Dr. Liu Zelan received his Ph.D. in the History of Chinese Art from The Chinese University of Hong Kong. He previously earned a B.A. in History from Tianjin Normal University and an M.A. in Cultural Heritage and Museology from Sun Yat-sen University.

As an art historian working at the intersections of material culture, archaeology, and museum studies, Dr. Liu’s research centers on Chinese Buddhist art, the artistic traditions of pre-modern China, and cross-cultural exchanges between pan-Asian regions and the West along the Silk Roads. His methodology combines close object-based analysis with archival and archaeological evidence, together with museum collections, to reassess issues of attribution, dating, workshop practice, and heritage value. Dedicated to research-led teaching, Dr. Liu has previously taught as a Part-time Lecturer at both CUHK and HSU, offering courses on Chinese Buddhist art, ancient bronzes, and cultural heritage management. He also brings extensive curatorial and museum experience: he served as co-curator of Cast for Dignity: Early Chinese Belt Hooks from the De-Neng-Tang Collection (Art Museum, CUHK, Aug–Dec 2023), and as researcher for the digital exhibition series Traversing the Forbidden City, produced in collaboration with the Palace Museum and the Art Promotion Office, HKSAR.

His scholarship has appeared in peer-reviewed journals and international conferences, supported by a number of fellowships and awards, including the Madeleine Tang Friends Research and Education Fund Award, the S. Lee Award, the CUHK Postgraduate Scholarship, and the National Scholarship for Graduate Students (PRC). Beyond academia, Dr. Liu maintains a wide engagement with the arts. He is a practitioner of multiple traditional Chinese musical instruments with stage experience, as well as a dedicated calligrapher and seal engraver. He is also an experienced connoisseur of Chinese artifacts, with particular expertise in bronzes, ranging from ritual vessels to ancient coinage.

• Buddhist art

• Chinese artistic traditions, art communication of silk road

• Tangible cultural heritage

• Museum studies

• Musical heritage

• Selected Journal Articles

  • Liu, Z. (forthcoming). Reconsidering the so-called Liu Song Buddhist images from the former site of Wanfosi, Chengdu. Sichuan Cultural Relics (PKU-core).

  
  

  • Liu, Z.(2023). Two uncertain-dated Buddhist images of Southern Liang in Baoguang Monastery of Xindu. Journal of Nanjing Academy of Arts (CSSCI,

  PKU-core), 168–173.
  
  

  • Liu, Z. (2023). On the etched glass of the Eight Views of Ram City in the Qinghui

  Garden of Shunde: Version, production period, and craftsmanship. Art and Design Research (CSSCI, PKU-core), 20–27.

  
  

  • Liu, Z. (2023). Reconstructing the archaeological context of free-standing Buddhist images: Considerations of the Wanfosi hoard in Chengdu (Sichuan). Religions (AHCI), 14(6), 759, 1–25.

  
  

  • Liu, Z.(2023). Belt hooks of the Eastern Zhou: Types and regional characteristics. In Castfor Dignity: Early Chinese Belt Hooks from the De-Neng-Tang Collection (pp. 59–97). Hong Kong: CUHK Press.

  
  

  • Liu, Z.(2018). Preliminary study on the Ming funerary golden and silver coins. Chinese

  Numismatic, 20–29. Edited Book

  
  

  • (Catalogue essay, entries, and proof-reading) Cast for Dignity: Early Chinese Belt Hooks from the De-Neng-Tang Collection, Art Museum, CUHK (Hong Kong: CUHK Press, 2023).
  
  

  Selected Presentation Papers:

  
  

  • “The Wanfosi Hoard of Liang (502–557) Buddhist Images from Chengdu (Sichuan): Archaeological Context and Art Historical Significances,” December 2023, in “Art History at

  Lunch 2023–2024” Online workshop series, jointly organized by Department of Fine Arts and the Art Museum, CUHK.

  
  

  • “Reconsidering the So-called Liu Song Buddhist Images from the Former Site of Wanfosi, Chengdu,” October 2023, in “New Lights of Art Research: The Fourth International

  Symposium of Sichuan University on Religious Art and Culture in 2023,” hosted by School of Fine Arts, Sichuan University.

  
  

  • “Several research topics on belt hooks of the Eastern Zhou: Types, regional characteristics and functions,” September 2023, hosted by Art Museum, CUHK.
  
  

  • “Buddhist Archaeological Assemblage of Early Sixth-Century Sichuan,” June 2021, SEAA

  Online Student Conference, co-hosted by SEAA and Kyungpook National University.

• Co-curator, Art Museum (CUHK), “Cast for Dignity: Early Chinese Belt Hooks from the

De-Neng-Tang Collection” (25 August–3 December, 2023).

• Curator, Art Promotion Office, Leisure and Cultural Service Department, Government of HKSAR. “Life of Fusion behind the Vermilion Walls” from the “Traversing the Forbidden City” online exhibition series.

• • CUHK Outstanding Students Awards (2024)

   

  • Madeleine Tang Friends Research and Education Fund Award, The Art Museum, CUHK (2024)

   

   • S. Lee Award, CUHK (2023)

   

   • Ph.D. Support Scheme, Faculty of Arts, CUHK (2023)

   

   • Mr. Lam On Hang Memorial Scholarship, CUHK (2022)

   

   • Friends of the Art Museum Research Grant, The Art Museum, CUHK (2022)

   

   • Postgraduate Studentship, CUHK (2019–2022)

   

   • National Scholarship for Graduate Students, Ministry of Education of the PRC (2018)

Undergraduate:
BA in Cultural and Creative Industries (BA-CCI)

• CCI1105 Romance and Heroes: Chinese Internet Literature
• CCI3002 Brand, Urban and Heritage Management
• CCI3101 Asian Cities, Culture and Heritage