Now Shenzhen | July 17, 2023
WHILE viewers in the West have for centuries been intrigued by the mysterious smile of Leonardo da Vinci’s “Mona Lisa,” local visitors now have the opportunity to meet equally fascinating smiling sculptures from the magnificent Majishan Grottoes at the “Maijishan Grottoes: The Oriental Smile” exhibition at the Nanshan Museum. The exhibition is free to the public and will run through Oct. 29.
Hosted by the Nanshan District Administration of Culture, Radio, Television, Tourism and Sports and Dunhuang Academy, and organized by the Nanshan Museum and Art Institute of Maijishan Cave-Temple Complex, the exhibition is showcasing a total of 131 pieces and groups of various precious relics (66) and copies (65) from the Maijishan Grottoes in Tianshui City, Northwest China’s Gansu Province, including clay sculptures, murals and documents, as well as more than 10 pieces of reinforcement projects drawings. Meanwhile, replicas of three signature caves, caves 44, 62 and 123, are also on display.
The exhibits are shown in two halls: Hall 1 — “Rebirth of Treasures” and Hall 2 — “Wonderful Murals and Sculptures.” It is a first-time practice for the museum to have two halls for one exhibition, according to the museum.
Hall 1 reviews the history of the reappearance and protection of cultural relics in the Maijishan Grottoes since modern times; Exhibition Hall 2 focuses on the history of site selection and construction of the Maijishan Grottoes as well as the artistic beauty of sculptures and murals.
Hall 1 takes visitors to look back at the painstaking efforts made by generations of intellectuals and cultural relics conservation workers, spearheaded by Feng Guorui, to rebuild, reinforce and protect the grottoes until they took on their new look that we see today. Feng, a scholar from Tianshui, pioneered the modern conservation and research of Maijishan Grottoes. In 1941, he went to Maijishan for the first time to investigate the grottoes by referring to the ancient texts. By 1953, Feng had visited Maijishan six times and produced many research findings. He had left numerous precious cultural relics and is the first Maijishan Grottoes cultural relic donor.
Following in the steps of Feng, more experts, scholars and artists including Zhang Daqian, Luo Jialun and Yu Youren went on expedition tours to Maijishan and began using brush and ink to depict the charms of Maijishan Grottoes, explore its values and spread its fame far and wide.
Starting from the 1940s, workers from the cultural heritage sector repaired the plank roads leading to the precipitous cliffs and caves. In the 1980s, the Chinese Government spent eight years reinforcing the grottoes, and the reinforcement engineering has provided a model for the protection and reinforcement of grottoes in China.
The “Wonderful Murals and Sculptures” exhibition hall is displaying masterpieces of Buddha sculptures with mysterious smiles and copies of statues that witnessed the localization and integration of Buddhism and reflect the craftsmanship of Chinese sculpture art.
After the introduction of Buddhist sculptures to China, artisans began to use their imaginations by referring to the local images to reshape the Buddha to sustain the beliefs and wishes of believers in the Wei (220-265), Jin (265-420), Southern and Northern (420-589) dynasties and subsequent millennia of history. In the mid to late Northern Wei Dynasty (386-534), Buddhist sculptures in various regions had a smiling face, which not only expressed the Buddha’s compassion and gentleness, but also expressed people’s yearning for peace and joy.
One of the biggest highlights in Exhibition Hall 2 is a copy of Cave 123 by Duan Yiming. Cave 123 is one of the most well-preserved caves in the Western Wei Dynasty (535-556), free from renovations by subsequent generations.
The Maijishan Grottoes were first built in the Later Qin Dynasty (384-417) with subsequent periodic constructions, and reached their heyday during the Northern Dynasties (439-581). In 2014, the Maijishan Grottoes were inscribed on the UNESCO World Heritage List as part of the “Silk Roads: The Routes Network of Chang’an-Tianshan Corridor” site.
Dates: Until Oct. 29
Booking: WeChat “nanshanmuseum”
Venue: Nanshan Museum, Nanshan District (南山博物馆)
Metro: Line 1 to Taoyuan Station (桃园站), Exit B
ARTICLE FROM: Shenzhen Daily