On September 28, an exhibition titled “Revisiting Classics in the Flourishing Age—The Series of Ancient Chinese Paintings”, was staged at Sichuan Fine Arts Institute in southwest China's Chongqing municipality, kicking off its national tour.

The Series of Ancient Chinese Paintings is compiled and co-published by Zhejiang University and the Cultural Heritage Bureau of Zhejiang Province. It is a large-scale national cultural project that spans history and crosses borders. Over the past 16 years, the project team has created an accurate digital archive of roughly 12,250 ancient Chinese paintings, together with more than 260 cultural institutions and museums around the globe, including the British Museum, Staatliche Museen zu Berlin and the Museum of Fine Arts Boston, etc. The Series contains five complete collections and more than 240 volumes. It is by far the most comprehensive archive of ancient Chinese paintings with the most authentic images and the most refined printing quality.

The Series showcases a panoramic reproduction of ancient Chinese paintings over two millennia and opens up a new avenue to exploring the in-depth understanding, preservation, research and display of Chinese art and culture. It acts as a vigorous boost for the digital renaissance of ancient Chinese paintings and brings Chinese painting art into a new era with its rich and profuse historical heritage.

Using a diversity of display methods, such as images, texts and new media technology, this exhibition in Chongqing displays nearly 1,600 works and documents. With The Series on the show are classic cave statues of the Dazu Rock Carvings reproduced with 3D printing technology, bringing back to life the aesthetic appeal of traditional works.

The exhibition in the first stop is scheduled to last until November 28.