Hunan Museum and Hunan Mango Digital Showcase at Museum Connections 2025
To implement the 2023 Memorandum of Cooperation signed between the Chinese Museums Association and the Fondation Prospective et Innovation (Prospective and Innovation Foundation, FPI), and to deepen Sino-French cultural exchanges, the Chinese Museums Association organized a delegation to attend the Museum Connections 2025 in Paris and Bordeaux from January 13 to 19. At the invitation of the organizers, a 7-member delegation from Hunan Museum and Hunan Mango Digital Art & Technology Co., Ltd. represented Hunan Province at this prestigious event.
Museum Connections 2025 attracted 380 exhibitors from over 30 countries and nearly 7,000 professionally invited museum professionals. The expo featured three main exhibition zones—Museum Tech, Museum Life, and Museum Shop—alongside 61 thematic forums on topics including technology and innovation, immersive exhibitions, museum management, and cross-institutional collaboration. Nearly 180 global experts participated in discussions, positioning Museum Connections 2025 as Europe’s premier platform for cutting-edge museum technologies and ideas.
The opening forum, themed “User Committees: Best Practices for Effective Use,” gathered representatives from France’s Ministry of Culture, the International Council of Museums (ICOM), the delegation of Chinese museums’ directors, the Réunion des Musées Nationaux (RMN), the Centre des monuments nationaux (CMN), the Museums of the City of Paris (Paris Musées), and counterparts from the U.S., Germany, Canada, United Kingdom, Italy, Spain, Netherlands, Austria, Belgium and other countries and regions. Officials from the Bordeaux Museum of Fine Arts (Musée des Beaux-Arts de Bordeaux), the Lille Museum of Art (Palais des Beaux-Arts Lille), and the National Maritime Museum (Musée National de la Marine) detailed their user committee initiatives and engaged in communication with professional participants.
Museum Connections 2025 Opening Forum
On January 14, the “Key Themes in Sino-French Collaboration in Cultural Relics and Museum Studies” dialogue featured keynote speeches by Xiao Haiming, Director of Guangdong Museum, and Ji Yunfei, Deputy Director of Zhejiang Provincial Museum, who shared China’s innovative approaches to museum development. Moderated by Anne Yanover, Director of Programming and Audience Engagement at the Guimet Museum, the discussion included insights from Laurent Dondey (Head of development and international touring for exhibitions at the Grand Palais Immersif), Li Lihui (Deputy Director of Hunan Museum), and Dong Baohou (Deputy Director of Liaoning Provincial Museum) on exploring challenges and opportunities in international partnerships, and heated exchanges on the topic of creative exhibitions under cultural differences, which enriched ideas for international museum cooperation in the future.
Sino-French museum directors’ dialogue
A dedicated China Pavilion showcased the achievements of Chinese cultural institutions in exhibition design, scientific research, and cultural creativity. Led by the Chinese Museums Association, six institutions—Hunan Museum, Tianjin Natural History Museum, Guangdong Museum, Meet You Museum, Hunan Mango Digital Art & Technology Co., Ltd., and Shenzhen HUATO System Co., Ltd. —displayed cutting-edge technologies and products, drawing a large number of French and European visitors to the booths for consultations. Chinese delegates held pragmatic and efficient discussions with professionals from dozens of museums and companies, securing collaborative intentions with institutions including the Cité des Sciences et de l’Industrie, Muséum national d'Histoire naturelle (MNHN), Muséum d'Histoire Naturelle de la ville de Toulouse (MHNT), the Touring Exhibitions Organization (TEO), Musée Rodin, Centre Pompidou, Musée Cernuschi, Musée et Centre de Recherche des Sciences et de l'Histoire en France, Bibliothèque Nationale de France, Paris Musées, RSF (France), Unendliche Studio (France), RIDE FX (France), etc..
Chinese delegation’s engagements with international institutions
Hunan delegation booth
Chinese delegation group photo
The Chinese delegation conducted field visits to iconic projects, including the Notre-Dame de Paris restoration site, the digital innovations at Grand Palais Immersif, the Louvre Museum, the Guimet Museum(National Museum of Asian Art), and the exhibitions of the Musée d'Orsay. They also studied the Hôtel de la Marine’s 3D soundscape system and the Cité de l'Histoire’s integrated exhibition model, which blends collections, storytelling, and acoustics, engaging in in-depth exchanges with French directors and experts, which yields substantial achievements.
Delegation visiting French museums
On January 17, a forum in Bordeaux focused on deepening Sino-French collaboration. Audrey Fontana, Director of Director of Public Affairs and Communications for Bordeaux City Government) outlined the city’s museum policies and initiatives. Museums’ representatives, including: Xiao Haiming (Director, Guangdong Museum), Ma Chi (Deputy Director, Tianjin Museum; Director, Tianjin Art Museum), Zhao Chen (Deputy Director, Tianjin Natural History Museum), Dong Baohou (Deputy Director, Liaoning Provincial Museum), Li Lihui (Deputy Director, Hunan Museum), Li Yuyan (Head of Cultural Heritage Division, Hunan Mango Digital Art & Technology Co., Ltd.), Nathalie Grenet (Project Manager of Lascaux IV, The International Center of Cave Art), presented flagship projects from their respective institutions. In-depth discussions among 20 professionals from 13 institutions, including the Musée d’Aquitaine, Musée des Beaux-Arts de Bordeaux, CAPC Musée d'Art Contemporée de Bordeaux, and Musée National de la Marine, focused on communication, technical innovations, professional training, and archaeological research.
Sino-French collaboration forum
The Chinese delegation also visited Cap Sciences (Bordeaux), the Cité du Vin (Bordeaux), and Bassins des Lumières (Bordeaux), examining technology integration, immersive exhibition production, and operational strategies. Communication with museum leaders and specialists further enriched the delegation’s expertise.
Delegation exploring Bordeaux museums
