After debuting at the Expo 2010 Shanghai China (2010上海世界博覽會) and traveling to Hong Kong and Macau, an animated version of the Song Dynasty painting Along the River During the Qingming Festival (清明上河圖), by 12th-century artist Zhang Zeduan (張澤端), is on show in Taipei. The 25cm by 529cm original is a panoramic portrayal of everyday life in Bianjing (汴京), today’s Kaifeng (開封), the capital of China during the Song Dynasty. Despite its name, the scroll depicts the architecture and scenery of the period and the apparel and activities of the rich and poor, not the rituals of the Qingming Festival (清明節), otherwise known as Tomb Sweeping Festival. Thirty times larger than the original painting, the animated version, which is titled River of Wisdom, is beamed onto a 6m by 110m screen by 12 projectors. The entire work was digitalized by Crystal CG (水晶石數字科技公司) and its subjects and backdrops move and make sounds. There are two versions of the animation that alternate every two minutes: day (691 animated people) and night (377 animated people). Also on display are life-size replicas of the original painting, a Ming Dynasty copy by Qiu Ying (仇英), and a more extravagant 1736 version known as the Qingyuan copy (清院本), commissioned by the Qing court. The original work is stored at the Palace Museum in Beijing.
■ River of Wisdom, 9am to 9pm Mondays to Saturdays, 9am to 6pm on Sundays at Taipei International Flora Exposition EXPO Dome (台北花博爭艷館), 1 Yumen St, Taipei City (台北市玉門街1號) until Sept. 4
■ Tickets are NT$220, available at convenience stores through 7-Eleven ibon, FamilyMart (全家) FamiPort, Hi-Life (萊爾富) Life-ET, and OK Mart OK go kiosks and online at tickets.books.com.tw
Photo Courtesy of Lin King
■ On the Web: river.ishow.gmg.tw
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