West Bund Museum and Pompidou Center inaugurate second five-year exhibition collaboration

The inauguration ceremony for the second phase of the five-year exhibition collaboration between the West Bund Museum and the Pompidou Center took place at the Pompidou Center in Paris on Monday.

Shanghai Mayor Gong Zheng and Pompidou Center President Laurent Le Bon jointly unveiled the new stage of collaboration.

This partnership dates back to 2019, when the West Bund Museum and the Pompidou Center signed a formal five-year exhibition collaboration agreement, which was included for the first time in the China-France Joint Statement.

In 2023, a new phase of the collaboration was signed in the presence of both countries' foreign ministers and, once again, featured in the joint statement.

Since 2019, the two institutions have organized nearly 30 exhibitions that have attracted more than 2 million visitors and showcased more than 1,200 precious works from the Pompidou Center's collection.

The exhibitions not only systematically illustrated the history of modern and contemporary art but also revealed the development and evolution of global art.

"Kandinsky's works were exhibited alongside ancient Chinese bronzes; Western surrealist paintings engaged in a dialogue with Chinese calligraphy and painting; the development of the abstract art movement in China was compared to that in the West. The cultures of both countries intersected here, showcasing the deep heritage and unique charm of these two cultures," said Chen Anda, West Bund Museum's executive director.

In this new phase of the Pompidou Center X West Bund Museum Project, the collaboration will adopt a "century-long" perspective, focusing on the pioneering art movements of the past 100 years, fostering and inspiring new creativity in the new era. The permanent exhibition will introduce a new trilogy with the themes of "Landscape", "Realism", and "Formalism", offering fresh perspectives on the evolution of modern and contemporary art.

Meanwhile, the special collaborative exhibitions will explore the cultural ecosystems of China and France in greater depth, tracing key figures and works in art history while generating localized reflections and new inspirations.