A visitor takes photos of exhibits at the Asian Art Museum of San Francisco, the United States, Dec. 9, 2019. (Photo by Liu Yilin/Xinhua)
SAN FRANCISCO, Dec. 9 (Xinhua) -- The Asian Art Museum (AAM) of San Francisco is home to collections of many Chinese and other Asian art masterpieces, which will offer visitors an improved viewing experience with their redesigned features enhanced by distinctive casework, vibrant colors and special lighting, the museum's chief said Monday.
AAM Director Jay Xu said the collections of Chinese art exhibits including a multi-color lidded big porcelain jar of the 16th-century Ming Dynasty in China represent the best of Chinese artistic achievement and the most advanced porcelain-making technology of that time.
All the exhibits will be put on display in the newly-refurbished extension space on the second and third floors of the museum after more than one year of construction.
"I hope more Chinese-speaking visitors from around the world will come to see these masterpieces for deeper understanding of Asian culture," Xu told Xinhua.
He said the museum is also hosting an exhibition of the legendary paintings of famous Chinese art master Chang Dai-Chien, or Zhang Daqian, who was hailed as one of the most intriguing, prolific and versatile Chinese artists in the 20th century.
The exhibition is of special significance as the year of 2019 marks the 120th anniversary of Chang's birth, and his life in California, particularly in the Bay Area, during the 1960s and 1970s had a key impact on his artistic creation, which led to a major peak for his ink painting, Xu said.
Chang's art pieces constitute an important part of the AAM, which is known for collections of ancient Asian arts, in expanding contemporary art, he added.
Mark Johnson, professor of art in San Francisco State University, said the exhibition connects visitors more deeply with Chang's art work.
Chang is remembered as "someone who built the bridge to the United States," he said.
"I wish there were opportunities to see his work more frequently, because then more people would fall in love of his painting," Johnson noted.
The AAM is undergoing a transformation project funded by the multi-year "For All" capital campaign launched in 2017, which has raised nearly 100 million U.S. dollars in private donations. It will fully open to the public in spring 2020.
