This conference brings together the most recent research on Chinese painting, focusing on its intersections with image-making practices, ritual traditions, sensory experience, social dynamics, and cross-cultural exchange.
Image Credit: Detail from Buddhist Retreat by Stream and Mountains, Juran (Chinese, active 960–985), Cleveland Museum of Art, Gift of Katharine Holden Thayer 1959.348.
501 Schermerhorn Hall, Columbia University, 1190 Amsterdam Ave., New York, NY 10027.
Please use the registration link to reserve a spot: https://chinesepaintingatcolumbia.eventbrite.com
Friday, April 3, 2026
1:00 pm Registration & coffee
1:30 pm Welcome Remarks by Matthew McKelway
1:45 pm. Keynote Talk: Alfreda Murck
2:30-5:00 pm. Panel 1: Depictions of Icons and Liturgies
Michelle C. Wang (Georgetown University)
Bo Sun (National Museum of China)
Ching-Ling Wang (Rijksmuseum)
Shih-shan Susan Huang (Rice University)
Discussant: Ryusuke Masuki (Tokyo University)
5:00 pm. Q&A
5:30-7 pm. Reception and dinner for all attendees
Saturday, April 4, 2026
9:00 am. Registration & coffee
9:30 am. Greetings by Yi-bang Li
9:30 am-12:00 pm. Panel 2: Revisiting Classic Works and Pictorial Conventions
Masaaki Itakura (Tokyo University)
Pinyan Zhu (Emory University)
Yunru Chen (National Taiwan University)
Fei Deng (Fudan University)
Discussant: Jeffrey Moser (Brown University)
12:00 pm. Q&A
12:30 pm. Lunch
2:00 pm-4:30 pm Panel 3: Visualizing the Unseen World in Chinese Painting
Jeehee Hong (McGill University)
Michael Hatch (Trinity College)
Chen Liu (Peking University)
Jennifer Purtle (University of Toronto)
Discussant: Michael Cavayero (Peking University)
4:30 pm. Q&A
5:30 pm. Dinner for speakers and discussants off campus
5:30 pm. Reception for student attendees (location TBD near campus)
Sunday, April 5th, 2026
9:30 am. Registration & coffee
10:00 am. Greetings by Jin Xu
10:15 am-12:00 pm. Panel 4: Rethinking Chinese Painting History Outside-In
Haruka Takenami (Kyoto University of Fine Arts)
Yu-chih Lai (Academia Sinica)
Maromitsu Tsukamoto (Tokyo University)
Discussant: Catherine Zhu (Columbia University)
12:00 pm. Q&A
12:30 pm Lunch
2:00-3:45 pm. Panel 5: Figures in Landscapes
Xiaofeng Huang (Central Academy of Fine Arts)
Meng Zhao (The University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill)
Lei Xue (Oregon State University)
Discussant: Cheng-hua Wang (Princeton University)
3:45 pm. Q&A
4:30 pm. Closing remarks and introducing Noriko Miyazaki, Matthew McKelway
4:45 pm. Keynote Talk: Noriko Miyazaki
5:45 pm. Reception for all attendees