Beijing, China / Jan 24, 2018
Guardian Art Center, a milestone completion in Beijing, significantly expands Büro Ole Scheeren’s growing international profile and strongly positions Ole Scheeren in the dynamic landscape of cultural architecture.
© Iwan Baan
Following two high profile announcements in late 2017 – Riverpark Tower in Frankfurt and Empire City in Ho Chi Minh City – the completion of the Guardian Art Center in Beijing marks the first chapter in a series of large-scale completions in 2018, soon to be followed by DUO in Singapore and MahaNakhon in Bangkok.
Built on the doorstep of Beijing’s historic Forbidden City, the Guardian Art Center is a new hybrid cultural institution that reconciles the city’s traditional urban fabric and thriving metropolitan energy with a diverse contemporary arts programming.
The Guardian Art Center is the world’s first ever custom-built auction house, creating a new typology of a hybrid arts institution in the heart of Beijing. Offering museum quality galleries and state of the art conservation facilities, the building is also a community resource with restaurants, a hotel, flexible events spaces, and integrated public transport infrastructure.
“The Guardian Art Center is a lot more than just a museum,” says Ole Scheeren, principal and chief designer of Büro Ole Scheeren. “It’s not a hermetic institution, but rather an acknowledgment of the hybrid state of contemporary culture. It is a Chinese puzzle of interlocking cultural spaces and public functions that fuse art and culture with events and lifestyle.”
© Iwan Baan