Speaker Series 💬 AI and Cultural Heritage

Not art too! Does AI have a role to play in the appreciation of art and culture?

Almost exactly 3 years since ChatGPT was unleashed on the public, AI’s absorption into every aspect of our world seems nearly complete. Is nowhere sacred? Katharine Butler, an entrepreneur and collector of Chinese porcelain, has been considering how AI can be applied to the study and appreciation of art. In this lecture, she will discuss both the opportunities and concerns surrounding AI in cultural institutions, examining existing projects at museums worldwide.

Butler will share experiments she has carried out with her collection of Chinese porcelain as well as that of other institutions. She will demonstrate the ‘AI curator’ she has developed through her company Museus and discuss the experiences around its implementation. Finally, she will open up the debate as to whether AI can really improve the appreciation of art and question what may get lost or stifled with its widespread adoption.
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🗣️Speaker: Katharine Butler
Katharine Butler is an entrepreneur and researcher in Chinese porcelain. She has an MA in History of Art from Edinburgh University. She is CEO of Museus Inc., a start-up bringing AI technology to the study and enjoyment of art. She is curator at the Butler Collection and co-author of Leaping the Dragon Gate: The Sir Michael Butler Collection of Seventeenth-Century Chinese Porcelain (2021). A former council member of the Oriental Ceramic Society in London, she has published articles in Arts of Asia, The Asian Art Newspaper and Transactions of the Oriental Ceramics Society, and has lectured widely.
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[Lecture] Not art too! Does AI have a role to play in the appreciation of art and culture?

📅 Sunday, 23 November 2025
🕕 4:00–5:00 p.m.
📍 Drake Gallery, 1/F, Fung Ping Shan Building, UMAG, HKU, 90 Bonham Road, Pokfulam, Hong Kong
🗣️ Language: English
🎟️ Registration Required
🔗 For more information, please check the link in bio!
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UMAG Online Lecture Series (2025-2026) 💬 Lecture 1

Managing Mass Creativity: Training Amateur Artists in Socialist China 👩‍🏫

In Mao’s China, worker and peasant amateur art activities served as evidence of socialism’s liberatory power. The provision of artistic training in factories and villages showcased the state’s investment in mass culture. By acting as instructors in amateur art classes, professional artists demonstrated their commitment to workers and peasants. However, managing mass creativity proved challenging: cultural bureaucrats disagreed on how professional artists should train worker and peasant amateurs, leading to fluctuating training methods throughout the socialist period. Exploring how both professional and amateur artists navigated these changing technical expectations, this talk reveals the ideological and practical tensions involved in shaping a visual language for mass subjectivity.
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🗣️Speaker: Minerva Inwald, Assistant Lecturer, Chinese History, University of Melbourne
🗣️Discussant: Angie C. Baecker, Research Assistant Professor, Department of Chinese History and Culture, The Hong Kong Polytechnic University
🗣️Moderator: Florian Knothe, Director, University Museum and Art Gallery, The University of Hong Kong
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[Online Lecture] Managing Mass Creativity: Training Amateur Artists in Socialist China

📅 Tuesday, 25 November 2025
🕕 3:00–4:00 p.m.
📍 Online via Zoom
🗣️ Language: English
🎟️ Registration Required
🔗 For more information, please check the link in bio!
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Discover courtly treasures and scholarly elegance in our guided tours! UMAG now presents in-depth journeys through two new exhibitions 💁🏻‍♂️ 🚩

“Handmade and Handheld Song to Qing Dynasty Chinese Bronzes for the Scholar’s Studio” 🖋️ 🤎

Step into a scholar’s studio across dynasties with over 80 delicate Chinese bronze wares from the Song to Qing, tracing how ritual, aesthetics, and symbolism shaped both object and culture.

“Japanese Jewels: Imperial Silver Bonbonnières” 🍬🩶

Explore the artistry and ritual of Japanese imperial bonbonnières, rare silver candy boxes born from Meiji era ceremony and craftsmanship, carrying stories from the imperial court and connections to European influences.

👉Check out our guided tour schedule at the link in bio!
🕰 Duration: 20–30 minutes

參加我們的公眾導賞團，誠邀你遊歷中國文人書齋及探索日本宮廷禮儀！ 💁🏻‍♂️ 🚩

「掌中造物 宋至清代中國文房青銅器」聚焦宋至清代的文房用品，深入探討這些後期青銅器的歷史，藝術與禮儀意義。

「銀匣瑰寶：日本御製糖果盒」帶你欣賞明治時代以來皇室御用，巧奪天工的御製糖果盒，見證東西文化交融與禮贈典故。

👉 請於檔案內連結查看我們的導賞團時間表！
🕰 導賞時間：約20至30分鐘
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Handmade and Handheld Song to Qing Dynasty Chinese Bronzes for the Scholar’s Studio
展覽《掌中造物 宋至清代中國文房青銅器》
📆 October 24, 2025 – February 8, 2026
📍 University Museum and Art Gallery, The University of Hong Kong
📍 香港大學美術博物館
🎟️ Free Admission 免費入場
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Japanese Jewels: Imperial Silver Bonbonnières
展覽《銀匣瑰寶：日本御製糖果盒》
📆 November 5, 2025 – February 8, 2026
📍 University Museum and Art Gallery, The University of Hong Kong
📍 香港大學美術博物館
🎟️ Free Admission 免費入場
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