The exhibition is divided into four sections — Origin, Exploration, Replication, and Heritage — and documents the full arc of this Sino-German partnership, tracing it to Xi's dissertation in 1929.

The current exhibition builds directly on a previous showcase held at the Prince Kung's Palace Museum in September 2025. Titled From Model to Masterpiece: Tracing the Legacy of Ironed Paper Models, the exhibition featured 72 original tangyang alongside six newly crafted models.

While the 2025 exhibition focused on the cultural and design philosophies behind tangyang, the 2026 exhibition shifts the lens to scientific reconstruction and cross-cultural collaboration, told through the eyes of young people.

"Tangyang is a type of architectural model mostly made of paper that was used in ancient China," explains Lin Yucen, a co-curator of the exhibition and a staff member at the Prince Kung's Palace Museum. "Other materials such as wood were also used."

The name comes from the manufacturing process, in which artisans used a hot iron to shape the roof components, hence tang (to iron) and yang (model). Its function was similar to today's 3D renderings.

"After the artisans finished making it, the rulers could see the form and design of the building," Lin says.