Guangzhou Museum of Art A Thought of Dunhuang Exhibition Ticket

Discover the cave art of Dunhuang
at the Guangzhou Museum of Art

"A Thought of Dunhuang" is a large-scale special exhibition organized by the Dunhuang Academy, which has protected and studied the Mogao Caves for more than 80 years. It runs from May 1 to October 31, 2026 at the Guangzhou Museum of Art, and the 2,778㎡ exhibition is built around seven key highlights. This ticket lets you visit the exhibition on your selected date.

Step inside 7 life-size replica caves

At the heart of the exhibition are seven caves from the Mogao Caves, Yulin Caves and Eastern Thousand Buddha Caves, reproduced at 1:1 scale. Several of them are closed to the public in Dunhuang or can only be entered with special permission. Walk inside the caves, stand where the Buddha statues stand and look up at ceilings covered with flying apsaras and thousand-Buddha patterns.

Cave 172, restored to its original appearance after five years of research by the Dunhuang Academy's Fine Arts Institute, is shown for the first time in China at this exhibition. You can also see Cave 285, known as the "Cave of Four Civilizations", where Buddhist, Hindu, Zoroastrian and Chinese imagery share a single wall.

Admire over 100 copies by the masters

More than 100 hand-painted copies by masters such as Chang Shuhong and Duan Wenjie, known as the "guardians of Dunhuang" for devoting their lives to recording and preserving the caves, are brought together here. These are not prints but real works painted on paper, and many are being shown together for the first time.

Explore gold leaf art and digital experiences

The exhibition also introduces "jiejin", a Buddhist art technique used from the Northern Dynasties to the height of the Tang Dynasty that was lost for centuries. Finely cut gold leaf is applied to statues and murals to create shimmering patterns, and the exhibition shows how researchers of the Dunhuang Academy revived it with modern technology, along with the results.

Interactive elements include a star map projection space inspired by Dunhuang's astronomical charts and a humanoid AI robot that talks with visitors. During the exhibition, the museum stays open until 8:30 PM, so you can visit in the evening too.

※ The AR guide device is not included.