Hong Kong – Reported by Elite Traveler, the Private Jet Lifestyle Magazine
Mandarin Oriental Hotel Group is delighted to announce its premier sponsorship of The Emperor’s Private Paradise: Treasures from the Forbidden City, a landmark U.S. exhibition organized by the Peabody Essex Museum in partnership with the Palace Museum, Beijing, and in cooperation with World Monuments Fund (WMF). Never before seen by the public, the artistic treasures from the private retreat of the celebrated Qianlong Emperor (r.1736-1796) will be revealed for the first time at the Peabody Essex Museum in Salem, Massachusetts in September 2010. The Emperor’s Private Paradise will travel to The Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York and the Milwaukee Art Museum in 2011.
Meticulously restored from the Qianlong Garden complex deep within the Forbidden City, the 90 objects of ceremony and leisure — murals, paintings, wall coverings, furniture, architectural elements, jades and cloisonné — will unveil the contemplative life and refined vision of one of history’s most influential figures. An 18th-century compound in a hidden quadrant of the immense imperial complex, the Qianlong Garden (also known as the Tranquility and Longevity Palace Garden), is part of a decade-long, multimillion-dollar conservation initiative undertaken by World Monuments Fund in partnership with the Palace Museum, Beijing. “We are delighted to have the generous support of Mandarin Oriental in the presentation of The Emperor’s Private Paradise.
Thanks to the participation of our sponsor organizations, and the extraordinary collaboration between PEM, the Palace Museum and WMF, American museum-goers have an exciting opportunity to see the contents of this extraordinary Forbidden City complex, which have never been publicly accessible before,” said Dan Monroe, Executive Director and CEO of the Peabody Essex Museum.
“As a leader in luxury hospitality steeped in the values of the Orient, we share this important exhibition’s aim to deepen the appreciation for the rich cultural heritage of Asia,” said Group Chief Executive Edouard Ettedgui.
“We are especially proud to support this public exhibition, which is directly engaged with the issues of cultural preservation and conservation that are so critical to our times.” The Emperor’s Private Paradise: Treasures from the Forbidden City will be on view at the Peabody Essex Museum in Salem, Massachusetts from September 14, 2010 to January 9, 2011. The exhibition will travel to The Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York from February 3, 2011 to May 1, 2011. The Milwaukee Art Museum will host the exhibit from June 11, 2011 to September 12, 2011.