A shared celebration of cultures

For the first time, portraits and belongings of three emperors of the Qing Dynasty (1644-1911) — namely Kangxi, Yongzheng and Qianlong — and three contemporaneous French kings — Louis XIV, Louis XV and Louis XVI — will be on show at one exhibition in Beijing.

Entitled The Palace of Versailles and the Forbidden City, the exhibition will be unveiled at the Palace Museum, also known as the Forbidden City, from April 1.

More than 180 exhibits collected by the two museums will provide a glimpse of the interactions between the Chinese and French royal courts from the end of the 17th century to the end of the 18th century.

They will showcase their diplomatic, cultural and artistic exchanges, as well as their mutual trust and respect in political activities, and shared interest in and admiration of each other's cultures, according to Guo Fuxiang, deputy director of the Department of Court History at the Palace Museum and the curator for the exhibition on the Chinese side.

This year marks the 60th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic ties between China and France, and the exhibition will be part of the celebration.

In 2014, the Palace of Versailles held an exhibition featuring China-related oil paintings, sketches, woodblock paintings, textiles, pottery and lacquerware, among other items, to celebrate the 50th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic relations.

It was on the basis of the 2014 exhibition that the two museums decided to host a larger-scale and more comprehensive version, Guo said at a news conference on Jan 4.

The Palace of Versailles will bring to Beijing its new collection of Chinese art pieces or those objects inspired by Chinese art, including a Chinese-style silver pot from the envoys of Siam (now Thailand) in 1686 as a tribute to King Louis XIV and Chinese porcelain tableware decorated with armorial bearings of King Louis XV.

The 105 pieces of cultural relics from the French museum to be on show represent the French court's fascination with Chinese culture and civilization, and the inspiration French artists and intellectuals got from Chinese art, according to Guo.

By seeing another 72 pieces housed at the Palace Museum in Beijing, including French paintings, antique clocks and watches, scientific instruments and books, visitors can feel the French influence at the royal Qing palace.

They will learn about direct interactions between Emperor Kangxi and King Louis XIV — a pocket watch sent by the French monarch to the Chinese ruler as a gift, for example — tailored artworks from France that were ordered by the Qing court and pieces made by French artisans working for the Qing court.

To celebrate the 60-year diplomatic bond between the two countries and enhance friendship, a variety of other events for the China-France Year of Culture and Tourism will be held in both countries.

France's Ambassador to China Bertrand Lortholary says the China-France Year of Culture and Tourism is to demonstrate the fruitful achievements and vitality of cultural and people-to-people exchanges and highlight cooperation.

He hopes that these events will make the people in both countries know more about — and rediscover — each other's cultures and arouse interest in visiting each other's nation to experience travel attractions and cultural heritage in person.

On Jan 5, when the 40th International Ice and Snow Festival kicked off in Harbin, Heilongjiang province, the China-France Year of Culture and Tourism was also unveiled, with giant ice sculptures of the Temple of Heaven in Beijing and Notre-Dame Cathedral in Paris, which will reopen at the end of the year after restoration, standing shoulder to shoulder at Harbin Ice and Snow World, a landmark theme park.

Chinese and French artists will work together to stage French composer Charles Gounod's five-act opera Romeo and Juliet at the National Centre for the Performing Arts in Beijing from Jan 25 to 28.

A theater version of Les Miserables and popular musicals Notre-Dame de Paris, Don Juan and Mozart, l'Opera Rock will tour the country.

Solo exhibitions of French contemporary artists, such as sculptor Jean Cardot, a member of the French Academy of Fine Arts, installation artist Annette Messager and conceptual artist Bernar Venet, will be launched. And an augmented reality show will be leading the audience into an immersive voyage through the 850-year history of Notre-Dame, from its construction to the restoration after the catastrophic fire in 2019.

The Tandem festival, featuring Chinese and French contemporary literature, and the award ceremony of the Fu Lei Translation and Publishing Awards, both initiated by the French embassy in China, will mark the yearlong celebration with an insightful ending, according to Nicolas Pillerel, minister counselor for culture, education and scientific affairs of the embassy.

Conductor Li Xincao, the China National Traditional Orchestra and the Northern Kunqu Opera Theatre will give a concert at the Royal Opera Versailles in Paris, together with its resident orchestra, on Jan 31, as an overture for events spanning the whole year in France, according to Zheng Hao, a first-level inspector at the Bureau of International Exchange and Cooperation of China's Ministry of Culture and Tourism.

Renowned composer and conductor Tan Dun and the China National Symphony Orchestra, in collaboration with influential local soloists, will be touring French cities with classical musical pieces from both countries.

A Tang Dynasty (618-907) artifact exhibition will be held at the Guimet Museum, also known as the National Museum of Asian Arts, in Paris, featuring more than 200 exhibits, including pottery figurines, tangsancai (tricolored glazed pottery), textiles, calligraphy and paintings, among others.

China's regional cultural traditions, such as the lanterns of Zigong, Sichuan province; porcelain from Jingdezhen, Jiangxi province; as well as kites from Weifang, Shandong province, will also be highlighted in various events in cities like Paris, Bellac, Amneville and Montauban.