What China’s best new cultural spaces have in common: the light touch
The cultural venues emerging in China today are quieter, lighter and more deeply rooted than those of recent decades
I served on the Frame Awards 2026 grand jury for the “institutions” categories. Three of the five projects shortlisted for the “cultural space” award were in mainland China: My Museum Beijing, Anji Hood and the Huishan Ancestral Hall Museum in Wuxi. China had 7,046 registered museums at the end of 2024, welcoming 1.49 billion visits that year.
Once a nation has built cultural venues on that scale, the question shifts from how many to what kind. The answers now emerging are quieter, lighter and more deeply rooted than the icons of recent decades.
