CHENGDU, Sept. 25 (Xinhua) -- An exhibition marking the 40th anniversary of China's reform and opening-up opened in Jianchuan Museum Cluster, China's largest private museum complex, on Tuesday.

Located in Chengdu, capital of southwest China's Sichuan Province, the museum is displaying more than 10,000 objects related to the reform, including photos, historical materials, cultural relics, as well as audio and visual items.

Fan Jianchuan, founder and curator of the museum, said he had spent more than 20 years collecting the items.

Visitors can see photos of iconic moments, including the first national dance competition, in the northeastern city of Dalian; China's first private restaurant, which opened in Beijing in 1980; and China's first color TV production line from Tianjin.

Chen Yongliang, an architectural designer born in 1982, said a scene reconstructing family life in the 1980s impressed him, and the sewing machine, bicycle, watch, recorder, enamel mug and toys reminded him of his childhood.

"I would have forgotten those old days if I hadn't come to the exhibition," Chen said.

Starting in 1978, China's reform and opening-up promoted the development of the private economy, generated many opportunities in the private sector.

Fan said the collections in the museum cluster were witnesses of China's reform and opening-up. The number of museums in the cluster has increased from seven to over 50, scattered in Sichuan and neighboring Chongqing, since the founding of the first one in 2005.

"The private museum complex is an achievement of the reform and opening-up. I, like many others, have realized my dreams and benefited from the economic reform."