The director of the central government's liaison office has called for greater efforts in promoting arts and culture while the city's leader urged the sector to make use of technology to reach audiences at home and abroad.

Zheng Yanxiong, who heads the liaison office in Hong Kong, emphasised the need to thoroughly integrate patriotism into the arts during an opening ceremony of the Guangdong Art Centennial Exhibition in Hong Kong on Thursday.

"In this new era and new stage, we must firmly advance cultural and artistic innovation...and strive to promote the creative transformation and innovative development of traditional Chinese culture," Zheng said.

At the same event, Chief Executive John Lee also pointed to the importance of adopting an innovative approach to showcasing art.

"I believe the industry will continue to be innovative and make good use of art technology ... reach audiences at home and abroad through digitisation and immersive experiences," Lee said.

People in the arts sector should leverage the "soft power" of Chinese culture to demonstrate their patriotism to others, the chief executive added.