The MAK owns an extensive collection of art and arts and crafts from the Ming Period (1368–1644). During this period, China began to participate in world trade, yet internally went through turbulent times. The works – paintings, sculptures, other three-dimensional works, lacquers, bronzes and also early works of porcelain – created in this area of tension between small craftsmen’s businesses as well as artists’ workshops and manufacturers offer insight into this period of “Chinese Modern Times”.

Curator Johannes Wieninger, MAK Curator Asia
 
MAK Study Collection In the Study Collection, the MAK exhibits selected objects of its extensive collection on a permanent basis. The arrangement by materials corresponds to the specializations of the collection’s curators, while the selection is based mainly on major lines of development. Temporary exhibitions offer an opportunity to cast a spotlight on various aspects of the collection and to consider objects in the collection between the poles of applied and contemporary art.