The Hong Kong Palace Museum (HKPM) has planned a robust lineup of nine new exhibitions for 2026, showcasing a blend of Chinese national treasures and world art masterpieces in collaboration with prestigious institutions.
The centerpiece of the program is a series of four thematic exhibitions developed jointly with the Palace Museum in Beijing. These exhibitions will feature grade-one national treasures, many of which will travel to Hong Kong for the first time.
The exhibitions include The Forbidden City and the World: Cultural Encounters, opening June 3 in Gallery 1; Contemporary Design in Dialogue with Palace Display, opening Sept 30 in Gallery 5; Qing Court in Four Seasons: Life and Culture of the Imperial Household, opening Nov 4 in Gallery 2; and Heavenly Horses: Masterpieces from the Palace Museum, running from March 20 to March 17, 2027, in Gallery 4.
Three special exhibitions will celebrate diverse world cultures. Treasures of Global Jewellery from the Metropolitan Museum of Art: The Body Transformed (April 15 – Oct 19, Gallery 8) will mark The Met’s debut in the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area.
Windows into Heaven: Religious Art Treasures from the State Tretyakov Gallery (Oct 21– March 26, 2027, Gallery 9) will present about 100 Eastern Orthodox icon paintings. Cultural Exchange and Buddhist Art along the Silk Roads (Dec 9 – April 26, 2027, Gallery 8), co-organized with the Guimet-National Museum of Asian Arts, will feature nearly 150 masterpieces tracing the transmission of Buddhism.
The museum will also feature two new thematic exhibitions highlighting local talent.
Myth into Art: Fantastic Animals in the Digital Realm (May 13 – Dec 31, 2026, Gallery 7) will display multimedia works by Hong Kong artists inspired by Chinese mythical creatures. Joyful Encounters: The Art of Wong Kwan Shut (June 24 – Sept 30, Gallery 6) will be the first major survey of the late Hong Kong artist, featuring a recent gift of over 60 works to the museum.
The museum’s blockbuster special exhibition, Ancient Egypt Unveiled: Treasures from Egyptian Museums, will continue its run in Gallery 9 until Aug, after attracting over 75,000 visitors since its November 2025 opening.
“The 2026 lineup showcases the HKPM’s commitment to deepening public appreciation of Chinese art and culture and its dialogue with world civilizations. By strengthening partnerships with leading international cultural institutions, connecting the traditional with the contemporary, and exploring the Palace Museum’s rich collection in new light, we will continue organizing exhibitions that inspire curiosity, spark cross-cultural dialogue, and cultivate an appreciation of cultural heritage in a fast-changing world,” said Louis Ng, Museum Director of the HKPM.
