Hunan Museum Hosts "The Art of Life - Mawangdui Han Dynasty Culture Immersive Digital Exhibition"

Hunan Museum

This year marks the 50th anniversary of the archaeological excavation of the Han Tombs at Mawangdui. The Hunan Museum, together with the Digital Library of China and the team of Wang Yuejin, professor at CAMLab, Harvard University, launched "The Art of Life - Mawangdui Han Dynasty Culture Immersive Digital Exhibition" on June 8, 2024.

Intended to explore ways to advance the deep integration of culture and technology, the exhibition mobilizes academic resources from around the world and employs cutting-edge multimedia technology to present the cultural heritage of the Han Tombs at Mawangdui in digitalized form through a theatrical multimedia experience, offering a glance into the essence of early Chinese civilization and artistic achievements. The exhibition delivers a holistic display of the art, imagination, and world view as reflected by the culture of Han Tombs at Mawangdui and seeks to create a new paradigm for digital presentation of cultural heritage with global influence.

The exhibition is structured around three modules: "Time and Space", "Yin and Yang", and "Life". By revealing the dynamic process of "cosmic operations - the sublimation of life", displaying the chamber structure, numerous artifacts, cultural ideas and humanistic thoughts of the Han Tombs, and unfolding the grand imagination and artistic expression of the universe and life by ancient Chinese, it embarks the audience on a "journey through space and time" that can be seen and experienced. 

The exhibition delivers to visitors a multisensory experience. In the "Yin and Yang" section, the four life spaces contained in the four-outer-layer coffins of Tomb One allow visitors to marvel at the ancient Chinese people's endless exploration of the mystery of life and their profound imagination for spiritual sublimation. In the "Life" section, the T-shaped silk paintings relive their "glorious moments". Thanks to the immersive LED ball screen, interactive dynamic graphic design, and digital restoration of cultural relics, among other technologies, visitors feel as if they were attending the "from earth to heaven" ceremony depicted in the silk paintings. While allowing the audience to experience the transformation and ascension of life, the section also offers a glimpse into the thoughts and emotions of the Chinese ancients 2,000 years ago.

The exhibition remains open to the public until February 16, 2025, with plans for a worldwide tour.

Source: Hunan Museum