Xu Guangqi walked into the "script killing", after this district of Shanghai pioneered the "fusion" of a library and a museum
May 18 this year is the first "International Museum Day" since the two major cultural institutions Xujiahui Academy and Tushanwan Museum were officially "merged". Xuhui District, which pioneered the "combination of pictures and blogs" model in Shanghai, will also present a series of innovative achievements on Museum Day, including the Tushan Bay Museum's new special exhibition "Tracing the Origins of Western Painting Education - Tushan Bay Collection Watercolor Exhibition" and the original bilingual children's picture book " "A Tu's Little Lion", the immersive script game "Xu Guangqi", etc.
On the evening of May 18, Xu Guangqi Memorial Hall and Tushanwan Museum will also hold a series of "Night Tour Museum" activities, inviting parents and children to experience the development results of the museum's educational function.
Xujiahui, located in the southwest area of downtown Shanghai, has historically been an important town for cultural exchanges between China and the West. According to the Xuhui District Culture and Tourism Bureau, China’s early “museum” gene was born on the land of Xujiahui. In 1868, Frenchman Han Bolu founded China’s earliest natural history museum in Xujiahui, named it “Xujiahui Museum”, and ushered in modern China. Museum first.
At the same time, the Tushanwan Orphan Craft Academy, also located in the Xujiahui area, has successively collected and stored about 3,500 pieces of Chinese art and antiquities. By 1931, the collections of both institutions were moved to the new campus of Aurora University, which was renamed "Aurora Museum" and opened to the public in 1933.
This timeless "museum" context has been passed down and spanned three centuries. In 2010, Xuhui District built a new Tushanwan Museum on the former site of Tushanwan Orphanage. In 2023, a new Xuhui District Library—Xujiahui Academy—was born in the area of the former Xujiahui Museum. This year, with the "Integrated Picture and Museum" operation of Xujiahui Academy and Tushanwan Museum, Xuhui District took the lead in exploring a new collaborative development model of education and research that "increases knowledge through museums and educates people through culture".
The idea of “combination of pictures and blogs” can be traced from the very beginning of the design of Xujiahui Academy. In the atrium on the first floor of the academy, a "Chinese archway" produced by 3D printing technology stands in the center. Its shape is modeled after the "treasure of the museum" Chinese archway "original statue" of Tushanwan Museum. The "old and new archways" representing history and technology echo each other and connect time and space.
The Xuhui District Culture and Tourism Bureau stated that in 2023, Xujiahui Academy will welcome nearly 2 million offline visitors and 14.94 million online event audiences in its first year of operation. Taking this opportunity, Xuhui District innovated the method of "expo reading" and leveraged the influence and attention of Xujiahui Academy to promote the limited exhibition space of Tushanwan Museum to a wider audience, realizing resource sharing and collaborative exhibitions.
The new exhibition "Tracing the Origins of Western Painting Education - Tushanwan Collection Watercolor Exhibition" will be opened at Tushanwan Museum on May 18. It takes the Tushanwan Art Museum, the earliest vocational art education institution in modern China, as its origin, and through "Origin: The Cradle of Western Painting" The three chapters of "Development: Carrying on the Past and Forging a Future" and "Inheritance: Passing on the Firework" showcase the fine works and historical documents of the masters of painting such as Zhang Chongren, Xie Zhiguang, and Pan Sitong. During the exhibition period, which lasts until the end of November, it leads the audience to review the "Cradle of Western Painting in China" "The unique charm.
The linkage between museums and libraries is going beyond the physical exhibition space. Liu Xueqin, deputy research librarian of the Shanghai Local Chronicles Office and head of the Shanghai Local Chronicles Lecture Group, introduced that the "Why Shanghai Chronicles is Read at YUE" series of activities organized by the Shanghai Local Chronicles Office will be held at Xujiahui Academy on the afternoon of May 18, with the theme of "The Formation of a Museum City" "Records" is the theme, telling how Shanghai, which has 5 museums per million people, became a "museum capital". The theme lecture will focus on the formation process, social status, cultural functions, and industry characteristics, and "reveal" the city through rich cultural and historical materials. change.
The exhibition formats of libraries and museums have also become more diverse and cross-border. Chen Su, vice president of China Welfare Society Publishing House, said that on "International Museum Day", the original bilingual children's picture book "A Tu's Little Lion" based on the historical changes of Tushan Bay will be released for the first time in two complete color manuscripts. This picture book is based on the historical documents and oral history of Tushan Bay. It takes Tushanwan Orphan Craft Academy, the origin of modern Shanghai crafts and Shanghai-style culture, as the place where the story takes place. It tells the story of the protagonist "A Tu" growing up and learning skills here. process.
"Children's reading has a vital impact on national reading." Chen Su said that the two color manuscripts released this time are the scene of "A Tu" in the dormitory and the production process of the Chinese archway, the treasure of Tushanwan Museum. . The picture book will also show scenes such as the Tushanwan Painting Gallery, the Woodworking Department, the Press, and the Hardware Department. Through easy-to-understand text and vivid pictures, it will stimulate children's readers' strong interest in historical and cultural readings.
In the late Ming Dynasty, Xu Guangqi compiled and completed the extensive astronomy series "Chongzhen Almanac" at the age of 67. The book introduced the advanced Western celestial motion system and geometric calculation system at that time, brought the concept of a round earth and geographical longitude and latitude into China, greatly improved the accuracy of solar and lunar eclipses and other astronomical calculations, and laid the foundation for China's The basis of nearly 300 years of astronomical calendar.
In order to commemorate this sage who lived in Shanghai more than 400 years ago, Xuhui District will officially launch the immersive script game "Xu Guangqi" on May 18, allowing this famous historical figure to "step out of the textbook and enter reality." According to the Xuhui District Culture and Tourism Bureau, the audience participating that day will explore the "Nan Chun Hua Tang", a Ming Dynasty mansion that was preserved and renovated off-site, and is now the Xu Guangqi Memorial Hall. Participants will interactively experience Xu Guangqi's wonderful journey leading the dispute between the old and new calendars as "modern students" and "Ming Dynasty scholars". Combining historical exploration, puzzle reasoning and role-playing, they will learn about the sages' bravery to reach the peak of science and their courage. An innovative spirit that puts people first.
