The Hong Kong Museum of Art (HKMoA) has unveiled its new Muwen Tang Gallery of Cantonese and Export Art following the landmark donation of more than 2,000 Qing dynasty artefacts from renowned Hong Kong collector and architect Dr Simon Kwan. The gift, the largest single donation in the museum’s history, includes export paintings, painted enamels, silverware, ivory carvings, textiles and lacquerware that reflect the rich artistic legacy of Guangdong and Lingnan culture.

To mark the occasion, HKMoA has launched the inaugural exhibition “Proudly from Canton: The Muwen Tang Collection of Cantonese and Export Art”, featuring over 120 highlights from the collection. Among the standout pieces is a rare Qing dynasty Cantonese gilt silver filigree tea set once owned by Queen Juliana of the Netherlands, regarded as one of only two complete surviving export filigree silverware sets in the world.

The exhibition also features an AI-powered interactive zone recreating a 19th-century Cantonese reverse glass painting studio, offering visitors an immersive journey into Guangdong’s flourishing artistic heritage and its global cultural influence.