Century-old Bund 27 to open free with art museum
The six-story former Jardine Matheson Building, a listed national heritage structure, was originally built in 1922 as new office for Jardine, Matheson & Co or EWO (Yi He) in Chinese, at one time the largest trading company in China and the East Asia.
Another Bund building, No.27, will open to public free from Thursday with a newly unveiled art museum on its top floor.
The six-story former Jardine Matheson Building, a listed national heritage structure, was built in 1922 as the office of Jardine, Matheson & Co, or EWO (Yi He) in Chinese, at one time the largest trading company in China and East Asia.
Residents and tourists can book a visit to the Modern Renaissance building and the Shanghai Jiushi Bund Art Museum on the sixth floor. The museum was founded by Shanghai Jiushi Group, which aims to create a cluster of art museums in historic Bund buildings.
Many other Bund buildings will open to public for the exhibition, trade and exchange of artworks during the ongoing protective development of the Bund, the group said on Sunday.
An oil painting exhibition about the changes and development of the Bund over the past century is being held at the new art museum. Visitors can watch the paintings along with the delicate details of the preserved stairs, walls and windows of the building. They can also enjoy a breathtaking riverside view of the Bund and the Lujiazui commercial area on the opposite side of the river, the group said.
Other art exhibitions featuring Haipai, or Shanghai's unique east-meet-west cultures, will be held in the museum. Visitors can book through a Wechat app of the museum to visit the exhibitions free of charge.
The six-story former Jardine Matheson Building, a listed national heritage structure, was built in 1922.
The Shanghai Jiushi Bund Art Museum on the sixth floor of the Bund 27 building mainly holds exhibitions about Haipai, or Shanghai's unique east-meet-west cultures.
After purchasing Lot No. 1 on the Bund, Jardine Matheson constructed an office building at the Bund site in 1851. It replaced the former wood and brick structure with the current reinforced concrete building in 1922. It was listed as a protected national heritage building in November 1996.
The building has been well-preserved, featuring a black cast iron gate at the entrance, an elegant hall with marble floor as well as some original mosaic floors upstairs which are embedded with some jade bricks.
The No. 27 building joins another eight historic buildings in the iconic tourist area which are already opened to the public.
These are the Shanghai Archives, Shanghai Telecom Museum, Shanghai Fairmont Peace Hotel, the Bund Historical Memorial Hall, Bank of China, Shanghai Pudong Development Bank, the former British Consulate Building and the Shanghai Federation of Trade Unions.
Reservations to these buildings can be made through WeChat by logging on to http://www.quyou.net/hpzsh/order.aspx. English information is available.
Visitors can scan the QR code to make reservation to visit the Shanghai Jiushi Bund Art Museum and Bund 27 building free.
