On October 3, 2025, the Department of Asian Art of The Metropolitan Museum of Art and the Research Center for Silk Art and Silk Road Culture of Zhejiang University co-hosted the symposium on the launch of "A Comprehensive Series of Chinese Silk Art · The Metropolitan Museum of Art Volume (Textiles and Embroidery)" at The Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York.


The participating experts and representatives included: Sun Zhixin, Head of Chinese Art in the Department of Asian Art at The Metropolitan Museum of Art; Lu Pengliang, Senior Research Fellow of Chinese Art in the Department of Asian Art at The Metropolitan Museum of Art; Zhao Feng, Professor of the School of Art and Archaeology, Director of the Research Center for Silk Art and Silk Road Culture of Zhejiang University, and Chief Editor of "A Comprehensive Series of Chinese Silk Art"; Mark Polizzotti, Director of the Publishing and Editorial Department at The Metropolitan Museum of Art; Rachel High, Manager of the Marketing and Copyright Department; Janina Poskrobko, Director of the Textile Conservation Department; conservators Minsun Hwang and Martina Ferrari; Eva DeAngelis-Glasser from the Ratti Textile Center; Xu Jin, Associate Professor of Chinese Art History at Columbia University; Mei Mei, Professor at Bard College in New York; and Zhang He, Professor at William Paterson University in New Jersey. Also in attendance were Hao Hongjuan, a friend of the Research Center; team members of the Center including Shi Liu, Luo Yaomin, and Wu Siyu; Teacher Wan Guanglong from the School of Art and Archaeology; and members of the Advanced Research Program.

Professor Zhao Feng, Chief Editor of "A Comprehensive Series of Chinese Silk Art", presented the "The Metropolitan Museum of Art Volume" to The Metropolitan Museum of Art.



The symposium was hosted by Sun Zhixin, Head of Chinese Art in the Department of Asian Art at The Metropolitan Museum of Art. Sun first extended a welcome to all participants and expressed high praise for Zhejiang University’s 20-year efforts in publishing the national key cultural project "A Comprehensive Series of Chinese Paintings Throughout Dynasties" and its recent launch of "A Comprehensive Series of Chinese Silk Art". He noted that The Metropolitan Museum of Art is one of the most important institutions in the United States and the world for researching and promoting Chinese art, and should provide long-term and strong support for major projects that promote Chinese culture.


Sun Zhixin, Head of Chinese Art in the Department of Asian Art at The Metropolitan Museum of Art, browsing through "A Comprehensive Series of Chinese Silk Art · The Metropolitan Museum of Art Volume".


Professor Zhao Feng briefly reviewed and introduced the entire project. The planning of "A Comprehensive Series of Chinese Silk Art" began as early as 2019. On October 9 of that year, Lu Pengliang, a researcher at The Metropolitan Museum of Art, was invited to Zhejiang University Press to introduce the museum’s textile and embroidery collections, research, and exhibitions, and initial discussions on the cooperation model for the project were conducted. In 2022, the first series of 20 volumes of "A Comprehensive Series of Chinese Silk Art" was approved as a major project under the "Zhejiang Cultural Research Project". The entire project plans to publish 100 volumes, with 12 volumes of the first series officially published so far, including the Textiles and Embroidery Volume of The Metropolitan Museum of Art.

Professor Zhao Feng, Chief Editor of "A Comprehensive Series of Chinese Silk Art", delivering a speech.


Lu Pengliang, Senior Research Fellow of Chinese Art in the Department of Asian Art at The Metropolitan Museum of Art and Editor-in-Chief of this volume, delivered a speech reviewing the relevant work of the volume: In early 2023, Lu provided the list of textile and embroidery artifacts in The Metropolitan Museum of Art; by August 2023, with the cooperation of the entire team, the first draft and sample book were completed. In April 2024, Professor Zhao Feng led a team to The Metropolitan Museum of Art to inspect the physical artifacts, examined the fine pieces together with Lu, and conducted in-depth exchanges. In October 2024, Lu visited Hangzhou to discuss the writing schedule and content planning with the project team. The first draft of the volume was completed in April 2025, the content appraisal was finished in June 2025, the typesetting and proofreading of The Metropolitan Museum of Art Volume were completed in August 2025, and the printing started on September 20, 2025.


Researcher Lu Pengliang highly recognized the value of compiling "A Comprehensive Series of Chinese Silk Art" and expressed great honor to cooperate with important domestic cultural and museum institutions in China to advance the work. He believed that this volume is not only a new compilation but also a summary and update of The Metropolitan Museum’s silk collections. New progress has been made in the research of some fabrics, and some inaccurate information has been corrected. Therefore, it represents the latest research achievement on Chinese silk collections in The Metropolitan Museum of Art and holds special value and significance.


At the same time, Lu discussed issues such as the effective presentation of collections and access to online resources, hoping to make the collection descriptions accessible to the public and promote the possibility of accessing The Metropolitan Museum’s collection resources through the internet. This volume effectively serves as a reference book, allowing readers to have a comprehensive overview of The Metropolitan Museum’s collections, better engaging the public, and providing a basic reference for subsequent research and learning.


Researcher Lu Pengliang from The Metropolitan Museum of Art delivering a speech.


Other speakers at the symposium included Mark Polizzotti, Director of the Publishing and Editorial Department at The Metropolitan Museum of Art; Janina Poskrobko, Director of the Textile Conservation Department; Xu Jin, Associate Professor of Chinese Art History at Columbia University; Mei Mei, Professor at Bard College; and Zhang He, Professor at William Paterson University.


Mark Polizzotti, Director of the Publishing and Editorial Department at The Metropolitan Museum of Art, delivering a speech.



Janina Poskrobko, Director of the Textile Conservation Department, delivering a speech.


Mei Mei, Professor at Bard College in New York, delivering a speech.

Xu Jin, Associate Professor of Chinese Art History at Columbia University, delivering a speech.


After the symposium, Professor Zhao Feng, Chief Editor of "A Comprehensive Series of Chinese Silk Art", presented the books to the Department of Asian Art, Ratti Textile Center, Textile Conservation Department, and Publishing and Editorial Department of The Metropolitan Museum of Art, as well as Columbia University and Bard College. Among them, the Ratti Textile Center of The Metropolitan Museum of Art, as a professional textile collection and library resource center, will provide professional services for relevant experts.


Professor Zhao Feng, Chief Editor of the Series, presenting books to the

Publishing and Editorial Department of The Metropolitan Museum of

Art.


Professor Zhao Feng, Chief Editor of the Series, presenting books to the Ratti Textile Center.


The scene of the symposium on the launch of "A Comprehensive Series of Chinese Silk Art · The Metropolitan Museum of Art Volume"