Premier museum in Southern California expects to strengthen cultural links with China

Seán O'Harrow, President and CEO of Bowers Museum, speaks during an interview at Bowers Museum in Orange County, Southern California, the United States, on Oct. 20, 2023. Bowers Museum, a premier cultural art museum in Southern California, expects to further strengthen cultural links with China and serve as a bridge for boosting U.S.-China understanding, the museum's new President and CEO, Dr. Seán O'Harrow, told Xinhua in a recent interview. (Photo by Zeng Hui/Xinhua)

LOS ANGELES, Oct. 23 (Xinhua) -- Bowers Museum, a premier cultural art museum in Southern California, the United States, expects to further strengthen cultural links with China and serve as a bridge for boosting U.S.-China understanding, the museum's new President and CEO, Dr. Seán O'Harrow, told Xinhua in a recent interview.

Located in the heart of Orange County, Bowers Museum has eight permanent collection exhibitions showcasing art and artifacts from cultures around the world, including a dedicated China gallery.

The Ancient Arts of China gallery presents a remarkable collection of nearly 200 objects created over more than 5,000 years, from Neolithic times to the Qing Dynasty.

Artifacts in the gallery represent all the major forms of artistic expression generally associated with Chinese history and culture, including calligraphy, painting, ceramics, bronzes, textiles, and sculpture.

"China has been one of the major cultures in the world. Also being on the West Coast and along the Pacific, we consider China our neighbor. So it's important to have a very important gallery here (about China), and continue the cultural connection with the Chinese people," O'Harrow told Xinhua.

Since its founding in 1936, Bowers Museum has cooperation and exchange programs with Chinese museums, including the Palace Museum, Nanjing Museum and Shanghai Museum.

It has hosted various exhibitions featuring cultural heritage in the Forbidden City, Tibet, Xinjiang, the Terra-Cotta Warriors in Shaanxi Province, and other parts of China.

The museum plans to extend partnerships with China in the future, according to O'Harrow.

"We are working with new museums that are opening in Fujian Province that specialize in the Pacific Rim and Pacific islands. We are going to be loaning art work to those museums," he told Xinhua.

Bowers Museum also plans to bring more contemporary artists from China, O'Harrow said, adding it is important to make a connection between the past, the present and the future.

Anne Shih, chairwoman of the Board of Governors of Bowers Museum, launched a "Junior Ambassadors Program" for the museum in 2001, with an aim to expose young participants to the rich history and culture of ancient China while helping them improve public service and presentation skills.

The museum has been a base for students in Orange County to experience the Chinese history and civilizations.

"We have a big responsibility to teach students, the youth people, world cultures. Having a Chinese gallery is extremely important, especially when you talk about the development of cultures throughout Asia, the origins of Chinese culture and religion, and the influence of countries that are surrounding China and the history," O'Harrow said.

Bowers Museum will continue to serve as a bridge for U.S.-China cultural exchanges and people-to-people friendship, he noted.

"We hope to bring the Chinese culture to American audiences through various exhibitions, so that they can learn more about China's profound history and splendid culture," Shih told Xinhua.

Some new exhibitions are currently held in Bowers Museum, including a photo exhibition named The Power of Photography, which features a selection of iconic images compiled by the pioneering collector and gallerist Peter Fetterman to celebrate the photograph's unique capacity for sensibility.

Among over 70 outstanding original prints on display is one portrait of a Chinese ambassador in the Qing Dynasty.

"What's remarkable (of the photo) is the power of his face, the emotion, dignity, intensity and the beauty of it," Fetterman explained to Xinhua.

The sheer quality of the print, the details, the light, the way the photographer captured the Chinese man's expression are very rare, he noted.

Visitors view artworks at Bowers Museum in Orange County, Southern California, the United States, on Oct. 20, 2023. Bowers Museum, a premier cultural art museum in Southern California, expects to further strengthen cultural links with China and serve as a bridge for boosting U.S.-China understanding, the museum's new President and CEO, Dr. Seán O'Harrow, told Xinhua in a recent interview. (Photo by Zeng Hui/Xinhua)

People visit Bowers Museum in Orange County, Southern California, the United States, on Oct. 20, 2023. Bowers Museum, a premier cultural art museum in Southern California, expects to further strengthen cultural links with China and serve as a bridge for boosting U.S.-China understanding, the museum's new President and CEO, Dr. Seán O'Harrow, told Xinhua in a recent interview. (Photo by Zeng Hui/Xinhua)

People come to visit Bowers Museum in Orange County, Southern California, the United States, on Oct. 20, 2023. Bowers Museum, a premier cultural art museum in Southern California, expects to further strengthen cultural links with China and serve as a bridge for boosting U.S.-China understanding, the museum's new President and CEO, Dr. Seán O'Harrow, told Xinhua in a recent interview. (Photo by Zeng Hui/Xinhua)