It's International Museum Day today and we check in with two of the city's most impressive new museums that are transforming the former Xuhui Riverside industrial area. Included in The Economist's list of Five Museums to see in 2014, the Long Museum West Bund and Yuz Museum are ringing in their one-year anniversaries with impressive exhibitions that exemplify their founder's grandiose ideas.
Spanning over 33,000 square meters, the Long Museum West Bund is China’s largest privately owned museum. It’s the latest feather in the cap for super-collectors Liu Yiqian and Wang Wei who, in April, purchased a Southern Song dynasty vase for USD14.7 million and had already opened the 10,000 square-meter Long Museum in Pudong in 2013.
Their grand vision of “one city, two museums” typifies the Mainland elite’s growing interest in contemporary art. Already, the Long Museum West Bund has welcomed Prince William and has hosted exhibitions showing rarities from its collection like the Chenghua chicken cup, which Liu famously paid USD36 million for and promptly took photos drinking from it.
For their one-year-anniversary, they’re toasting one of Shanghai’s most important contemporary artists, Xu Zhen. The solo exhibition encompasses the career of the China Contemporary Art Award winner for ‘Best Artist,’ including new works created by his world-renowned MadeIn Company. To commemorate the milestone, we chatted with the museum’s director and co-founder Wang Wei. For more, check out our feature on the Long Museum West Bund's opening.
Congratulations on your one year anniversary. How would you describe the first year of the Long Museum West Bund? Did it meet expectations?
I had put all my energy in the preparation of the opening of the Long Museum West Bund. After the opening exhibition, I was actually worried about the future of this museum. What would the exhibition plan be like after the opening show? As the founder and director, I needed to take that responsibility to have the museum move on. I traveled and met many good and professional artists and curators home and abroad. Now we have made an exhibition plan that goes up to 2018.
The opening of the Long Museum West Bund is part of the transformation of the Xuhui Riverside. How did this affect the musuem during the past year and how has the area changed?
The West Bund is like Shanghai’s version of London’s South Bank. It’s a place full of energy and possibilities. The opening of the Long Museum West Bund and the Yuz Museum brought great change to the area. There are plans for the neighborhood to be a center for culture and art. Some artists are moving their studios here and Dreamworks will open a theater. In general, I have great hope for the West Bund.
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For your one year anniversary, why did you decide to host a solo exhibition by Xu Zhen?
I am Shanghainese. I was born and grew up in Shanghai. My husband, Mr. Liu, built his business here. I love this city. When we began our collection years ago, we started with Chinese artists that we knew well, especially Shanghai artists. When it came time for the Long Museum West Bund’s first anniversary, we wanted to do a solo exhibition of a young Shanghai artist. I though Xu Zhen would be a good choice. His work is smart and avant-garde, bold and direct. By choosing him for our one-year anniversary, it also shows the museum’s ambitions for the future.
What makes the Long Museum West Bund distinct from other museums?
The Long Museum was founded based on its great collection that goes from classics to modern art. We will always devote space to every period of our collection and curate exhibitions around it. At the same time, we want to invite top artists and curators to our museum and build our museum as a communication platform for art and culture.
// Xu Zhen: Solo Exhibition runs until May 24, Tues-Sun, 10am-6pm, RMB50. Long Museum West Bund, 3398 Longteng Lu, by Fenggu Lu 龙腾路3398, 近丰谷路 (6422 7636, www.thelongmuseum.org)
// On June 6, Ding Yi’s What’s Left to Appear will open.
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