Rockbund Art Museum
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Located on the iconic Bund waterfront in Shanghai and echoing the building’s historical heritage as one of the first modern museums in China, Rockbund Art Museum (RAM) is dedicated to its identity as an influential, innovative, sustainable organization devoted to the promotion of top-calibre projects within the field of international contemporary art.
Official site: http://www.rockbundartmuseum.org
History
Rockbund Art Museum is located at the triangle where Suzhou Creek flows into the Huangpu River, an area known as Waitanyuan today. The Museum is housed in the former Royal Asiatic Society building, which was also home to one of China's first modern museums -- the previously Shanghai Museum. Adjacent to the former British Consulate General, this neighborhood was one of the first settlements of foreign expatriates, and a centre of cultural and commercial prosperity.
Established in 1932, the RAS Building was a witness to the history of 19th and 20th Century Sino-European cultural and academic exchange. At its height, this five-story building which contained a lecture hall, a library, and a museum had received over 7000 visits a month. Bringing together the functions of scholarly research, cultural exchange and public education under one roof, this structure was truly unique in Shanghai of that era.
During the half-century of its existence, the RAS Shanghai Museum had established collaborative relationship with world-renown museums, including the British Museum, the New York Metropolitan Museum, and the Musée Guimet in France, a proof of its highly professional standard attained at the time. Through its rich and diverse programmes, it had greatly contributed to the scholarship in related disciplines, cultural exchanges between China and the world, and the dissemination of scientific knowledge in the community. Eventually it had become the largest center for Oriental Studies as well as a widely respected institution for public education.
In 1952, the RAS closed its operation in China. At its request, its collections were transferred to the new Shanghai Municipal Services, which included 20,328 natural specimens, 6,663 historical artifacts and over 14,000 books and documents. They were then reallocated to Shanghai Natural History Museum, the new Shanghai Museum and the Bibliotheca Zi-Ka-Wei (The Xujiahui Library, a special collection of the Shanghai Library), forming the core collection of the three institutions respectively.
Building
In 2005, the Shanghai Bund de Rockefeller Group Master Development Co. Ltd. Obtained the right to develop the area. In respect for its historical and cultural heritage, and as a form of contribution to the community, the developer decided to restore the RAS building, and to renovate it into a public museum for contemporary art. At the helm of the important task of restoration and design planning is the world-renowned British architect David Chipperfield, who had directed the master planning of the Museum Island in Berlin. The building was originally designed by the British design firm Palmer and Turner. In highlighting a harmonious blend of Western architectural elements with Shanghai's cityscape, the firm incorporated traditional Chinese decorative elements in the building and created a unique hybrid architectural style. In an effort to retain the original flavour of the historical building, David Chipperfield has chosen to stay consistent to the original 1932 design in the building’s main exterior facade in the restoration.
To facilitate the functions of modern art museum, the restoration extends the building eastward, creating an open plaza on the ground floor, and a rooftop outdoor terrace on the eastern facade -- the new echoing the old, in a perfect complement. At the same time, to meet the periodic changes necessary for modern art exhibitions, the designer made modifications to the existing space. The biggest renovation is in the skylight design that connects the upper three floors. As for the interior colour scheme, the building's original precedent was followed; yet with light colours in the exhibition spaces punctuated by a few black steel and wooden furniture it provides a clean, serene backdrop for exhibition.