Up the River During Qingming

This exhibition area, themed on riverside life, invites visitors to cross the rainbow bridge and visit the bustling marketplace during the Qingming Festival, witnessing the lively riverside lifestyles of ancient China.

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  Painting Animation—Up the River During Qingming

  Up the River During Qingming is a masterpiece of genre painting, with many replications done over the centuries. This version, completed in 1736, the first year of the Qianlong Emperor's reign, was the collaborative effort of five Qing court artists. The scroll can be divided into several major parts, including the rustic setting at the beginning, arched bridge and market, city wall and surroundings, Pine and Bamboo Hall, and Lake Jinming. In addition to the bustling figures and packed shops, there are also untrammeled literati garden settings and a magnificent imperial garden, creating for a fascinating and visually pleasing atmosphere that makes this painting a microcosm of life in China at the time.

  This installation vividly animates Up the River During Qingming and uses the latest technology and high-resolution projectors to seamlessly unfold the long scroll painting on the wall, inviting audience members to experience the contextual meaning of the Chinese painting scroll and to immerse in the vibrant world along the ancient riverside.

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  Up the River During Qingming

  • Chen Mei, Sun Hu, Jin Kun, Dai Hong, and Cheng Zhidao, Qing Dynasty(1644-1911)
  • Handscroll, ink and colors on silk 1152.8 x 35.6cm

  Chen Mei, Sun Hu, Jin Kun, Dai Hong, and Cheng Zhidao, Qing Dynasty(1644-1911) Handscroll, ink and colors on silk 1152.8 x 35.6cm

  "Up the River During Qingming" is a masterpiece of realistic genre painting, with many copies of it being done over the centuries. This version, a collaborative effort of five Qing court artists—Chen Mei, Sun Hu, Jin Kun, Dai Hong, and Cheng Zhidao, was completed in 1736, the first year of the Qianlong Emperor's reign. Known as the "Qing court version," the handscroll is quite rich, following the styles and contents of previous versions. With its bright coloring and mature brushwork, the ruled-line representation of the architecture and the rendering of the figures are fine and exact. It is an invaluable source of study for both later Ming and Qing society and customs.

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  Must-see Paintings and Calligraphy Interactive Tabletop

  Through the Must-see Paintings and Calligraphy Interactive Tabletop, visitors may zoom in and out of NPM's masterpiece Up the River During Qingming to view minute details of the painting and carefully examine the riverside sceneries and urban landscapes of ancient China. In addition, the Must-see Paintings and Calligraphy Interactive Table contains high-resolution digital images of a number of NPM's classic paintings and calligraphy, liberating the NPM's collection from the limitations of time and location. With this installation, visitors will be able to closely examine NPM's popular artifacts and the natural landscapes painted by the ancient literati, and draw closer to the NPM's rich collection.