Global treasures on the Chinese stage

"This approach often enables us a perspective and a narrative that would be impossible otherwise," she says, referring to an exhibition she co-curated with counterparts from the Jeju National Museum in South Korea. Inspired by a Korean who traveled for more than four months in China in the 15th century, the exhibition, on display at the Zhejiang Museum early last year, pulled together antiques from the two countries that drew vivid comparison between two historically related cultures.

"Compared with shows that parachute into our museums, joint efforts that tap into an overlapped history - however brief they are - may strike a deeper chord with local audiences," she says.

Qian Wei of Art Exhibitions China, a governmental organization responsible for introducing to the country some high-profile foreign exhibitions over the past years, said incoming shows now constitute a trend.

"It must be admitted that with the world financial crisis still going on, many cash-strapped foreign museums are eyeing China. We are approached by both foreign museums and independent curators. This is in sharp contrast with what happened in the 1980s, 1990s and even 2000s, when Western museums were spending big to bring to their audience a condensed version of Chinese history," Qian says.