Centre Pompidou x West Bund Shanghai

The 25,000 m² building comprises three large spaces and is located on the banks of the Huang Pu river. Designed by British architect David Chipperfield, the museum is organised around a central hall with a three-level atrium. The façades of the different sections consist of recycled glass, giving the complex an iridescent, opaline quality during the day and a prismatic quality at night, in response to the shimmering river.

The ambitious Centre Pompidou × West Bund Museum project is also unique by its very nature. Through this collaboration, the Centre Pompidou will lend the West Bund Museum its expertise in cultural programming whether in terms of museum exhibitions, live performances or cultural outreach. Drawing on the works in its collection, it will develop exclusive exhibitions in connection with the local cultural context, with the aim of presenting and developing cooperation and exchange projects with artists from the Chinese scene. Three of the museum’s galleries are devoted to displaying the Centre Pompidou’s collections. They will present three semi-permanent exhibitions over a five-year period and two temporary exhibitions per year. A special room, called The Box, is dedicated to presenting multimedia installations while a gallery will present in situ projects, featuring young, forward-looking artists. An auditorium is also devoted to conferences, screenings, concerts and performances, and an 800 m² hall will host educational activities.

The aim of this diversified programme at the crossroads of artistic disciplines is to appeal to all types of audiences and offer visitors the keys to modern art and contemporary creation.

With the 'Centre Pompidou x West Bund Museum', the Centre Pompidou has initiated a new project for cultural exchange and cooperation, building on the unique model it developed in Malaga and in Brussels – a model based on working closely with a partner to develop a joint project, aligned with the expectations and specific characteristics of the country involved.