Culture in the saddle

A young Louis XIV sits on horseback. Across the exhibition space, a Qing (1644-1911) emperor appears in riding attire.

Between them are saddles, hunting scenes, sculptures and paintings reflecting two cultures' long relationships with the same animal.

The juxtaposition is deliberate.

"We wanted them to fit together within the overall narrative," says Sun Dongning, a researcher at the Prince Kung's Palace Museum and curator of the exhibition.

For Sun, that narrative begins with the encounter between humans and horses.

The idea of making objects speak to one another lies at the heart of Riding Into Reflection: A Sino-French Exhibition on Equine Culture, which opened on Aug 25 at Jiale Hall of the Prince Kung's Palace Museum in Beijing.

The exhibition brings together more than 200 pieces and sets, including more than 60 equine-themed objects from Chateau de Chantilly in France, along with works from Chinese cultural institutions and the Hong Kong Jockey Club. It runs through Nov 29.

Rather than treating the horse simply as a subject in Chinese and French art, the exhibition uses it as a way to examine how people in different societies have lived with, worked with, ridden and imagined the animal.

"People and horses have been faithful companions for thousands of years," Sun says. "From the natural world to domestication, horses have interacted with people in warfare, production and ritual, and have created so many connections and resonances with human life."

The encounter, he says, also offers a window into interactions between Chinese and Western civilizations.

The exhibition begins by asking what two cultures can learn about each other by looking at the same animal.

One answer emerges from the exhibition's treatment of hunting.

The French display evokes the aristocratic hunting culture of Chateau de Chantilly, while the Chinese section draws on Mulan Qiuxian, the Qing imperial tradition of autumn hunting at the Mulan hunting grounds. The hunts served not only to practice riding and archery but also to reinforce the Qing court's ties with Mongol princes and nobles.

Placed side by side, the works show how horses became associated with power and status in both cultures.

Sun says the curatorial team repeatedly searched for such connections over more than eight months of preparations, a relatively short period for an international collaborated exhibition.

That search for a "fit" gives the exhibition much of its visual logic.

The three sections — Tracing the Origins, Riding With the Wind and Unbridled Imagination — move from the history of humans and horses to equestrian traditions and then to artistic expression. The displays include horse fossils, Chinese and Western saddlery, paintings, sculptures and other works.

But the comparisons become particularly interesting when the exhibition moves away from rulers and grand historical scenes.