The eight-day National Day holiday is almost here! Do you have plans for you and your loved ones?

If you crave leisure, fun and culture, there's nothing better than exploring a museum. Here's our roundup of must-see exhibitions happening around the country.

1. Pay homage to Su Dongpo at the Palace Museum's special exhibition

As the Palace Museum celebrates its 600th birthday, it has dedicated a special exhibition to Su Shi (1037-1101) aka Su Dongpo, a literary figure whose legacy and personal charisma are still cherished by Chinese intellectuals.

Living during the Song Dynasty (860-1279), Su is one of the most renowned poets and calligraphers in Chinese history, described as "the gay genius" in Chinese writer Lin Yutang's famous biography.

Divided in four sections, the exhibit features 78 pieces including calligraphy, painting and objects, made or owned by Su, his teachers and close friends, or by his followers in later eras. They are put together to present the inner world of Su while outlining a vivid portrait of the beloved literary giant.

According to Yu Wentao, a researcher of calligraphy and paintings at the Palace Museum, the quality and diversity of works related to Su at this exhibition are incomparable.

If you go:

Make sure you book your ticket in advance on the museum's official website.

8:30 am-5:00 pm, Tuesday to Sunday, The Palace Museum, No.4 Jingshan Qianjie, Dongcheng district, Beijing 北京市东城区景山前街4号,故宫博物院

2. Exhibit celebrates the Palace Museum's 600th birthday

2020 marks the 600th anniversary of the completion of construction of the Palace Museum or the Forbidden City, used as China's imperial palace for both the Ming (1368-1644) and Qing (1644-1911) dynasties from 1420 to 1911.

The Beijing museum has set up a special exhibition for visitors to review the remarkable development of this architectural wonder, which was recognized as a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 1987.

Titled Everlasting Splendor: Six Centuries at the Forbidden City, the show displays over 400 cultural relics which reflect the history of the palace's construction, the development of its layout and how it has been protected and renovated in past decades.

If you go:

Make sure you book your ticket in advance on the museum's official website. 

8:30 am-5:00 pm, Tuesday to Sunday, The Palace Museum, No.4 Jingshan Qianjie, Dongcheng district, Beijing北京市东城区景山前街4号,故宫博物院

3. Learn about China, and china

China's English name, minus the capital C, is a term for ceramics, particularly porcelain. Many believe this is because the country has been a world leader in the production of fine ceramics for centuries, with the most famous examples including blue-and-white pottery.

Thanks to the ancient Silk Road, the country's precious porcelain was sold to countries around the world. Now the National Museum of China is offering a brief review of the ancient maritime trade in ceramics. Titled A Sail Over Miles, the ongoing exhibition featuring nearly 300 antique objects navigates the manufacturing, export and shipping routes from the Tang Dynasty (618-907) to the Qing Dynasty (1644-1911).

Some of the objects on show were excavated from the wrecks of sunken cargo ships that had been under the sea for a long time, such as Nanhai No 1, a Chinese merchant carrier dating back more than 800 years.

The exhibition also shows Japanese, Korean and British ceramics, reflecting the influence of China's porcelain-making techniques in local industries.

If you go:

9:00 am-4:00 pm, No. 16, East Chang'an Avenue, Dongcheng district, Beijing (on the east side of Tian'anmen Square) 京东城区东长安街16号天安门广场东侧,国家博物馆

4. Appreciate the twin masters of modern Chinese art in Hangzhou

When it comes to 20th century Chinese art, Huang Binhong (1865-1955) and Qi Baishi (1864-1957) are two figures often mentioned in the same breath. The two art giants revolutionized and breathed new life into classic Chinese ink painting, which had languished in the art market while Western art prevailed.

Floral Aroma in Fall, an ongoing exhibit at the Zhejiang Art Museum, spotlights the masters' achievements in bird-and-flower painting by juxtaposing about 170 of their works. Viewers are invited to compare the approaches adopted by the two reformers as they tried to infuse traditional style with a modern twist.

If you go:

9:00 am-5:00 pm, Tuesday to Sunday, No. 138 Nanshan Road, Hangzhou 杭州市南山路138号,浙江美术馆

5. Take a stroll in Qi Baishi's art world in Changsha

The newly relocated Changsha Art Museum in Central China's Hunan province is holding a grand solo exhibition of Qi Baishi (1864-1957), a native of Hunan's Xiangtan who worked his way from a carpenter to be one of the most revered names in 20th century classic Chinese ink painting.

A comprehensive exhibition of the master's creations, the show brings together 93 sets of Qi's creations, spanning painting, calligraphy and seal carvings. Visitors to the show can appreciate how the master captured the soul of the simple things in life, including fruit, insects and shrimp, which the artist is best known for.

A video showcasing how the images of shrimp evolved six times under the master's brush, from his late 60s to his 90s, is also on view.

