A 660-inch screen at Olympian City in Kowloon, Hong Kong, is premiering the world’s first naked-eye 3D animation based on “Six Galloping Horses” — a brushstroke painting by late master Xu Beihong.
The installation, which brings the national treasure painting to life with innovative technologies, will broadcast horse elements — symbols of resilience and energy in Chinese culture — during the upcoming Chinese New Year, while granting visitors a timeless dialogue with Xu Beihong.
By employing naked-eye 3D technology, which allows people to view stereoscopic imagery without special glasses or other headgear, the installation animates stately ink-wash horses from Xu’s painting in three dimensions, galloping from the painting realm into classic scenes with Hong Kong characteristics.
The animation is the fruit of cross-boundary cultural collaboration, whose main creators include Yu Penghao, executive director for the opening ceremony of the 15th National Games — which were co-hosted by Guangdong province as well as Hong Kong and Macao special administrative regions last year — and teachers and students from the Creative Arts Department of Hong Kong Metropolitan University.
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In addition to the main display at Olympian City, the animated ink-wash horses will also be simultaneously broadcast on the 4,000-square-meter LED walls of Tsim Sha Tsui Centre and Empire Centre, in East Tsim Sha Tsui, offering a visual feast blending the elements of the Year of the Horse motifs with views of Victoria Harbour.
At a ceremony on Wednesday marking the installation’s launch, Liao Honghua, secretary-general of the Xu Beihong Art Committee, shared his delight in collaborating with local property developer Sino Group to create this cross-disciplinary art extravaganza.
Xu Fangfang, daughter of Xu Beihong and a renowned pianist, performed her first public solo in Hong Kong during the ceremony. Though music, she paid tribute to her father while dwelling on the spirit of "Galloping Horses" to local youth.
“The horses in my father's artwork represent the pursuit of victory, embodying perseverance and an indomitable, forward-charging spirit,” she said.
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In a related educational initiative, nearly 1,600 students from 20 primary and secondary schools participated in the "Galloping Horse Art Creation Project", in which students designed 688 distinctive horse artworks. Their creations have been assembled into a large-scale Chinese character for "horse," displayed alongside the digital exhibition.
Born into a family of intellectuals in Jiangsu province in 1895, Xu Beihong is widely recognized as one of the most influential Chinese painters of the 20th century.
Horses recur throughout his oeuvre, with many of his horse-themed works — depicting galloping or standing horses — considered masterpieces of Chinese art.
The installation will be on show until March 3.
Contact the writer at williamxu@chinadailyhk.com
