Introduction

West Meets East:Retrospective Exhibition of Marc Riboud’s Photography

2024 marks the 60th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic relations between China and France and the "China-France Year of Cultural Tourism". On this significant celebratory year, the Hunan Museum, in collaboration with the Musee National des Arts Asiatiques-Guimet, will hold the West Meets East:Retrospective Exhibition of Marc Riboud’s Photography in the special exhibition hall on the third floor of the Hunan Museum from September 26 to December 10, this exhibition is free to the public. This exhibition is organized by the Hunan Museum and the Musee National des Arts Asiatiques-Guimet, co-organized by the Association Les amis de Marc Riboud, Ambassade de France en Chine and Institut francais de Chine. This exhibition is also an important visual art project of the "2024 Croisements Festival-Special Presentation for the 60th Anniversary of the Establishment of Diplomatic Relations between China and France".

This exhibition selects 118 pieces/sets of classic photographic works by Marc Riboud from the collection of the Musee National des Arts Asiatiques- Guimet, including the valuable photos taken by Marc during his more than 20-times visits to China from 1957 to 2010. With Marc’s acute instinct, unique artistic insight and abundant photographic language, he captured the real pictures of various classes of Chinese society, and objectively introduced the huge transformation of history and society in China from 1950s to 2010 to the West. Marc’s photographic works not only have extremely high artistic value but also monumental historical significance. His works have witnessed great historical changes in China, many classic moments have become the epitome of China in the 20th century.

As Marc Riboud said, "The countries I love are like my friends. I like to see them again and understand their development and changes. Therefore, I often return to China. Everything here is developing faster than in other places. Even a careful person can see the eternity of things under this restless appearance."

Introduction

The Pure Heart of Art, The Nostalgia in Ink -- Exhibition of Su Gaoyu's Works

The Hunan Museum will hold the exhibition “ The Pure Heart of Art, The Nostalgia in Ink -- Exhibition of Su Gaoyu's Works” in the Special Exhibition Hall on the third floor from August 17, 2024 to September 10. The exhibition was jointly hosted by the Hunan Museum, the Hunan Artists Association, the Hunan Provincial Painting Academy, and co-organized by the Publicity Department of the CPC Xiangxi Prefecture Committee.

The exhibition has selected more than 100 pieces (sets) of Su Gao Yu's works, covering Su's creative process of more than 40 years. It is a  retrospective exhibition on stage-by-stage summary.To prominently showcase Su's artistic styles and creative concepts in different periods, this exhibition selected Su’s representative works from each period so that the audience can have a profound comparison when viewing. The curatorial team communicated and coordinated with Su himself many times during the preparation of the exhibition. As the works themselves are mainly expressive freehand painting themed on flower-and-bird, considering the limitation of the exhibition area, in order to maximize the presentation of the characteristics of the works themselves, this exhibition still broke the museum's conventional curatorial method of using time clues as the vein, and eliminated the unit descriptions, so as to allow the works themselves to go to the audience for a dialogue. In terms of the flow of visitors, the form designer, in accordance with the characteristics of the area itself, did not borrow too much from the exhibition wall to set up a diversion area, but took the audience's point of sight as the core, and created a visiting atmosphere in line with the tone of the works step by step. Despite the absence of large-scale thematic works, the expressive freehand paintings themed on flower-and-bird reveal a vast world within small details.

The exhibition strives to foster innovation in contemporary Chinese freehand paintings themed on flower-and-bird and encourage a deeper understanding and preservation of China's rich cultural heritage.

Introduction

画意初心 墨韵乡愁——苏高宇作品展

湖南博物院将于 2024年8月17日至2024年9月10日在三楼特展三厅举办“画意初心 墨韵乡愁——苏高宇作品展”。该展览由湖南博物院、湖南省美术家协会、湖南省画院联合主办，中共湘西州委宣传部协办。

