA) beginning with tomorrow (April 24). The exhibit includes over 100 sets of chosen paintings and artefacts from the Palace Museum in Beijing, the Art Institute of Chicago (AIC) in the United States, the Palace of Versailles in France and the HKMoA, provided together for the very first time in Hong Kong, consisting of paintings, prints, lacquerware, sculpture, ceramics and glass wares, welcoming visitors to check out the marvels and enjoyable of gardens in the East and West from a fresh point of view.
Dealing with the opening event held today (April 23), the Secretary for Culture, Sports and Tourism, Miss Rosanna Law, stated that this exploring exhibit, which started at the Palace Museum in 2025 and showed up in Hong Kong today, links the local culture of the East and West through historic gardens. The HKMoA, as the grand ending, will specifically include a choice of art treasures. The exhibit not just completely showcases the distinguishing characteristics of gardens from East and West and the abundant cultural heritage from various areas, however likewise highlights Hong Kong’s essential function as a window for shared exchange and knowing in between Chinese and Western civilisations. She included that the nation supporters “shaping tourism with cultural activities and promoting culture through tourism”Culture and tourist have actually constantly been extremely complementary to each other. With Labour Day Golden Week approaching, she thinks the exhibit will draw in regional art fans and travelers, in addition to increase usage in the surrounding location.
Other officiating visitors consisted of Deputy Director of the Palace Museum Mr Wang Yuegong; the Deputy Chairman of the Institute of Philanthropy and Trustee of the Hong Kong Jockey Club Charities Trust, Mrs Ann Kung; the Pritzker Chair of Arts of Asia and the Executive Director of Initiatives in Asia of the AIC, Dr Wang Tao; the Chairman of the Art Sub-committee of the Museum Advisory Committee, Professor Desmond Hui; the Acting Director of Leisure and Cultural Services, Miss Eve Tam; and the Museum Director of the HKMoA, Dr Maria Mok.
This exhibit acts as a guide to garden looks. Curated around a main style of garden landscaping and ingeniously utilizing set styles by the curatorial group, the exhibit takes the audience on a journey through the threefold experience of garden landscaping, activities in the garden and the gratitude of art work influenced by garden culture, enabling them to value the grand gardens of kings and nobles, consisting of Emperor Qianlong of the Qing dynasty and King Louis XIV of France.
Emphasize displays consist of the “Spring Ablution at the Orchid Pavilion” by Wen Zhengming, among the “Four Masters of Wu School” from the Ming dynasty, which recreates the event at the Orchid Pavilion, a scene long commemorated through the calligraphy of Wang Xizhi of the Eastern Jin Dynasty, from the collection of the Palace Museum; the magnificence of royal gardens in the Qing dynasty is shown in the “Imperial Summer Resort”which incorporates conventional blue-and-green painting functions with Western viewpoint methods; the “Nanxi Thatched Hall” by Ming dynasty painter Wen Boren, which illustrates the perfect garden retreat of Jiangnan literati where the home mixes perfectly with nature; Monet’s “Water Lilies” and “Water Lily Pond” from the AIC; and Zhang Daqian’s “Entrance of Bade Garden” and “Splashed-colour Landscape” from the HKMoA’s collection, highlighting the visions of 2 masters and using visitors motivation for garden style. Other emphasize displays consist of “The Enceladus Fountain” and “The Water Theatre” from the Palace of Versailles.
Significant garden owners such as Emperor Qianlong, King Louis XIV of France, Claude Monet and Zhang Daqian “share” the stories behind the production of their renowned gardens through audio guides and interactive kiosks. The exhibit includes a scenographic entertainment of the Orchid Pavilion Gathering in the education corner, improved with innovation to supply visitors with an immersive experience. Through interactive engagement with a virtual white wine cup, visitors can take pleasure in the charm of flowering flowers. A DIY package is consisted of with the limited-edition exhibit handout. Visitors can likewise download the directions and extra paper patterns utilizing the QR code on the handout and create their perfect garden with their preferred components, enhancing the experience beyond their check out.
The exhibit will range from April 24 to July 29 at the Special Gallery on the 2nd flooring of the HKMoA (10 Salisbury Road, Tsim Sha Tsui, Kowloon). Admission is complimentary. The exhibit is co-presented by the Leisure and Cultural Services Department and the Palace Museum in collaboration with the AIC, and is co-organised by the HKMoA and the Palace Museum in collaboration with the AIC. It is specifically sponsored by the Institute of Philanthropy.
To guarantee a much better going to experience, crowd control steps for the exhibit will be executed with versatility. In case of overcrowding, timed admission ticketing might be organized. Visitors are encouraged to follow on-site notifications and to remain upgraded through HKMoA’s main site, Instagram, Facebook or VisitHKMuseums on Xiaohongshu.
The HKMoA will arrange a series of unique programs, consisting of assisted trips, talks and workshops. The very first talk from the “Zoom-in World Treasures” Talk Series will be hung on April 25 at 2.30 pm at The Hall at the HKMoA. The speaker, Senior Engineer of the Heritage Architecture Department of the Palace Museum, Ms Li Yue, will share her insights on Qianlong Garden: Art, Legacy and Conservation.
For information of the exhibit and activities, please see hk.art.museum/ en/web/ma/ exhibitions-and-events/blooming-the-art-of-gardens-in-east-and-west. html.