Case Name: Past to Future: Special Exhibition of Cultural Relics and Hanging Sculpture Art from Xiaoxitian

Case Category: Technological Empowerment for Cultural Heritage Preservation

Case Location: Beijing, China

Case Applicants: Guangzhou Fantuo Digital Creative Technology Co., Ltd., Beijing Wutong Technology Co., Ltd., National Library of China (National Museum of Classic Books)

Case Overview:

Case Description

Xiaoxitian, formerly known as Qianfo An (Thousand Buddha Nunnery), is located on the top of Fenghuang Mountain west of Xi County, Linfen. Built in the second year of the Chongzhen reign in the Ming Dynasty (1629) by Monk Dongming from Huochang Temple on Wutai Mountain, it holds significant value in architecture, hanging sculpture, color painting, religion, and folk customs, serving as a representative of important cultural heritage in Shanxi Province. Breaking away from the conventional model of digital immersive exhibitions dominated by virtual images, this exhibition deeply integrates digital technology with cultural relic display. Guided by the exhibition logic of "mutual verification of scriptures and images", it takes precious cultural relics such as the Yongle Northern Canon and the hanging sculptures in the Mahavira Hall as the core narrative carriers, and uses digital multimedia content as a means of integration, narration, interpretation, and deduction to highlight the historical and artistic value of the cultural relics themselves, creating a cultural narrative space integrating virtuality and reality.

Solutions and Innovation

Although Xiaoxitian's hanging sculptures are exquisite, the hall is small and dimly lit. Strong lighting cannot be used inside the hall, and the peak carbon dioxide levels in the air need to be controlled, resulting in a limited number of visitors. Additionally, the exquisite statues are located at considerable height and distance, making it impossible to clearly see the details of the hanging sculptures.

The case team spent more than two months conducting millimeter-precision digital collection of the Mahavira Hall in Xiaoxitian. They used reverse modeling based on 2D video data and AI reconstruction technology to build a hyper-realistic digital model with 10 billion polygons.

Adopting 16K high-definition textures, every detail is clearly visible, perfectly restoring every subtle trace. For colors faded by time, AI algorithms can deduce and restore their original appearance; for blurred patterns, intelligent restoration and enhancement are carried out with reference to contemporary color painting specimens.

The scene in the VR experience area is particularly innovative. When wearing the equipment, visitors can instantly immerse themselves in the virtual Mahavira Hall. They can "ascend" to mid-air to face the Buddha statues quietly among the beams, and even the delicate lines of the Buddha's robes are clearly distinguishable. By reach out a finger to touch, and through gesture recognition, you can "awaken" the sleeping statues, interact with hundreds of interaction points in the scene, and listen to narratives about their origins.

Social Effects

This case marks the first in-depth activation and application of high-precision digital scanning results of Xiaoxitian's hanging sculptures, fully restoring the grand scene of the hanging sculptures in the Mahavira Hall. It allows visitors to freely explore the entire scene in VR, and clearly perceive the overall layout and detailed beauty of the architecture and statues, transforming the immobile suspended sculpture heritage into digital content that can be deeply experienced and exhibited on tour. This breaks through the difficulties in cultural relic protection and display, setting a reusable benchmark for the digital display of similar ancient architectural painted sculpture heritage.

Support for Sustainable Development Goals

SDG 4 (Quality Education)

SDG 9 (Industry, Innovation and Infrastructure)