China’s Digital Renaissance is a series exploring new currents in Chinese contemporary art, created in partnership with East West Bank. In this article, we explore the value of immersive digital art shows.
To fully experience the art at a traditional museum typically takes hours or even days, moving from gallery to gallery, one painting to the next. But on Shanghai’s North Bund, viewers lay out on soft carpeting as they’re guided through an audiovisual journey encompassing hundreds of classical paintings, ranging from Renaissance works and Japanese ukiyo-e prints, to masterpieces from modern artists.
“The visuals are quite impactful. I was especially struck by the vibrant color,” said Amor, a high schooler studying art in Shanghai.
A scene from the Ukiyo-e section of a Temple of Light exhibition. Image via Temple of Light
This is Amor’s first time seeing an exhibition made up entirely of visual projections. Immersive exhibitions and light shows like this are relatively new in China, having caught on quickly in recent years, especially as Covid impacted museums across the…