The University of Hong Kong Libraries & Chamber of Young Snow Culture Festival Exhibition: "Dreamlike Dunhuang: Recreating the Grandeur of Dunhuang"

Dunhuang, this sacred sanctuary of cultural convergence between East and West, is both a witness to history and a dreamer of art. Here, the wisdom of the Buddha intertwines with the prayers of mortals, transforming into an artistic universe where reality and illusion coexist. This exhibition, entitled “Dreamlike Dunhuang”, draws upon the Buddhist metaphors of dream and emptiness, inviting you on a spiritual journey where belief meets the secular, and art intertwines with daily life.

Dreamlike Dunhuang: Recreating the Grandeur of Dunhuang

The University of Hong Kong has always been dedicated to promoting cultural exchange and academic heritage. As a key academic and cultural institution, HKU Libraries is committed to preserving, researching, and promoting Chinese cultural arts.

This exhibition marks the first collaboration between HKU Libraries and Chamber of Young Snow, as well as the first joint Dunhuang art and culture exhibition with Dunhuang Academy, making HKU the first university in Hong Kong to host a Dunhuang exhibition. The Dunhuang Academy has achieved remarkable accomplishments in Dunhuang studies, cultural heritage conservation, and digital technology applications, making significant contributions to preserving and promoting Dunhuang culture. This partnership aims to jointly organize exhibitions, advance Dunhuang academic research and education, enabling HKU faculty, students, alumni, and the public to deeply appreciate Dunhuang’s profound cultural heritage.

Exhibition Highlights

Dunhuang Culture Exhibition
Collaborating with Dunhuang Academy to showcase Dunhuang cave art, artifact conservation techniques, and digital achievements, allowing visitors to understand Dunhuang’s history and modern preservation efforts.
Academic Lectures
Featured two keynote speeches – by Dr. Zhao Shengliang from Dunhuang Academy, and Dr. Stephen Suen, founder of Chamber of Young Snow – to facilitate academic exchange and public education.
Digital Showcase
Using advanced digital technology to present Dunhuang murals and artifacts, offering an immersive large-screen experience of Dunhuang’s magnificent artistry.

Exhibition Zones

The exhibition features six thematic units across three library spaces.

2/F Main Library Exhibition Hall
The primary venue displays three key exhibits: “Solemn Buddhist Palace”, “Myriad Aspects of Mundane Life” and “Treasures of Stone Chamber”.
- “Solemn Buddhist Palace”: A precise 1:1 replica of Mogao Cave 45 from Dunhuang’s High Tang period, completely reproducing seven iconic painted sculptures in the west wall niche. The central Buddha sits in meditation posture delivering teachings, flanked by devout disciples, gracefully curved bodhisattvas showing Tang-style elegance, and powerful heavenly kings – together representing the mature “Sinicized” Buddhist art of the Tang Dynasty. The cave murals showcase High Tang artistic mastery, including Lotus Sutra illustrations on the niche ceiling, thousand-Buddha motifs on the vaulted ceiling, Amitayus Visualization Sutra on the north wall depicting the Western Pure Land with accompanying narratives, and Guanyin Sutra illustrations on the south wall showing male-form Guanyin’s thirty-three manifestations and scenes of rescuing people from suffering – including merchant caravans and judicial punishments – providing valuable visual materials for studying Tang Dynasty society.
- “Myriad Aspects of Mundane Life”: Reveals daily life through murals depicting agricultural society, transportation, and clothing.
- “Treasures of Stone Chamber”: Displays 11 reproduced documents from Mogao Cave 17 that significantly impacted global academia and culture.
- Film Screening: The Wutai Mountain Panorama
- The Wutai Mountain Panorama in Mogao Cave 61 brings sacred Mount Wutai—Manjusri Bodhisattva’s abode—to life across its monumental 45.9m² surface, Dunhuang’s largest surviving mural. The composition unfolds through three realms: vibrant earthly scenes of towns, markets, and tribute processions below; serene monastic life with temples and meditating monks at mid-level; and celestial wonders of Buddha hands, golden dragons, and divine manifestations above—a magnificent Tang-era synthesis of spiritual and secular worlds that epitomizes Buddhist artistic achievement.
G/F Exhibition Zone
The library’s alternate entrance features “Along the Silk Roads” and “Painted Splendour on the Walls” beyond the automatic glass doors.
- “Along the Silk Roads”: Traces Silk Road history through Zhang Qian’s missions to the Western Regions and Buddhism’s spread.
- “Painted Splendour on the Walls”: Explains Dunhuang cave structures and mural techniques.
- Interactive Area: Visitors can stamp commemorative seals.
3/F Ko Wong Wai Ching Wendy Fine Arts Digital Library
Opened in September 2024, this unconventional space – in the absence of chairs, tables or bookshelves – creates a relaxed, immersive environment where students can “lie on carpets” or “sit on the floor” to enjoy cultural displays. The “Journey to Pure Land” is presented on this floor.
- “Journey to Pure Land” presents: Ten caisson ceiling designs displayed in overhead lightboxes, allowing viewers to appreciate diverse Mogao ceiling patterns while reclining. Flying apsaras dancing to music throughout the space, creating a dynamic artistic atmosphere.
- Film Screenings: Mogao Caves promotional film
- Film Screenings: Dunhuang: Murals in Motion:
- Digital technology brings millennium-old murals to life, animating scenes like the Deer King Jataka. From starry deserts to Silk Road maps, the film reveals Dunhuang’s enduring significance as a cultural crossroads.