此次展览遴选了苏高宇一百余件（套）作品，涵盖艺术家四十余年的创作历程，是一次阶段性的总结回顾展。为了突出展示艺术家不同时间段的艺术风格和创作理念，我们选取了艺术家各个时期的代表作品，以便观众在观看时能有深刻的对比。策展团队在展览筹备期间，多次与艺术家本人沟通协调，因展品本身主要是大写意花鸟画小品，考虑到展厅展陈面积的限制，为了最大程度地呈现展品本身的特点，依然打破了博物馆常规以时间线索为脉络的策展方式，取消了单元说明和部说明，让作品本身去和观众对话。在参观流线方面，形式设计师按照场馆本身的特点，没有过多借用展墙设置分流区域，而是以观众视点为核心，一步一景营造出符合画面格调的参观氛围。尽管此次展品中没有主题性创作的大制作，几乎都是大写意花鸟画小品，但是我们可以“小中见大，从而见微知著，进而又见一番天地。”

展览旨在积极推动中国当代写意花鸟画的创新和发展，让更多的人了解和传承中华优秀的传统文化。

Introduction

The Flavor of Hunan Ⅱ

“The Flavor of Hunan Ⅱ” delves into the cultural artifacts related to liquor in the Hunan Museum. It combines local liquor customs, liquor culture, and liquor brands of Hunan Province. Through three perspectives — historical humanities, geographical conditions, and liquor customs — it interprets the profound history and tradition of Hunan liquor, its rich artisan culture, abundant revolutionary history, diverse cultural heritage, and intangible cultural legacy.

The exhibition is divided into four major sections, including "Liquor Culture in Hunan Museum" "Brewing Fine Liquor in Hunan" "Brewing Techniques," and "Fragrant Bistro". Through a sensory experience that engages sight, hearing, smell, taste, and touch, it guides the audience to appreciate the charm of Hunan liquor culture.

Introduction

Youth is Meant for Striving: An Exhibition of Youthful Mao Zedong’s Cultural Relics

Over the past century, with every forward stride of the era, the figure of the youth has been reflected, promoting the victory with their beliefs, suppressing the turbulence through diligence, and composing the anthem of the times with their youth.

Youthful Mao Zedong harbored lofty ideals, sought knowledge, tempered revolutionary skills, pursued truth, courageously undertook the mission of national rejuvenation, and harmonized knowledge with action, awakening the masses of workers and peasants. Confronting difficulties directly, he dared to struggle and advocated for striving.

This exhibition, centered around time, carefully selects over 150 exhibits from the Hunan Museum, Changsha Museum, Mao Zedong and the First Normal School Memorial Hall, and Hunan Provincial Archives. It showcases the journey of young Mao Zedong from studying at the normal school to leading the movements of workers and peasants, narrating his exemplary influence in cultivating moral character, establishing lofty ideals, loving the great motherland, and shouldering the responsibilities of his era.

Introduction

“君幸酒”——第二届守味湖南年·湘酒主题特展

“君幸酒——第二届守味湖南年·湘酒主题特展”通过挖掘湖南博物院与酒有关的文物资源，结合湖南省本土的酒俗、酒文化、酒品牌，从历史人文、地理风土以及酒俗生活三个视角演绎湘酒悠久历史传统、深厚的工匠文化、丰富的红色文化、多元的文化遗产和非物质文化遗产。

本次展览分为4大板块，包括湘博里的酒文化、湖湘酿好酒、酿造工艺以及馥郁酒馆，通过视觉、听觉、嗅觉、味觉、触觉的五感体验带领观众领略湖湘酒文化的魅力。

Introduction

Longyuan Rose-The Exhibition of Painted Pottery in Gansu Province

Ancestors in the Gansu province took nature as basis, selected plants, animals, rivers and other natural objects in the nature as the source of creation. Through the expression of dots, lines and planes, they not only created vibrant and charming patterns on potteries, such as plant pattern, animal pattern, swirling pattern and geometric pattern, combining with human beings, they also created dance pattern, gods and men pattern which are rich in thoughts. The flamboyant and bold red and black, painting the sun, moon and stars, painting all living things, painting what were seen and thought, from depicting the shape to the full nature of objects, the naive stroke from straight lines to curves, from pictogram to geometric, from realism to ideogram, which are the origin of the great beauty of China.

The painted pottery in Gansu province is the origin of the ornamental art in China, its colorful, simple and bright, bold and flexible features have left a strong mark in the history of Chinese art. In this exhibition, 210 pieces of Neolithic painted pottery from Gansu province are specially selected, including representative artifacts spanning 5000 years from the Dadiwan culture period to the Shajing culture period. Through the interpretation of various types of decorations on the painted pottery, the exhibition shows the changes in the aesthetic tastes of the ancestors, the advancement of knowledge and concepts, interprets the relationship between human beings and the natural environment, and then analyzes the initial features of the primitive religious beliefs and the formation of abstract symbols, aiming at tracing the childhood memories of the Chinese nation, and providing the deep driving force from the cultural genes for the success of the story of China.

