Restoring Chinese art

Experts seek to put emphasis on the background stories in the restoration of ancient Chinese art and calligraphy at this year's international forum on art preservation in Beijing. [Photo/Xinhua]

Cai further says that as Yan's original work was a passionate expression of his loyalty to the country in a time of turmoil, Wang also chose this work intentionally to express his patriotism. Therefore, he adds that the deviation in the copy is understandable, for Wang's work "was not only to imitate the appearance of the original work, but to reveal more of his own emotions".

Meanwhile, apart from focusing on the uniqueness of Chinese artworks and culture, this year's forum focused on the combination of traditional Chinese restoration techniques and global best practices, says Liu Wei, the president of Renmin University of China.

One example of this is how paper conservation techniques from the West have been incorporated by Chinese restorers.

According to Joanna Kosek, the head of Pictorial Art Conservation at the British Museum, paper conservation as a profession developed in the West only after World War II. But this technique has gained popularity globally as evidenced by the work of the museum's Hirayama Studio, which was set up in 1994 for the conservation of East Asian paintings.