The Cultural Affairs Bureau (IC) and the Macau SAR Government, in collaboration with the Provincial Government of Jakarta’s Department of Culture, is currently holding an exhibition titled “Splendor of the Mirrored Sea: Macao’s Symphony of Civilizations on the Maritime Silk Road” in Jakarta in a bid to foster cultural exchanges between the SAR and Jakarta and to promote Macau’s rich historical and cultural heritage in Indonesia.
Moreover, the exhibition also aims to present to Southeast Asian and international audiences Macau’s historical role as a key node on the Maritime Silk Road, highlight the deep cultural ties between the two places, as well as reflect the long-standing cultural exchanges and mutual learning between China and Indonesia, according to IC.
Held at the Jakarta Textile Museum, the exhibition kicked off on 1 September and runs until 27 September. It is open from Tuesday to Sunday, from 9 am to 3 pm.
The exhibition’s opening ceremony was officiated by Macau’s Chief Executive Sam Hou Fai (pictured, centre), Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary of the People’s Republic of China in the Republic of Indonesia, Wang Lutong (second from left), Macau’s Secretary for Economy and Finance Ng Wai Han (second from right), Jakarta Provincial Government’s Culture Office Head Mochamad Miftahulloh Tamary (left) and IC President Leong Wai Man (right).
Sam was in Jakarta on his eight-day official visit to Singapore, Indonesia and Malaysia.
During the ceremony, the Macao Chinese Orchestra performed a new adaptation of the Macau work “Lilau” and the Indonesian folk song “Ayo Mama”.
Instructed by Cantonese opera virtuoso Zeng Hui, students of the Cantonese Opera Performance at the School of Theatre of the Macao Conservatory, Leong Lok Hin and De Guzman Aldelia Tam, presented excerpts from the classic mythological opera “Monkey King Borrows the Plantain Fan Three Times”, creating a lively atmosphere, according to IC.
The exhibition “Splendor of the Mirrored Sea” is divided into seven sections, namely “Where Maritime Routes Converge”, “The Historic Centre of Macao”, “Western Learning Eastward, Eastern Learning Westward”, “The Harmony of Ritual and Custom”, “The Flavor of Craftsmanship”, “The Art of Fusion”, and “The Lotus Island and the Land of a Thousand Islands”, featuring a selection of Macau’s representative intangible cultural heritage items, covering performing arts, social practices, traditional craftsmanship and festive rituals.
Through physical exhibits, images and live demonstrations, the exhibition vividly presents Macau’s unique traditions formed through the fusion of Chinese and Western cultures, revealing the profound cultural memory of the local communities and the vibrant outcomes of dynamic heritage transmission, IC has pointed out in a press release. – GNM
Source and Photo: IC
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