The National Art Museum of China XINHUA

The National Art Museum of China

The National Art Museum of China (NAMOC), originally named the China Arts Gallery, was built in 1962 and opened to the public in 1963. The building was one of the "10 Great Constructions" completed for the 10th anniversary of the founding of the People's Republic of China.

Presently, NAMOC boasts an exhibition area of 8,300 square meters. It's dedicated to displaying, collecting and researching modern and contemporary artistic works in China.

It houses around 100,000 pieces of various collections, most of which originated in the 20th century. However, the museum also honors China's rich history with some pieces from the Ming and Qing dynasties (1368-1911).

You will discover many art disciplines, including traditional Chinese brush painting, oil painting, wood block print, sculpture, watercolor painting, pottery, caricature and puppets. In addition, the institution has made an effort to acquire a number of Western modernist works.

If you can't read Chinese, don't hesitate to rent an English audio guide (available for the permanent exhibitions), since all the explanations about the pieces on display are in Chinese only.

The NAMOC is planning to build the world's largest art gallery next to the National Stadium, also known as the Bird's Nest. The new gallery will cover almost 130,000 square meters of exhibition space.