Is This the Age of Enlightment for China?

Only time will tell, however the opening exhibit "The Age of Enlightenment" of the now largest art museum in the world situated in Tiananmen Square in the heart of Beijing China is promising. China, who spent nearly $400 million dollars to remake the National Museum, now has 2 million square feet under roof.  That is big, really big.  You would think with that much square footage it would be hard  NOT to cover the entirety of China's history in art, but there are some gaping holes. For instance the Cultural Revolution that tore the country apart from 1966 and 1976.  Apparently, there is only one photograph of that era along with 3 lines of text. It is also very discouraging that one of China's most successful artist, AI Weiwei was detained this week without cause in the apparent larger government crackdown against dissidents. Why then would the opening exhibition that will run for one year in the Chinese National Museum be "The Age of Enlightenment"? The New York Times article today suggest "The Enlightenment show, although tantalizing, will also avoid overt mention of the political ideas - such as universal human rights - that drove that period of European history. That means themes of individuality or rights will be alluded to in paintings or furniture but not explicitly discussed."  Does not sound promising and only time will tell if this exhibit will help bring about the Enlightenment of the Chinese people, but it is a step in the right direction I believe.To see more pictures of the museum click here.