survey_20 — contemporary art museums of China
1. UCCA Center for Contemporary Art — 尤伦斯当代艺术中心 (Beijing, 2007)
The first large private museum of contemporary art in mainland China — in a former workshop of the 798 factory.
- Factory 798— the museum occupies an industrial Bauhaus-type block that has kept its concrete trusses and clerestory light.
- Private model — founded with private funds, it passed to new management after 2018 and now works as a non-profit institution.
- Programme — major international solo exhibitions and a turn towards China’s young scene.
2. M WOODS — 木木美术馆 (Beijing, 2014)
A young private museum in 798: short, intense exhibitions and a commitment to a dialogue between Western and Chinese art.
- Founders — young collectors who gave the museum a personal rather than a corporate tone.
- Format — fast-changing displays and joint projects with institutions abroad.
- Location — a second building in the Longfusi area, linked to the art district.
3. Red Brick Art Museum — 红砖美术馆 (Beijing, 2014)
A red-brick museum-garden: the architecture itself becomes an exhibit and sets the scale for the installations.
- Architecture — a design by Dong Yugan: brick vaults, corridor galleries and a park with water.
- Collection — a private collection focused on large-scale installation and video.
- Garden — an open site where sculpture sits alongside landscape settings.
4. Today Art Museum — 今日美术馆 (Beijing, 2002)
China’s first private non-profit museum: registered as a non-profit organisation rather than a “gallery attached to a business”.
- Trailblazer — in 2006 it became the first private museum to obtain 民办非企业 status, that is, recognition as a non-profit organisation.
- Industrial base — the buildings of a former kiln and factory in Chaoyang, converted into galleries.
- Urban role — one of the anchors of Beijing’s art district near the East Third Ring Road.
5. Power Station of Art (PSA) — 上海当代艺术博物馆 (Shanghai, 2012)
A state museum in the building of a former power station: the first public museum of contemporary art in mainland China.
- State institution — owned by the city, admission free, staff and budget funded from the municipal purse.
- Inherited building — the power station’s structures are preserved: the chimney, the boiler houses and the vast turbine halls.
- Biennale — the principal venue of the Shanghai Biennale.
6. Long Museum — 龙美术馆 (Shanghai, 2012 / 2014)
China’s largest private collection across two buildings: from traditional painting to contemporary installation.
- Private collection — the museum of a family of collectors, focused on twentieth-century Chinese art and the contemporary.
- Two buildings — one in Pudong and one on the West Bund; the latter was designed by Atelier Deshaus and keeps a concrete aesthetic.
- Scale — dozens of exhibitions a year and major retrospectives.
No images: photography of the premises is not published in open sources. Sources: thelongmuseum.org · ArchDaily
7. Yuz Museum — 余德耀美术馆 (Shanghai, 2014)
A private museum in a former airfield hangar: vast spans built for large-scale installation.
- Hangar — a building of the former Longhua airfield: trusses, daylight and a huge volume for major works.
- Collection — the core of a private collection assembled by Yu Deyao: Chinese and international art of the second half of the twentieth century.
- Projects — large solo exhibitions and joint projects with Western institutions.
8. West Bund Museum — 西岸美术馆 (Shanghai, 2019)
A five-year partnership with the Centre Pompidou: the museum became the venue for showing the French collection in China.
- Partnership with the Pompidou — a five-year agreement on a joint programme and the exchange of exhibitions.
- Architecture — a design by David Chipperfield: three stone volumes linked by a foyer with a view of the river.
- District — the axis of cultural institutions on the West Bund along the Huangpu River.
9. HOW Art Museum — 昊美术馆 (Shanghai, 2017)
A private museum that runs at night: exhibitions stay open until late into the night.
- Night museum — extended opening hours as an attempt to fold art into the city’s nocturnal rhythm.
- Collection — a private collection, media art and installation.
- Network — the museum has grown into a small group of venues in Shanghai and Wenzhou.
10. Sifang Art Museum — 四方当代美术馆 (Nanjing, 2013)
A museum in the hills outside Nanjing: a building by Steven Holl and a park of pavilions designed by invited architects.
- Architecture — Steven Holl set the building on a slope, opening a panorama onto the dam and the hills.
- Park — pavilions and exhibitions by invited architects are built around the museum.
- Private foundation — a collector’s holdings and a contemporary art programme.
