Sunday, 17th September 2023

1:45 pm Registration

2:00 pm to 4:00 pm

The legacy of private art museums in China can often be traced to the urban designs conceived by commercial real estate companies. To re-generate dilapidating areas of Shanghai, the construction cranes toil in swift successions to build a community of high-rise offices, residential apartments and shopping malls, yet unfortunately with little regard for historic architectural preservations. Recognizing culture as an essential component in the blueprint of urban development and gentrification, many cities rely on the institutions of museums, performance theaters and symphony halls as unique landmarks for social gathering that are able draw people from nearby and afar.

This special segment on Art and Urban Design, led by the Art Focus Convener and Art Historian Julie Chun, will examine the recently resuscitated ancient town of Panlong in Qingpu where the Yuz Museum has relocated. Famed for its Xin Tian Di project, the Shui On Land has injected new life into the dormant town of Panlong with contemporary restorations while retaining the historical imprint of the former site. Reviving the greenery of the town's natural waterways, paddy fields and bamboo forests, the traditional buildings have been transformed as an enticing commercial hub and travel destination for locals and tourists within the close reach of the Hongqiao Airport and Railway Station.

Previously located at the West Bund water front, the Yuz Museum was one of the earliest private contemporary art museums in Shanghai to integrate art into the then-emerging areas of the city. Having fulfilled its role at West Bund, a district that came to be resolutely established as an art and design cluster, and recently transitioning into a tech and Artificial Intelligence hub, the Yuz Museum has relocated to Panlong to reinvigorate the ancient city with contemporary culture and international art. We will begin our session at the museum and then expand out to the water town to explore the multi-dimensions of complexities associated with urban gentrification.