The Hong Kong Museum of Art (HKMoA) opens its large-scale exhibition "Blooming: The Art of Gardens in East and West" on April 24, featuring over 100 sets of paintings and artefacts from the Palace Museum in Beijing, the Art Institute of Chicago, the Palace of Versailles, and HKMoA's own collection. Works include paintings, prints, lacquerware, sculpture, ceramics, and glassware, with highlights such as Claude Monet's "Water Lilies" and "Water Lily Pond," Zhang Daqian's "Entrance of Bade Garden," and a Ming dynasty bowl with garden scenes. The exhibition also includes a scenographic recreation of the Orchid Pavilion Gathering enhanced with technology for an immersive experience.
This exhibition matters because it brings together major collections from East and West for the first time in Hong Kong, offering a rare cross-cultural dialogue on the theme of gardens in art. By juxtaposing imperial Chinese garden imagery with European masterpieces like Monet's water lily paintings and Versailles fountain depictions, the show highlights both shared human connections to nature and distinct artistic traditions. It also underscores Hong Kong's role as a cultural hub capable of hosting ambitious international collaborations.