NMoQ’s 'On the Move' exhibition fosters Qatar-China cultural ties

By the Editorial Team · Tuesday, June 23, 2026

The National Museum of China in Beijing is hosting "On the Move," an exhibition organized by the National Museum of Qatar featuring a traditional Qatari tent and over 150 artefacts that showcase the lives of Qatar’s nomadic communities. This exhibition marks the first of its kind at the museum and highlights the decade-long cultural partnership between Qatar and China, emphasizing shared heritage and ongoing collaboration.

A traditional tent woven from goat and camel hair by Qatari women is at the center of the “On the Move” exhibition currently on display at the National Museum of China (NMC) in Beijing. The exhibit, organised by the National Museum of Qatar (NMoQ), features a reconstructed Bayt al Sha’ar, or “House of Hair,” offering visitors an immersive experience into the lives of Qatar’s nomadic communities, highlighting their mobility, resilience, and adaptation to desert environments.

The exhibition presents over 150 artefacts from Qatar alongside photographs, films, oral histories, and archival materials. These elements collectively trace the experiences and traditions of people who traversed Qatar’s desert landscape from the 18th century until the onset of the oil era. Housed in South Gallery 3, “On the Move” runs through September 9 and represents the first exhibition of its kind at the NMC.

Organised into eight thematic sections, the exhibition explores various aspects of Qatar’s mobile desert populations, including traditional architecture and weaving techniques, spatial organisation of living areas, and the relationship between pastoralists and the animals central to their livelihoods. The displays underscore how these communities developed specialised knowledge and practical skills to survive and thrive in the harsh desert environment. Themes such as creativity, hospitality, and communal life are woven throughout the exhibition, which also examines the social and environmental transformations brought about by modernisation and oil discovery.

The concluding section features “Mapping Migration Memory,” an immersive sound installation that delves into issues of migration, memory, and resilience. The Beijing presentation marks the latest stage in the exhibition’s international tour. Originally launched at the NMoQ in 2022 as part of the Qatar–MENASA Year of Culture, “On the Move” initially showcased more than 400 objects. It subsequently travelled to the National Museum of Mongolia in Ulaanbaatar in 2024, becoming the first exhibition from Qatar presented abroad.

The exhibition’s arrival in Beijing coincides with a significant milestone in Qatar-China cultural relations. It comes a decade after the two countries inaugurated the 2016 Year of Culture, which laid the foundation for ongoing collaboration between their museums and cultural organisations. According to Qatar Museums, this initial programme fostered enduring partnerships, leading to further exhibitions, exchanges, and joint cultural initiatives.

More than a display of artefacts, “On the Move” highlights the continuing development of cultural ties between Qatar and China through shared heritage and museum cooperation. As visitors in Beijing explore the legacy of Qatar’s nomadic communities, they also engage with a broader narrative of cultural dialogue that endures between the two nations.

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