Introduction

青春是用来奋斗的 ——毛泽东青年时期文物展

百年来每一次时代的向前，都倒映着年轻人的身影，他们用信念把黎明提前，用奋斗抚平动荡，用青春谱写时代之歌。

青年毛泽东胸怀远大理想，求知问学、锤炼革命本领，追求真理、勇担民族复兴使命，知行合一、唤醒广大工农群众。他直面困难，敢于斗争，主张奋斗。

本展览以时间为轴，甄选来自湖南博物院、长沙市博物馆、毛泽东与第一师范纪念馆、湖南省档案馆的150余件展品，展示青年毛泽东从师范求学到领导工农运动的奋斗历程，讲述他在锤炼品德修为、树立远大理想、热爱伟大祖国、担当时代责任等方面的榜样力量。

Introduction

Everlasting Prayer:Statues and Beliefs in Meishan Cultural Area

With the collision and fusion with other cultures, Meishan culture has evolved into a cultural form that flows with the genes of the Southern Chu(was a Zhou dynasty vassal state) culture, but also blends elements of Taoism, Buddhism, Confucianism and the influence of other ethnic groups in the south. Meishan culture is not only a cultural phenomenon in the Meishan region of central Hunan in ancient times, but also a living culture that has been inherited to the present day, and is a typical representative of the cultural practices of many ethnic minorities such as Yao and Miao in southwest China.

Ancient pre-Qin Hunan realm, is the location of barbarian tribes such as "Jiu Li" "Three Miao". During the Spring and Autumn and Warring States Periods, the Chu people went to the south of China, and in this fertile land of myths, beliefs and sorcery, the magnificent and brilliant Chu witch culture in the South was nurtured and grown. The Chu culture was gradually assimilated by the dissolution of the Central Plains culture, but the original beliefs of the Chu deities and sacrificial customs were preserved in the ancient Meishan area, which is "not connected with the outside world". The objects of worship may have changed, but the primitive, instinctive and simple desire to seek good fortune and avoid bad luck in real life constitutes the eternal spiritual treasure of the folk beliefs of the Meishan Cultural area.

By selecting more than 100 pieces of wood carvings and archaeological relics from the Hunan Museum and related institutions in the central Hunan province since the Ming and Qing dynasties, this exhibition shows the origin and basic features of folk beliefs in this cultural area, with a view to leading the audience to appreciate the cultural forms with unique local characteristics of Hunan and stimulating the audience to think about historical and cultural inheritance, cultural diversity, and the perception of life.

This exhibition, as part of Hunan Museum's "Hunan Culture" exhibition series, "Treasures Revisited--Hunan Museum's 'Discovery Series' Original Thematic Exhibitions", was awarded the State Administration of Cultural Heritage's "Carrying Forward the Outstanding Traditional Chinese Culture and Cultivating the Socialist Core Values" Thematic Exhibitions Recommendation Project for the year 2023.

Introduction

The Greeks:From Agamemnon to Alexander the Great

Traveling through history, we sincerely eulogize "Glory to Greece". The ancient Greeks drew on the essence of Egyptian civilization as well as the Two Rivers civilization, and under the distinctive natural geography and human background of the Aegean Sea region, they created a regional culture that is remarkable in the history of mankind, and from which the whole of European civilization was nurtured. Moreover, up to the present day, the progress and development of Europe, western society and even the world are still absorbing the rich nutrients of ancient Greek civilization.

The exhibits come from 14 museums and cultural institutes in Greece, a total of 270 pieces/sets, including gold ware,bronze ware, porcelain and sculptures, spanning a period of 7000 years. These treasures is in the form of physical evidence to show the ancient Greek civilization since prehistory to the "Hellenistic" era of the beginning of the political, economic and cultural landscape.

“Splendid civilization owing to communication, rich civilization giving to mutual understanding”, let us enter this cultural feast together, enjoy the epic grandeur of ancient Greek civilization, roam in the rippling Aegean Sea, deeply understand the diversity and commonality of civilizations, and appreciate the important meaning of the human destiny.