A Moving Masterpiece: Qing Ming Shang He Tu Epic Painting Comes to Life [Videos]

Have you been to the A Moving Masterpiece: Qing Ming Shang He Tu exhibition? Like the original painting, this modern digital version is simply remarkable.

The 5.28 metre-long Qing Ming Shang He Tu (Along the River During the Qingming Festival) painting from the 12th century has been remade into an animated version 30 times the original size and added with a soundtrack. The Song Dynasty painting was created by Chinese imperial court artist Zhang Ze Duan, depicting the lifestyle and society in the capital of Bianjing (now known as Kaifeng) during the 12th century.

First debuted at the World Expo 2010 in Shanghai China, the exhibition has since travelled to Macau, Hong Kong, Taiwan and is now shown at the Singapore Expo.

Your tour of the exhibition includes an accompanying audio device with headphones, through which guides in various languages will furnish useful information about life during the Song Dynasty. You start by entering the pre-show hall, where you get to learn some background information of the typical Song citizen.

iPhone users are encouraged to connect to the free wifi and download the free Living Legend iPhone app. It is a fairly large download at 50mb, so if you are reading this, it’s a good idea to download the app at home before heading down to the exhibition. You can play some mini games on the app as well as scan QR codes around the exhibition hall.

That’s the cuju, the ancient form of Chinese football.

Can you tell what this old sheet of paper is? Make a guess before mousing over the photo to reveal the answer.

Now, are you ready for the animated Qing Ming Shang He Tu?

Animated Qing Ming Shang He Tu

The digital version of the Qing Ming Shang He Tu spans an impressive 128 metres by 6.5 metres panorama. To see what a feat this is, you really have to check out the original painting from the 12th century. The painting begins from the right with the countryside, before connecting to the urban and city areas of Bianjing.

The 1,068 people in the picture include farmers, boatmen, maids, porters, and various characters. There are also boats, camels, mules and sedan chairs. People can be seen walking about in the painting, going about their daily lives. You can even hear their voices at times. Amazing!

Obviously, photos alone will not do a good job of bringing out the experience. Hence I have also included some videos I took at the exhibition (I also need sturdier hands and a HD camera). Be sure to play the videos, or watch all 8 videos at one go (10 minutes long) via my Youtube playlist.