Top half of a woman wearing a traditional Chinese embroidered garment, with a decorative floral piece in her tied back hair, and a patterned cloth Covid-era face mask over her mouth and nose.

15 Oct – 2 Apr

China – The Past is Present

This exhibition juxtaposes the NGV’s historical and contemporary collections of Chinese art and design, emphasising the legacy of cultural and artistic traditions and their ongoing resonance in contemporary China.

The exhibition presents preeminent historical works alongside some of the most innovative contemporary works of recent years. It explores important Chinese cultural movements, ideas and artistic mediums to provide an understanding of modern China and some of its creative contemporary minds.

Spanning five millennia and an array of art forms – including painting, calligraphy, ceramics, metal works, lacquer ware, textiles, furniture, video, posters, photography and mixed media – the exhibition presents an anachronistic dialogue between the past and the present, revealing surprising cross-temporal connections between subject matter and form.