If you go:

9:00 am-4:30 pm, Tuesday to Sunday, Intersection of Xiangjiang North Road and Chuangyuan Road, Kaifu District, Changsha 长沙市开福区湘江北路与创远路交汇处,长沙美术馆

6. Witness the revival of tradition at Song Art Museum in Beijing

If you're curious about the history of Chinese contemporary art, you shouldn't miss The Revival of Tradition, an ongoing show at Beijing's Song Art Museum.

The exhibit brings together 96 sets of artworks by 45 artists, ranging from 20th masters, such as Sanyu (1901-1966) and Lin Fengmian (1900-1991), to 1990s Chinese Contemporary Art movement leaders Xu Bing and Gu Wenda, both born in 1955, and to emerging artists, like post-90s artist Ren Lihan.

"The show aims to provide another approach, a tradition-centered approach to understanding the history of contemporary Chinese art, independent from the criteria of Western art historians" said He Guiyan, the show's curator and art critic.

If you go:

10:00 am-6:00 pm, Tuesday to Sunday; Song Art Museum, Grass Road, Shunyi district, Beijing 北京顺义区格拉斯路松美术馆

7. Experience digital art at Times Art Museum in Beijing

5G, big data, artificial intelligence, neuroscience, virtual reality, augmented reality. These are all buzzwords in today's high-tech environment.

If you want to experience them all, you don't have to visit a lab; instead, just head to Beijing's Times Art Museum, where you can see a mind-blowing marriage of art and hip, cutting-edge technologies at the newly-opened 2020 Asia Digital Art Exhibition.

The exhibit represents 33 artists from 11 countries and showcases 32 digital artworks, among which 10 are making their world debuts. "Many pieces have responded to the coronavirus pandemic, showing the social responsibility art and culture shoulder," said Wang Chen, academic curator of the show.

Borrowing the idea of World Processor from participating German artist Ingo Gunthe's eponymous piece, the exhibit aims to communicate the message that "in this digital age, everyone is a processor, participating in the building of the world," according to curator Qiu Zhijie, a professor with the Central Academy of Fine Arts in Beijing.

If you go:

10: 00 am-10:00 pm, Monday to Sunday, Huaxi Live, No 69, Fuxing road, Haidian district, Beijing 北京市海淀区复兴路69号华熙 LIVE,时代美术馆

8. Trace the history of computer art at UCCA's new show

The Ullens Center for Contemporary Art in Beijing recently kicked off Immaterial/Re-material, a group exhibit that examines the evolution of computing art from the 1960s to the present through more than 70 artworks by 30-plus artists from around the world.

Featuring computer art trailblazers such as Hungarian artist Vera Molnar and German artist Manfred Mohr, to today's emerging voices, like Chinese artist Xu Wenkai, better known by his online handle, aaajiao, the show tackles topics ranging from machine-learning aesthetics to technological discontent.

In addition to the exhibition, UCCA also has worked with Baidu AI to present a special unit that features interactive, generative artworks that invite viewers' participation.

If you go:

10:00 am-7:00 pm, Monday to Sunday. Ullens Center for Contemporary Art, 798 Art Zone, No 4 Jiuxianqiao Road, Chaoyang district 北京市朝阳区酒仙桥路 2号 798艺术区 UCCA尤伦斯当代艺术中心

9. Monet's masterpieces descend on Shanghai

If Ms Wang, the rich Nothing But Thirty character, had a chance to visit the blockbuster Claude Monet (1840-1926) solo exhibition in Shanghai, she wouldn't have made the viral gaffe of the summer, where she mistook the French impressionist's Lotus that she bought for a Van Gogh.

Named after the artist's magnum opus Impression Sunrise, the ongoing show at the Bund One Art Museum features 47 original works from the collection of the Marmottan Monet Museum in Paris, the largest collector of the master's works.

Created in 1872 from a scene of the painter's hometown, the port of le Harve, Impression, Sunrise is credited as the piece that inspired the 19th Impressionist Movement.

The Shanghai show, running through Jan 3, marks the first time the rarely exhibited masterpiece will be shown to the Chinese audience.

If you go:

10:00 am-6:00 pm, 3rd Building, Zhongshan East No.1 Road 上海市中山东一路 1号3楼, Bund One Art Museum

10. Shanghai hosts Edvard Munch's art exhibition

You may not know about Edvard Munch, but almost everyone can recognize the Norwegian artist's iconic work, The Scream.

Scream and Respond, an exhibition running from Sept 25 to Jan 3 at the Shanghai Jiushi Art Museum, gives local audiences a rare chance to get closer to the Expressionist artist.

The exhibition features 53 exhibits -- woodblock prints, lithographs, drawings and paintings — which the artist created in a period spanning more than 30 years, organizers say.

If you go:

10: 00 am-4:30 pm, Tuesday- Sunday, Shanghai Jiushi Art Museum, 6/F, No. 27 Zhongshan East Road, Huangpu district, Shanghai 上海市黄浦区中山东一路27号6层,上海久事美术馆