Cover Artist Takashi Murakami poses in front his work named “Gion Sairei-zu”, which was part of his exhibition, ‘Japanese Art History a la Takashi Murakami’. This involved the painstaking restoration of an important piece of Japanese cultural heritage: a 17th-century Japanese folding screen that is considered a national treasure. (Photo: James Manning/PA Images/Getty Images)
Artist Takashi Murakami poses in front his work named “Gion Sairei-zu”, which was part of his exhibition, ‘Japanese Art History a la Takashi Murakami’. This involved the painstaking restoration of an important piece of Japanese cultural heritage: a 17th-century Japanese folding screen that is considered a national treasure. (Photo: James Manning/PA Images/Getty Images)
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From Takashi Murakami’s Edo restorations to AI-powered ink paintings, meet the Asian creators blending tradition with technology to preserve cultural heritage in the digital age
Across Asia, a growing number of Asian creators are turning to AI and digital technology to preserve, remix and share cultural narratives with global audiences. These artists see tech not as a threat but as a partner in keeping cultural heritage alive or reimagining it for modern times. From virtual ink landscapes to AI-restored scrolls, their projects blend centuries-old art forms with cutting-edge tools. Each example highlights a way that tradition can evolve while honouring its roots. In the process, these efforts invite new conversations about what it means to safeguard culture in a digital age.
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Takashi Murakami: Reviving Edo art with AI
Takashi Murakami’s exhibition, Japanese Art History à la Takashi Murakami, involved the painstaking restoration of a 17th-century Japanese folding screen considered a national treasure. Using AI, Murakami’s team started with a high-resolution scan from the Tokyo National Museum.
About 20 per cent of the artwork was damaged and missing; AI-generated lines helped recreate these areas, but not without significant human intervention. Nine studio assistants redrew lost elements by hand where AI fell short. Murakami added his own signature touches, such as his signature anime-style “Smiling Flowers” and bright colour flourishes, juxtaposing classical Edo-era imagery with contemporary motifs.
His process of “Murakamising” the iconic images blended traditional craftsmanship—like gold leaf application and brushstroke texture—with AI’s ability to propose large-scale reconstructions. The duality highlights how AI can restore cultural heritage while raising questions about authenticity in art.
Victor Wong: AI and ink painting
In Hong Kong, Victor Wong’s AI robot, A.I. Gemini, transforms traditional Chinese ink painting through programming that mimics centuries-old brush strokes and techniques. Wong spent three years developing and training Gemini to manage physical aspects of ink and water on rice paper, creating original “mindscape” paintings that evoke Shan Shui landscapes.
Works such as The Fauvist Dream of Gemini are described as “artificial intelligence on paper”. The robot’s unpredictable algorithm means no two works are identical; the process typically takes eight to ten hours per piece. Wong’s physics and engineering background, plus decades in digital effects, helped him build a system that respects traditional aesthetics while embracing digital innovation. Exhibited internationally and commissioned by major brands, Gemini challenges the definition of authorship and pushes the boundaries of the future of Asian ink art as cultural heritage in the digital age.
Almagul Menlibayeva: Cyber-nomadic textiles
Kazakh artist Almagul Menlibayeva uses AI as a medium for historical reclamation and cultural transformation. Her installation “Map of Nomadizing Reimaginings #3” features a handwoven textile map of Central Asia paired with AI-enhanced video scenes steeped in feminist rituals, nomadic storytelling, and endangered languages.
Instead of neutral tools, Menlibayeva regards AI as a landscape of ideological and historical asymmetries infused with potential. She sources archival footage, oral histories, and her own photographs or embroidery passed down generations, feeding them through AI platforms to produce immersive and nonlinear artworks. These pieces confront the erasure inflicted during Soviet-era repression, creating a “decolonial” digital alternative that reanimates silenced cultural heritage with layered complexity.
Rehmatullah Mirbahar: Mohenjo Daro reimagined
From Pakistan comes Rehmatullah Mirbahar, a largely self-taught digital artist who went viral for using AI to visualise Mohenjo Daro, a seminal Indus Valley civilisation city dating to 2500 BCE. His project required months of detailed research into historic architecture, dress and lifestyle, combined with onsite photography of ruins.
AI-produced images depict bustling markets, streets and citizens, though Mirbahar constantly intervened to correct and refine flaws, as AI typically generated only 50-60 per cent accurate results. His work extends beyond visualisation: it educates and sparks global interest in an ancient civilisation often underrepresented in contemporary discourse. Mirbahar plans future projects to digitally resurrect other South Asian cultural heritage sites, underscoring the role of AI in making history accessible and engaging for new audiences.
Ming Shiu: Genesis Kai and Korean heritage
Ming Shiu’s innovative work introducing Genesis Kai, a virtual AI alter ego, pushes the conceptual boundaries of AI as both creator and cultural custodian. Kai, developed as Ming Shiu’s “chiral digital twin” drawing on extensive Korean cultural and linguistic datasets, produced the debut series “The Red Prayer,” which evokes Joseon-era ceramics (notably moon jars) alongside symbolic water motifs.
Presented as a “Nova Sapien,” Genesis Kai exemplifies a symbiotic relationship where AI learns from human tradition and, in turn, guides creative reinterpretation. Shiu’s project envisions AI not as a replacement for Asian creators, but as an evolving partner in cultural dialogue, expanding how Korean cultural heritage can be expressed, preserved and shared digitally on international platforms.
Collectively, these Asian creators do more than use AI in a performative or surface-level manner. They exemplify how technology can collaborate with human knowledge to deepen cultural narratives, restore endangered traditions, and reimagine heritage for future relevance. Rather than replacing artists, AI is treated as a collaborator, and each artist’s nuanced, hands-on approaches showcase a careful balance between authentic preservation and inventive evolution, ensuring cultural legacies remain vibrant without sacrificing complexity or context. Through AI’s capabilities and human expertise, Asian creators are charting a thoughtful path for cultural heritage in a digital age.
Chonx Tibajia is a senior editor at Tatler Asia’s T-Labs team, where she writes widely on lifestyle subjects including beauty, style, entertainment and travel. She has a long career in journalism, including roles as a columnist at The Philippine Star, and is the founder of the creative platform Pineappleversed. Beyond Tatler, her bylines appear in regional lifestyle and business publications, showcasing a broad portfolio that spans beauty trends, travel guides and culture pieces.
