"Han Xizai's Night Banquet" Hangzhou exhibition triggered late-night queues among the audience

China News Service, Hangzhou, September 6 (Cao Dan) "I flew from Macau to Shanghai and then came to Hangzhou. Watching 'The Night Banquet' (picture) at night was particularly atmospheric." In the early morning of September 6, in the exhibition hall of the Zhejiang Provincial Museum (hereinafter referred to as "Zhejiang Museum"), Yu Shusen, an audience from Macau, said.

The "Night Banquet Picture" he refers to is the "Han Xizai Night Banquet Picture" volume (a copy of the Song Dynasty) collected by the Palace Museum. This painting is one of China's top ten famous paintings handed down from generation to generation. Since it was exhibited at the Palace Museum in 2011, it will be shown to the public in Hangzhou for the first time in 15 years. This exhibition lasts only 30 days.

The exhibition "The Year of Peace and Peace in the World" was launched on August 22. At 7 o'clock in the morning on the first day, there were already long lines of visitors waiting to see the exhibition. When you open the Zhejiang University’s reservation system, all available reservation dates will show “Full Appointment”.

In the face of the hot exhibition viewing craze, Zhejiang Expo has specially added a late-night special session every Saturday and extended the opening hours to 6 a.m. the next morning. The museum operates all night, which is rare in China.

In the early morning of September 6, the audience admired the volume "Han Xizai's Night Banquet" (a copy of the Song Dynasty) at the Zhejiang Provincial Museum. Photo by Cao Dan

The late-night show was well received by the audience. Many viewers mentioned that the "Night Banquet Picture" is closer to the atmosphere in the painting when viewed at night.

This is Yu Shusen’s first visit to Hangzhou. He took a flight after finishing work on Friday and will return to Macau on Sunday.

As a senior cultural enthusiast, Yu Shusen often uses his weekends to fly to various places to see exhibitions. This year, he has viewed many calligraphy and painting works at the National Palace Museum in Taipei, including Yan Zhenqing's "Manuscript for Nephew Memorial" and Sun Guoting's "Book Book".

“It’s the first time I queue up to see an exhibition early in the morning. It feels quite novel.” Yu Shusen said.

Zou Yixin, an audience from Chongqing who flew to Hangzhou to attend the exhibition, believed that traveling to a city for a famous painting was "worthwhile" and the two-hour flight was very convenient.

Zou Yixin booked a hotel near Zhejiang University and planned to continue visiting other exhibition halls in the museum on Sunday morning. (over)