A group of 16 students majoring in humanities and arts were taken on a two-month deep city cultural tour as part of the Bi-city Youth Cultural Leadership Programme. The programme, hosted by the Hong Kong Palace Museum in collaboration with the Beijing Palace Museum, aimed to foster cultural connections between the two cities and nurture talent for the development of museums.
During the tour, the students were exposed to the world’s top technologies used for preserving cultural relics at the Cultural Relics Protection Technology Research Institute, also known as the Palace Museum Cultural Relics Hospital, in Beijing. The initiative involved experts providing the students with a comprehensive range of scientific and technological experiences.
Louis Ng, curator of the Hong Kong Palace Museum, expressed the necessity of nurturing talents that can effectively communicate with visitors. He highlighted that the programme was designed to expose young people to the workings of museums “on the spot” and noted the success of the Hong Kong Palace Museum, which had over one million visitors in the past year.
The programme involved mutual learning experiences. Besides visiting the Cultural Relics Hospital, the students also toured the UCCA, a leading contemporary art institution in Beijing, and the Moonshot Academy, an innovative 12-year school. The students shared their thoughts and ideas at a post-tour conference attended by key figures from both the Beijing and Hong Kong Palace Museums.
The experience was enriching for the students, widening their perspectives on working in cultural institutes. Gui Xianxian, a student from Beijing Normal University, noted the diversity of Hong Kong and the profound traditional culture of Beijing. Another student, Lu, an art history major from Hong Kong, found the experience valuable in shaping his career aspirations in museums.
The programme also involved hands-on experiences in the West Kowloon Cultural District and participation in seminars, lectures, and workshops with scholars, experts, and artists in Hong Kong.
Ng highlighted that this initiative was the second phase of their plan. The first phase, which concluded in February 2023, involved inviting 95 students for a visit. The aim was to keep the groups small to facilitate a more intimate learning experience.
The collaboration between the Hong Kong and Beijing Palace Museums extends beyond education to include digital achievements, research, preservation of cultural relics, and hosting seminars with international experts. Since the opening of the Hong Kong Palace Museum in July 2022, the collaboration has opened up more possibilities for closer ties between the two museums and the display of loaned cultural relics.
Ultimately, both museums aim to expand their international influence, spread traditional culture, and engage overseas audiences. This initiative is part of a broader effort to strengthen cooperation and jointly spread China’s cultural voice.
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