Day on the Grand Canal with the Emperor of China or: Surface Is Illusion But So Is Depth, A

Take a journey through 17th century China, guided by director Phillip Hass and artist David Hockney. A Day on the Grand Canal with the Emperor of China highlights one of seven scrolls depicting Emperor Kangxi’s tours of his southern empire in 1689. Breathtaking and detailed, the scroll’s imagery has been meticulously preserved, and as an audience we are whisked on a journey of land, history and art. The scroll itself was painted by artist Wang Hui (1632-1717), and its contents are compared with a later edition painted by Xu Yang. (Minneapolis-St. Paul International Film Festival)