The National Palace Museum in recent years has made an all-out and comprehensive effort to enhance its collections, management, preservation and maintenance paradigms, exhibitions, research, and public outreach. In the process we have proactively interacted and initiated academic exchanges with renowned museums overseas. Our goal is to upgrade all of the Museum’s functions and stress an ecumenical, multifaceted, and international outlook to ensure the Museum will hold the pulse of the times and truly act as a museum serving all people.
1. In Nov. 2010 we signed a cooperation letter of intent with France’s Guimet Museum. This constitutes the first example of our Museum signing a formal exchange agreement with another important international museum and marks the launching of a new era of collaboration between these two institutions. The National Palace Museum and the Guimet Museum first collaborated on the exhibition of “Emperor Kangxi and the Sun King Louis XIV” to celebrate the Republic of China’s first centennial. The Guimet Museum not only loaned artifacts and other materials from its Chinese export porcelain collection but also assisted us with the handling of all matters pertaining to museum loans in France. Right now the Guimet Museum is in discussions with us to arrange a loan from our jade collection as it prepares to host a Chinese jade exhibition. Additionally, the Guimet Museum has issued a promise that once the Southern Branch of the National Palace Museum opens it will loan us pieces from its globally renowned Asian art collection as an expression of its support. We also plan to collaborate hosting a “Cambodian Art Exhibition”. In brief, our two museums have a very close and productive relationship.
2.We have entered into negotiations with the Museum of Oriental Ceramics - Osaka, the National Tokyo Museum - Japan, and the Shenyang Palace Museum regarding international loans and reciprocal exhibitions. The National Palace Museum held a Loan Agreement-signing ceremony with the Museum of Oriental Ceramics - Osaka on Jan. 21st, 2014. The agreement stipulates that the National Palace Museum will host “Cerulean Blue - A Special Exhibition of Goryeo Celadons” featuring a total of 175 sets of artifacts and “Sailing a Thousand Leagues - A Special Exhibition of Japanese Imari Porcelain” featuring a total of 161 sets of artifacts from the end of 2015 through to 2018. Moreover we are in negotiations pursuant to hosting “Masterpieces of Japanese Art: the Tokyo and Kyushu National Museum’s Special Exhibition” from Dec. 2016 through Mar. 2017. This will encompass about 150 sets of artifacts in total including Japanese paintings, Buddhist sculptures, ceramics, lacquer wares, books, historical documents, and so forth, of which 68 pieces constitute Japanese national treasures and/or significant cultural properties and art works. In addition to this, we are in the midst of negotiations with the Shenyang Palace Museum to arrange a loan from their collection for our major exhibition on opening day.
3.We signed a Memorandum of Understanding for cooperating with the Asian Art Museum of San Francisco, USA, on March 31st, 2014. As stipulated in the agreement, select artifacts from our collection will be exhibited in the Asian Art Museum in 2016 and in return the artifacts from its collection will be exhibited in the Southern Branch of the National Palace Museum in 2017.
