Promotional material of the International Museum Day in 2022 Photo: Courtesy of China's National Cultural Heritage Administration

The main event of 2022's International Museum Day in China is scheduled to kick off at the Hubei Provincial Museum in Central China's Hubei Province on Wednesday, China's National Cultural Heritage Administration (NCHA) announced on Friday.

For the 2022 iteration, International Museum Day takes the theme "the Power of Museums" to explore the potential of museums to bring about positive change in communities through "the power of achieving sustainability, the power of innovating on digitalization and accessibility and the power of community building through education," according to the official website of the International Council of Museums.

According to NCHA, some annual awards including "the Top Ten Exhibitions of National Museums in 2021," "Most Innovation Museums in 2022" and "The 3rd National Museology Outstanding Academic Achievements" will be revealed during Wednesday's opening ceremony.

Meanwhile, the Hubei Provincial Museum also will hold a series of activities including exhibitions, academic forums and promotional events from Tuesday to Wednesday.

The exhibition title with "The Power of Music - The Early Chinese Musical Instruments Culture" will display over 80 sets of precious cultural relics collected from different museums across China and provide visitors with a comprehensive view of ancient China's musical instruments and ritual music systems.

On Wednesday night, visitors can enjoy a spectacular light show by taking a cruise along the Yangtze River. On the banks of the river, the images of exquisite cultural relics collected by the museum will provide the audience with an immersive experience made possible through the cutting-edge technologies such as AR.

Besides the Hubei Museum, other places across China also plan to launch events to celebrate the day. One insider at the well-known Sanxingdui Museum in Southwest China's Sichuan Province told the Global Times on Sunday that the museum will launch a new exhibition that day as a special celebration.

Most international events co-hosted with other museums overseas will continue to use online models due to the current global pandemic.

On Friday afternoon, the Chendu Museum in Sichuan Province and the Museum Boijmans Van Beuningen in Rotterdam, the Netherlands co-launched an online event to exchange experiences and views on the future development of museums and art collection under the theme of "The Power of Museums."

According to a document that the Chendu Museum sent to the Global Times, 2022 marks the 50th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic ties between China and the Netherlands. This event is a testimony to the friendship between the two countries over half a century. Capitalizing on International Museum Day, this event demonstrated the willingness to carry out exchanges and cooperation between the two countries in the field of cultural creativity.

International Museum Day was established by the International Council of Museums in 1977 with the aim of increasing people's awareness of the role of museums and promoting the development of global museums. China joined the council in 1983 and has officially celebrated the day as a main venue with various themes since 2009.